June 2025.
Finishing up the rest of downtown DeKalb is the west side of Lincoln Highway. This area is dense with Gilded Age architecture.
First National Bank
This building was designed as a Queen Anne structure, similar to its eastern neighbor. It was built in 1891 with a corner turret and two storefronts. In 1917, it was altered into the present Beaux-Arts form, which features Ionic pilasters and a shallow pediment atop the center of the facade.
DeKalb uses the building as its city hall today, as the bank has since departed. It has been slightly altered, namely the removal of the balusters along the parapet and the replacement of the windows, but it is otherwise intact. The DeKalb architecture survey considers it eligible for the National Register of Historic Places.
161 East Lincoln Highway
This Italianate was built in 1876, and its storefront dates to the 1920s. It has had its cornice removed and the windows reduced in size.
157 East Lincoln Highway
This late Queen Anne was built c. 1890s, and it features Romanesque vaulting and rustication. The fancy cornice and oriel window are intact, but the windows and storefronts have been altered.
150-156 East Lincoln Highway
A heavily altered late Italianate, this building was completed in 1892. The storefronts are highly modified with poorly-considered designs and the masonry has been painted.
153 East Lincoln Highway/The Reliable
Another Queen Anne, this one dates to the 1890s. The ornament has fancy “painted lady” colors, but the masonry has unfortunately been painted in tandem. However, the old tile floor is intact:
I’m not sure what “The Reliable” was, but they were an early tenant (and perhaps who the building was constructed for). I want to say a farm tools/hardware store.
149 East Lincoln Highway
Identical in design to 157, it’s not too much of a stretch to assume this dates to the same time. Same oriel window, vaults, and massing, just slightly different ornamentation.
142 East Lincoln Highway
A late 1890s Beaux-Arts design, the windows and base have been heavily altered. However, the masonry and cornice are intact.
143-145 East Lincoln Highway
A simpler Queen Anne design, the eye-popping ornament on its neighbors is subdued into simple rectangular panels on the oriel windows. The dark rusticated masonry is interesting, too.
Knights of Columbus Building
As indicated on the cornice, this building was built for the Knights of Columbus. It is a Beaux-Arts design with Chicago School characteristics, such as the central window. The third floor’s loggia is original, but the wall behind has been altered.
137 East Lincoln Highway
The last of the “painted ladies,” this one matches its neighbors in expression but has a brick facade and the typical garland ornament seen elsewhere. It retains most of its original storefront, and the smaller window seems original too. Here’s a look at the whole block:
…as well as a historic view:
(DeKalb Architecture Survey)
Note the now-missing historic windows, balustrade, and storefronts across this old photo.
Broughton Building
A later Commercial style building, this one dates to the 1920s. Note the simple piers, brickwork designs, and Chicago windows. I’m giving it the name based on its cornice, but it could be wrong.
Boardman & Broughton Building
This building dates to roughly the same time as its neighbor, being built in 1916, and the name plates are identical. Beyond those features, it is very simple architecturally, the flat facade only broken by concrete lintels and a small cornice.
Old DeKalb Theatre [demolished]
This fanciful Renaissance Revival theater was located about where Barb City Bagels stands now. It later became Montgomery Ward’s with its neighbor. I think the facade may have been altered into a Commercial style design in the 1920s or 1930s, as prior to demolition it was identical to the adjacent Fisk Garage.
Fisk Garage/Seco Building [demolished]
This old Commercial style building had many uses, including car dealerships, a department store (Montgomery Ward), and various bars. It had heavily deteriorated by the 2010s, as a tenant described its lack of insulation and heavy water damage. It has since been demolished.
Masonic Lodge/Daily Chronicle Building
Though altered today, this 1889 Italianate was used by the Freemasons. It was built by Joseph Glidden, and it was also associated with the DeKalb County Farm Bureau. It housed the Daily Chronicle (now Kane County Chronicle) for a period.
A clock memorializing WWI stands west:
Old Post Office [demolished]
Historic photo of the post office. (DeKalb Architecture Survey)
This exuberant post office was built in 1908 at the corner of 1st Street and Lincoln Highway. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places, but it was demolished in 1995. It may be my favorite DeKalb building; it’s a shame it is now lost.
105 North 1st Street
An 1897 Queen Anne house built of masonry, the house marks the beginning of where DeKalb’s residential district used to be. It was sold to the Elks in 1922, who later restored the building in the 1980s-1990s. They seem to have since moved, and the house is used by various small businesses today.
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