500 N. Main

Railroad Savings & Loan Building, 500 N Main, 1925

Architect: Samuel Greenebaum, Newton Native

NR NK

This elegant building is in the the Renaissance (Beaux Arts) style. A monumental building faced with cut limestone, it has numerous classical oornamentations. Most prominent are the high Corinthian pilasters, the tall arched windows with keystones topped with lions' heads and the overall symmetrical proportions.

Samuel Greenebaum, the architect, grew up in Newton. He was a partner in the Kansas City firm, Greenebaum, Hardy & Schumacher. As a student in Paris, he fell in love with the Beaux Arts architecture and that influence can be found in Newton. He designed several other buildings including the Ripley Hotel (demolished) Lincoln School on W 5th, and the Newton High School (today Santa Fe Middle school on W 7th).

Railroad Savings & Loan Building was organized in 1896 by a group of railroad men who believed the area needed a home financing agency. It was located in various buildings on Main street before taking ownership of the building at 500 N. Main in March 1915. At one time, the Railroad Savings & Loan was one of the largest financial institutions in Kansas.

The original building on this lot was home to Midland Bank. Built in approximately 1886, the brick and limestone structure helped frame the east side of the 500 Main Block. The north corner was home to an equally impressive structure which housed the First National Bank (526 N Main).

(Billie Wilson, Kristine Schmucker)