Farmers and Merchants Bank Building

The Farmers and Merchants Bank Building, constructed in 1917, is also known locally as "The Wedge" because of its flatiron shape. The bank building was constructed during a period when the city had matured from a small train stop with hundreds of residents in the mid-to late-nineteenth century to a small town of roughly 2,000 people. Farmers and Merchants Bank commissioned the building to house its modern banking rooms, but it also housed several storefronts and offices that spurred commercial growth in the town. Although the bank succumbed to the issues related to the Great Depression, the structure continued to play an integral role in Monroe City's overall commercial development. Moreover, the local landmark ostensibly marked the entrance from the south into the downtown once proclaimed by locals as the "Times Square" of Monroe City. 

Monroe City originally went by the name of Monroe Station as the town was founded along with the development of a railroad line, similar to numerous nineteenth-century towns. The Hannibal-St. Joseph Railroad, the first railroad to cross Missouri, laid tracks with city development in mind; railroads needed towns for refueling, shift changes, and other matters. E.B. Talcott, who partnered with John Duff in constructing the railway, platted Monroe City, built a hotel in the new town, and coordinated a public land auction for residential property in July 1857.

The Hannibal-St. Joseph rail line arrived in Monroe Station (Monroe City) in 1857 and traversed the state by 1859, but the U.S. Civil War, which started in 1860, curtailed the development of many towns along the rail line, including Monroe City. The town survived the pause, and passenger and freight traffic increased substantially after the war, which allowed the community to grow and officially incorporate as Monroe City in 1869. 

By 1871, the town benefited from a second railroad line: The Missouri, Kansas & Texas Railroad Company. The two rail lines through town allowed Monroe City to develop into a pivotal shipping point for agricultural commodities and, consequently, a significant retail and commercial marketplace supported by banks to meet commercial needs of Monroe City and the surrounding residents. The first bank in Monroe City, the Monroe City Bank, opened its doors in 1875, and it remained the town's only bank until Farmers and Merchants Bank opened in 1887. 

Farmers and Merchants Bank opened during a period when the town grew substantially. From 1884 to 1889, Monroe City's commercial district expanded, and the number of brick buildings in town more than doubled. From 1880 to 1890, the town's population grew by more than 180%, from 640 to 1,830, much of that occurring in the last half of the decade. A few years later, at the turn of the twentieth century in 1900, Monroe City stood as Monroe County's largest community with 1,929 residents (Paris, the county seat, had a population of nearly 1,400 people). 

Farmers and Merchants Bank first conducted business in a two-story brick building on the southwest corner of Main and Summer Streets, which opened in 1888. The bank's name speaks to its purpose: to serve farmers and retailers. The bank's president, Charles McCarty, owned the Monroe City Mill and a large farm. Meanwhile, the bank cashier, William R.P. Jackson, operated a clothing store in Monroe City before deciding to work at the bank. The brick building sat on a wedge-shaped intersection. The unique road configuration speaks to the influence of the railroad. While Monroe City's plat consists of a typical urban grid pattern, the overall layout is tied to the railway lines instead of being laid in cardinal directions, except for Main Street, which runs north and south. Hence, the intersection of the grid pattern and Main Street results in several triangular lots. 

By 1916, Farmers and Merchants Bank had purchased the entire wedge-shaped where the historic building now stands. The bank decided to demolish its current home and construct a new, modern structure in its place; the now-historic Farmers and Merchants Bank Building ("The Wedge") opened one year later, in 1917. 

It is the only Classical Revival style commercial building in downtown Monroe City and the only flatiron type building (named for its shape, which resembles a heavy iron for pressing clothes) in Northeast Missouri. When completed in 1917, the local newspaper deemed it the "Times Square" of Monroe City.  The interior design included beamed ceilings, marble tile, and mahogany furniture, while the exterior's two prominent features consisted of a clock (no longer present) and an eye-catching canted entrance covered in glazed terra cotta tile. The exterior's glazed terra cotta tile and dentiled cornice speak to its Classical Revival design, the preferred choice for banks during the early twentieth century because of its Roman Empire inspiration; it conveyed power, success, and stability. 

The bank's location served as a gateway from the south into Monroe City's business (downtown) district. And, its location drew various businesses to occupy its 1888 and 1917 buildings. The second floor of the bank's original two-story building held a mixture of offices, including the Farmers and Merchants Telephone Exchange in 1909. The new building, a Gothic Revival brick building clad in terra cotta, popular for the era, included two extensive retail spaces in addition to the bank on the ground level along with fourteen large office rooms and a dedicated space for the telephone company. Several influential companies occupied "The Wedge," including a million-dollar oil company, the Mid-Vale Oil & Refining Co.

The 1917 structure materialized one year after another bank, Citizens Bank, opened in Monroe City. It's possible Farmers and Merchants felt it necessary to rebuild with a modern facility to communicate stability and success, aided by the aforementioned Classical Revival style. The bank indeed enjoyed healthy growth and financial success by the early 1920s. But, in an intriguing twist, numerous bank closures in Missouri during the mid-1920s pushed Farmers and Merchants and Citizen's Bank to merge in 1926 and become Union Savings Bank. And, the new Union Savings matured into one of the strongest banking establishments in the local region by 1930. Unfortunately, despite its success, the "Crash of '29" and the Great Depression proved too much for the new bank, forcing it to close its doors on December 17, 1930. 

Still, the building remained an essential commercial hub in Monroe City for multiple years after the bank's closure. For instance, former bank president J.D. Robey purchased the building and moved a portion of his business, the Robey Appliance Store, into the building (which remained there until 1965). The US Post Office took over the former banking rooms from 1940 to 1960, and the second floor operated as the Baldwin Hotel during the 1930s and 1940s. 

Two fires, one in the 1970s and another in 2009, damaged the historic building. The 2009 fire proved far more significant and almost ruined the building, but restoration efforts saved the building by 2013. It has since functioned as a bar. But, its historical value remains intact, reminding onlookers of the significance of railroad companies and their creation of towns and Monroe City's maturation from a mere train stop to a small town.

Huff, Patricia. "Registration Form: Farmers and Merchants Bank Building." National Register of Historic Places. mostateparks.com. 2011. https://mostateparks.com/sites/mostateparks/files/Farmers%20and%20Merchants%20Bank%20Bldg.pdf.

Olmanson, Eric. "US Government Land Grants: 'A pleasure to break the wild prairie," in Promotion and Transformation of Landscapes along the CB&Q Railroad from the University of Wisconsin and published on The Environment & Society Portal. 2020. https://www.environmentandsociety.org/sites/default/files/downloads/cbqrailroad2011-version1_0.pdf.  

White, Richard. Railroaded: The Transcontinentals and the Making of Modern America. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 2011.