Fresno Republican Printery building (The Archive on Kern)

The building at 2120-2134 Kern St. dates to late 1919 and housed extra space for The Fresno Morning Republican newspaper's job printing division. In early 1920, some of the printing equipment that the newspaper had used since its founding in 1876 was moved into this job printing annex. The front of the building contained offices and additional workspace in a mezzanine level. Commercial printing jobs continued to be produced here into the 1970s. The Fresno Republican Printery building became a National Register of Historic Places listing in 1979. New owners, The Klein Group, undertook restorations in the late 1970s to convert part of the building into a restaurant and the rest into office spaces or art galleries. The Downtown Club, a nightclub and restaurant, was housed in the west end of the building (2120 Kern) until a few years ago. The Fresno City & County Historical Society purchased the vacant building in 2023 and moved into part of the building in 2024; "The Archive on Kern" will showcase local historical artifacts in the new gallery spaces, but the archives are not yet open to the public.

The Fresno Morning Republican newspaper was founded in 1876.

An announcement in a printing trade journal in early November 1919 stated that plans were complete for building a "fireproof printing plant" in Fresno for the Republican Printery. The estimated cost of the 80 by 140-foot building was $40,000. Several weeks later, the journal mentioned that contracts for the project had been awarded. Glass & Butner, architects with offices in San Francisco and Fresno (in the Cory Building), were chosen. Architect Edward Glass was the son of the business manager of the newspaper, William Glass; Edward and Charles Butner studied architecture together at the University of Pennsylvania. The brickwork for the all-brick building was awarded to the R. Pederson Co. of Fresno by November 1919.

The newspaper was sold in the early 1920s to two Osborn brothers and was split into separate parts. The newspaper printing division continued at Tulare St. and Van Ness Ave. as the Fresno Republican Publishing Company, under president George A. Osborn and vice-president Chase S. Osborn; the publishers and printers also included a photo engraving department by 1923. The job printing division, under William Glass as president, operated as the Fresno Republican Printery Company at 2130 Kern St.; they were the printers, binders, stationers, and publishers of the Cooperative Californian. L. H. Camy worked as the printery company's secretary in 1923, and G. E. Wenzel served as the buyer. Leon Camy was the son-in-law of William Glass and took over the printery after Glass became a city official in 1925.

The Fresno Republican Printery Company was located in the midst of a region full of producers of raisins and peaches. They advertised in a California fruit growers' trade journal in 1924 that they carried "a complete line of fruit tickets for cutting shed use," with large supplies always on hand. The company billed themselves as the largest job printing plant in California, apart from San Francisco and Los Angeles; they specialized in printing, bookbinding, filing equipment, and loose-leaf binders.

Job printing for commercial clients continued in this annex on Kern St. into the 1970s, under Leon Camy, using vintage equipment that became obsolete. The Klein Group announced plans in the late 1970s to adapt the historical printery building to new uses. About half of the 16,000-square-foot building was planned to house a restaurant; the rest was to become office space or art galleries, using the tall windows and skylights that let in so much light for the printing operations. The new design was drawn up by San Francisco architect Joseph Esherick, taking care to respect the historical nature of the building during restoration and renovation.

In recent years, the property has been offered for lease as three separate suites. The restaurant space (2120 Kern), formerly occupied by the Downtown Club (a nightclub and restaurant) and The Republican (a restaurant), featured a commercial kitchen and a bar. The Downtown Club was originally private but later opened to the public, including events rentals; they displayed some of the vintage printing equipment in the dining room. The middle section included the mezzanine and windows overlooking Kern St. The third section included cafe space and a private office.

The Fresno City & County Historical Society was established in 1915. In 2023, the group purchased the former printery building for $1.05 million. By spring 2024, the group had set up "The Archive on Kern" in the restaurant space. A reception was held there in early May to kick off Historic Preservation Month. The "AoK" will display historical artifacts in its galleries and will sometimes serve patrons from the preserved bar. The society's archives are not yet open to the public, as of May 2024.

A. F. Lewis & Company. Printing Trades Blue Book. Edition Western. San Francisco, CA. A. F. Lewis & Company, 1923.

Anonymous. General News: San Francisco. The American Printer. Vol. 69 No. 9. November 5th, 1919. 53 - 53.

Anonymous. General News: Pacific Coast. The American Printer. Vol. 69 No. 10. November 20th, 1919. 46 - 46.

Anonymous. Advance News, Official Proposals, Etc.: Factories & Warehouses. Building and Engineering News Vol. 19 No. 41. January 8th, 1919. 7 - 7.

Anonymous. Contracts Awarded, Liens, Acceptances, Etc.: Building Contracts, Fresno County. Building and Engineering News Vol. 19 No. 48. November 26th, 1919. 22 - 22.

Boese Commercial. Lease Brochure: 2120 Kern St. Fresno, CA, Boese Commercial. April 1st, 2023. Accessed May 7th, 2024. https://buildout-production.s3.amazonaws.com/documents/551764/c68a06c98c9cdc86c6313fbfedb63b8fa1fe0147/doc.pdf.

Downtown Fresno Partnership. Historic Preservation Month Kick-off Celebration! At 2120 Kern St, Downtown Fresno: Events. April 1st, 2024. Accessed May 7th, 2024. https://www.downtownfresno.org/do/historic-preservation-month-kick-off-celebration-at-2120-kern-st.

Fresno Republican Printery Company. Growers Attention. The Associated Grower Vol. 6 No. 8. August 1st, 1924. 29 - 29.

Fresno Republican Printery Company. Printing. Bookbinding.... The Associated Grower Vol. 6 No. 11. November 1st, 1924. 4 - 4.

Jaramillo, Estela Anahi. Fresno's Former Downtown Club to Debut as Archive on Kern for Arthop, The Business Journal. May 1st, 2024. Accessed May 7th, 2024. https://thebusinessjournal.com/fresnos-former-downtown-club-to-debut-as-archive-on-kern-for-arthop/.

LoopNet. Commercial Real Estate: 2120-2134 Kern St., Fresno, CA 93721, LoopNet. January 1st, 2024. Accessed May 7th, 2024. https://www.loopnet.com/Listing/2120-2134-Kern-St-Fresno-CA/8398825/.

Powell, John Edward. NRHP nomination of Fresno Republican (Job Printing Annex), 2130 Kern St., Fresno, California. National Register of Historic Places. Washington, DC. National Park Service, 1978.

Wedding Wire. Country Club Weddings in Fresno: The Downtown Club, Wedding Wire. March 20th, 2013. Accessed May 7th, 2024. https://www.weddingwire.com/biz/the-downtown-club-fresno/e241c7f906b7575d.html.