Left Oblique	Lower Facade Main St.	Upper Facade Main St.	Cornice Detail	Entrance Main St.

(Barringer Building) Commonly known as the Barringer Building, Columbia’s first skyscraper was completed in October 1903 for the National Loan and Exchange Bank. The twelve-story Commercial style building is brick with rusticated stone on the lower two floors and stone detailing around the top floor. The 184 foot tall building is supported by a steel frame. Brickwork has a horizontally striped appearance: between rows of four bricks are recessed rows two bricks high. The twelfth floor is brick with stone keystones over windows and stone panels on either side of end windows. Stonework includes garland festoons and an ornamented torus under windows. John Cain of Columbia was the contractor and the design has been attributed to James Brite. Edwin Wales Robertson, president of the Loan and Exchange Bank, as well as a prosperous Columbia developer and entrepreneur is credited with the idea of erecting the building. In 1893, Robertson established the Canal Dime Savings Bank. By 1903 he had purchased controlling interests in two other banks to form the Loan and Exchange Bank, at the time the largest in South Carolina. The present name comes from the Barringer Corporation which owned the building from 1953 until 1974. The building was renovated in the 1960s. Listed in the National Register March 2, 1979.

View the complete text of the nomination form for this National Register property. In addition, the Historic Resources of Columbia includes historical background information for this and other related National Register properties.

Most National Register properties are privately owned and are not open to the public. The privacy of owners should be respected. Not all properties retain the same integrity as when originally documented and listed in the National Register due to changes and modifications over time.

Images and texts on these pages are intended for research or educational use. Please read our statement on use and reproduction for further information on how to obtain a photocopy or how to cite an item.