Facade	Main Entrance	Carved Lion Head

Columbia’s only surviving example of the Richardson Romanesque style of architecture, the Canal Dime Savings Bank building was constructed sometime between 1892 and 1895. The unaltered second and third floor façade is typical of the nineteenth century style with rough cut granite, rounded arches, and an asymmetrical design with a heavy sculptural quality. The architectural firm of W. B. Smith Whaley and Company designed the building at 1530 Main Street for the Canal Dime Savings Bank. The design could be the work of either Whaley, a prominent Columbia architect, builder and cotton industrialist, or his partner, Gadsden E. Shand. Subsequently owned by the Loan and Exchange Bank of South Carolina, the State Bank and Trust Company, and the People’s Bank of Columbia, the building was acquired by Eckerd’s Drug Store in 1936. It is a three-story brick building with a granite façade and red barrel tile roof. The building’s first floor, totally altered after 1936, originally featured a slightly projecting arched doorway with a high entablature on its right side. Listed in the National Register November 25, 1980.

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.

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