Raleigh’s Old State Bank: A Memory Set on a Firm Foundation [updated]
Squeezed onto a narrow lot between the monolithic Baker Sunday school wing of Christ Church and the five story Capital Apartments on New Bern Avenue is Raleigh’s oldest surviving brick building — the State Bank of North Carolina.  When erected in 1813, it was the only structure on this block. In order to save it from demolition when the Baker wing was built, the venerable old building was moved 100 feet to its current location in 1968.
The top photo shows the State Bank in 1966 on its original, solid granite block foundation. The bottom photo shows the building in 2009 at its current site.
The State Bank building was constructed in 1813 as the central office for the first state-sponsored banking institution in North Carolina, which had been founded in 1810. It was modeled in the Federal architectural style with imposing matching neo-classical porticos attached to the east and west facades. Access to the banking rooms was gained through an entryway on the street-side of the building. It continued to function as a banking facility until the Civil War.
Christ Church, Raleigh’s definitive Gothic Revival masterpiece, was built adjacent to the bank building in 1853. Twenty years later, in 1873, the church acquired the old bank for use as its rectory. Over the course of the next 50 years, additions were made to Christ Church, including a parish house and chapel in 1913, and a Sunday school wing in the 1930s. This created a small enclosed courtyard, of sorts,  on the small lawn that separated the bank, the church parish house and the church itself. Narrow brick walkways crisscrossed the verdant and quiet spot.
The courtyard as it appeared in 1965.
When my family attended Christ Church in the 1960s, the building was being used as a Sunday school classroom facility. It was during these years that I became enamored with the old State Bank. My best friend in Sunday school and I loved to explore spaces one was not supposed to go into, and the bank building was no exception. We climbed the creaky wooden spiral staircase to the attic once and poked around, but scampered out when we heard voices coming from the floor below. [Note: I have added a photo of the attic stair at the end of this post.] We went back one other time time but found the door had been locked. On another occasion we ventured into the dark and dank, stone-walled basement — there was an old steam-heat boiler furnace down there — but we got spooked in the darkness and fled back up the stairs, unfortunately cutting short our exploratory foray.
The east portico in 1965.
Then, in the late ’60s, the church decided it needed to expand its physical plant in order to accomodate a growing congregation. In order to do this, the old 1930s Sunday school addition and my beloved State Bank had to go. The plan created an uproar among many in the congregation, and the debate dragged on for months. Ultimately, the pro-expansion faction prevailed and site preparation for construction began. The building committee worked hard to find a buyer for the State Bank building so that its demolition might avoided. North Carolina National Bank acquired the building and moved it 100 feet to its present location in 1968. Although their adaptive restoration would probably not meet the standards of preservationists today, at least the noble structure had been spared. The State Employees Credit Union now occupiis the building.
These are some of the photos I took with my trusty Kodak Instamatic of the State Bank before and after its move.
After the move in 1968, State Bank being stabilized at its new site. Capital Apartments building in the background.
Demolition of the old (Haywood) Sunday school wing. The original site of the State Bank was in the extreme right foreground of this view. The house in the background, itself, was eventually moved to a new site in the 200 block of New Bern Ave., across from Haywood Hall.
Another 1968 view of stabilzation.
This is the New Bern Ave. facade, showing the street-side doorway which had been bricked up since 1873. The lunette windows in the pedimented gable are characteristic of the Federal style.
Same view in 2009, with the doorway restored.
The north facade after the move.
North facade today. The shortened window resulted from the installation of a drive-through bank window (since bricked up) by NCNB in 1968.
The Baker wing as it looked when new. The State Bank originally stood exactly in this spot
The Baker wing today, with the relocated State Bank to the right.
The east portico as seen from a balcony of the Capital Apartments.
The west portico. At the far left can be seen the bricked-up former drive-through bank window.
This is the spiral staircase I climbed to the attic from the second floor. The photo was taken in the early 1960s, when the State Bank was being used for Sunday school classes. The door on the left leads to the upper level of the east portico. (photo credit: HABS)
06/10/2009
Great story! It’s nice to get some of the history of these old buildings. I will definately take more notice of this building next time I pass by it now knowing a little bit of the history. I like that first construction shot with the playground equipment in the front – I haven’t seen a jungle gym like that in years!
Do you know if they used the salvaged the original foundation of the building and if it still has a basement at the current location?
Thanks!
06/10/2009
Thanks for your comments Pineview. Glad you like the story.
As far as the foundation on the relocated building — as I noted, the adaptive restoration would probably not meet the standards of preservationists today. A basement was dug at the new site, but the foundation was poured with concrete and laid with cement block. The workers then hacked apart the beautiful original granite blocks and simply veneered the cement block foundation with the pieces of granite. The result looks absolutely unauthentic. The brickwork of the walls was “restored” in places, as well, and it too is a mess. You’ll see what I mean when you pay a site visit.
If you want to see what State Bank’s original stone foundation looked like, check out Haywood Hall in the 200 block of New Bern Ave. The masonry is simply beautiful!
06/11/2009
Cool. Thanks for the update, RB!
06/11/2009
i really like the staircase inside that building. it is really nice!
06/11/2009
Thanks Raleigh Boy.
I’ve been eagerly awaiting your latest post and you did not disappoint!
06/12/2009
Devin — yes, I think the curving attic stair is cantilevered. Maybe the SECU folks will let me go back up and take a look!
I added a photo of it to the end of my post.
NCSU — Thanks for the kind words. Sorry if I’ve kept you waiting!
06/19/2009
I too grew up in and around Christ Church and the rectory. I remember that my mother would go to tea with the Rector’s wife and I would play with the Rector’s children.
We would retreat up the staircase to the attic; I remember it as precipitously steep. There was a huge electric train setup that ran through all three rooms.
There was a scuttle with a four or five step ladder to the roof. Some wise person – a rectoral paterfamilias, I suppose – had nailed some boards from a crate across the opening, but the wire mesh glass could still be seen.
We would push a chest of drawers up against the door, run the trains at full speed, and thus be deaf to the entreaties of our parents when teatime was done.
[a little off topic] Or else we would go over to the church, slide down the coal chute into the basement coal bin, and then explore for the body of the bishop. Mercifully we never found him. [grin] When it was time to go, the sexton would have to be found to let us out. After the coal bin, we were blacker by far than he.
When the building had been moved and was being restored, the hacked-up brickwork in the middle of the building showed where the vault had been.
The spiral stair originally went from the first floor to the attic in the back third of the present first floor hall. The middle third was the vault and the front third was a little office with a corner fireplace.
The restoration was not up to present standards, but we must be very grateful for what we still have.
06/30/2009
Richard — Thanks for sharing your memories of this mystical building. I think the old State Bank was converted to Sunday school use in the mid 1950s at the beginning of the tenure of Rev. Dan Sapp as rector and was no longer used as the rectory thereafter.
My pal and I also explored the basement of Christ Church looking for the tomb of Bishop Ravenscroft. We never found it of course — we always got spooked before getting very far into the dark depths of the undercroft. During a meticulous restoration of the church about 10 years ago, the bishop’s grave was finally located and was restored.