2027. 221 W. Walnut - Old City Building

221 West Walnut Street (images: from 1907, 1916, 1920 and 1935 respectively) Now listed in the National Register of Historic Places, the grand City Building was completed in 1894 for approximately $27,000. The first city offices were located upstairs on the west side, over the first Kokomo Fire Department location. The building was designed by Wing & Mahurin, architects from Fort Wayne, Indiana, in the Richardsonian Romanesque style (inspired by the works of famed architect Henry Hobson Richardson). The old City Building was vacated in the early 1980s after construction of the present City Hall at Sycamore and Union streets. Long considered to be one of the area’s most heroic structures, it’s easy to immediately recognize its massive stone walls, towers that extend above the roof, and the recessed doors and windows that give it a cavernous look and define its style. Outstanding Design: Richardsonian Romanesque Year Built: 1893