A view of the Champaign County Courthouse in Urbana. The courthouse was designed by Joseph W. Royer (1873-1954), himself a University of Illinois School of Architecture graduate.
Construction of the courthouse began in the Spring of 1900, with the dedication in August, 1901. The architectural style is Richardsonian Romanesque with red sandstone and a mottled brick exterior. Cost of the project was $150,000. The addition seen on the east (left) was finished in 2002. The Courthouse is a contributing building within the Downtown Urbana Historic District listed in 2019 on the National Register of Historic Places.
Urbana is the seat of Champaign County. Located in east central Illinois, the twin cities of Urbana and Champaign are the home of the University of Illinois. The population of Champaign County at the 2020 census was 205,865.
Tags: Urbana County Seat Champaign County East Central Illinois IL Champaign County Courthouse Architecture Architectural Style Richardsonian Romanesque Architect Joseph W. Royer Downtown Urbana Historic District National Register of Historic Places NRHP Reference # 100004308 Canon EOS 7D Mark II
A view of the Champaign County Courthouse in Urbana. The courthouse was designed by Joseph W. Royer (1873-1954), himself a University of Illinois School of Architecture graduate.
Construction of the courthouse began in the Spring of 1900, with the dedication in August, 1901. The architectural style is Richardsonian Romanesque with red sandstone and a mottled brick exterior. Cost of the project was $150,000. The Courthouse is a contributing building within the Downtown Urbana Historic District listed in 2019 on the National Register of Historic Places.
Urbana is the seat of Champaign County. Located in east central Illinois, the twin cities of Urbana and Champaign are the home of the University of Illinois. The population of Champaign County at the 2020 census was 205,865.
Tags: Urbana County Seat Champaign County East Central Illinois IL Champaign County Courthouse Architecture Architectural Style Richardsonian Romanesque Architect Joseph W. Royer Downtown Urbana Historic District National Register of Historic Places NRHP Reference # 100004308 Canon EOS 7D Mark II
Located on the southeast corner of W. Main and S. Race St. in downtown Urbana is the Bennett building, long the home of the Knowlton & Bennett Drug Store. Completed in 1927, this Tudor Revival style building was designed by Urbana architect Joseph W. Royer (1873-1954), a University of Illinois School of Architecture graduate and the man who designed the magnificent Champaign County Courthouse.
The Knowlton & Bennett Drug Store closed in 1971. An antique and vintage women's clothing store known as Bohemia now occupies the space.
The Bennett Building lies within the Joseph W. Royer Arts and Architecture District in the heart of old Urbana, and is a contributing building within the Downtown Urbana Historic District listed in 2019 on the National Register of Historic Places.
Urbana is the seat of Champaign County. Located in east central Illinois, the twin cities of Urbana and Champaign are the home of the University of Illinois. The population of Champaign County at the 2020 census was 205,865.
Tags: Urbana County Seat Champaign County East Central Illinois IL Downtown Business District Drug Store Knowlton-Bennett Drugs Bennett Building 135 W. Main St. Commercial Architecture Architectural Style Tudor Revival Architect Joseph W. Royer Reuse Repurpose Bohemia Joseph W. Royer Arts and Architecture District Downtown Urbana Historic District National Register of Historic Places NRHP Reference # 100004308 Canon EOS 7D Mark II
A view of the south side of the 100 block of W. Main looking east from Race St. The Tudor Revival style Bennett Building described in my previous post is seen on the corner. In addition to the Bennett Building, two other buildings in this block are contributing to the Downtown Urbana Historic District listed in 2019 on the National Register of Historic Places. These are the buildings at 133 W. Main (next to the Bennett Building) and 115 W. Main (four story building further down the block).
133 W. Main: Constructed in 1890, historically this building was a confectionary. Wood cladding now covers the first floor store front area. The building is mixed use with commercial space on the 1st floor and residential space on the 2nd floor.
115 W. Main: Completed in 1870, this building was originally an opera hall known as Tierman's Hall. In 1914, architect Joseph W. Royer did a complete terra cotta facade renovation of the building as part of its conversion to a temple for the Urbana Masonic Lodge. The first floor is now a restaurant known as Crane Alley, with office space on the second through fourth floors.
The buildings in this block all lie within Downtown Urbana Historic District and the Joseph W. Royer Arts and Architecture District. Seen in the next block is the tower of the beautiful Champaign County Courthouse, also designed by Royer and completed in 1901.
Urbana is the seat of Champaign County. Located in east central Illinois, the twin cities of Urbana and Champaign are the home of the University of Illinois. The population of Champaign County at the 2020 census was 205,865.
Tags: Urbana County Seat Champaign County East Central Illinois IL Downtown Business District Drug Store Knowlton-Bennett Drugs Bennett Building 135 W. Main St. Commercial Architecture Architectural Style Tudor Revival Architect Joseph W. Royer Bohemia 133 W. Main Confectionary Architectural Style 2 Late 19th-Century Commercial Tierman's Hall Opera Hall 115 W. Main Reuse Repurpose Masonic Temple Urbana Masonic Lodge Restaurant Office Space Tower Champaign County Courthouse Richardsonian Romanesque Joseph W. Royer Arts and Architecture District Contributing Properties Downtown Urbana Historic District National Register of Historic Places NRHP Reference # 100004308 Canon EOS 7D Mark II Street View
On the northeast corner of W. Main and Race St., across the street from the Bennett Building (drug store) featured earlier in this series, is the Cohen Building. Completed in 1907, the classical revival style structure was designed by Urbana architect Joseph W. Royer (1873-1954), a University of Illinois School of Architecture graduate and the man who designed the magnificent Champaign County Courthouse.
When it opened in 1907, the Cohen Building contained many different businesses, such as Nathan Cohen’s cigar factory on the second floor, offices at the street level, an ice cream and candy store on the east side with an adjacent barber shop, and the Urbana Banking Company’s headquarters in the corner. A tailor shop was added in 1909 at the back of the building while the same previous businesses remained After Cohen retired from the cigar business in 1913, the full expansion of the offices, bank and commercial stores was established. The Cohen building continues as a professional office and commercial building.
To the east (right) of the Cohen Building are two single story buildings connected by a common wall. Both buildings were completed in 1885 and are nearly identical in detailing. 130 W. Main, next to the Cohen Building, historically was a millinery shop and barber shop, and is now a legal office. The building next to it at 126 W. Main, historically was a flower shop, and is now a restaurant known as the Dancing Dog Eatery and Juicery.
The Cohen Building, along with 130 W. Main and 126 W. Main lie within the Joseph W. Royer Arts and Architecture District in the heart of old Urbana, and are contributing buildings within the Downtown Urbana Historic District listed in 2019 on the National Register of Historic Places.
Urbana is the seat of Champaign County. Located in east central Illinois, the twin cities of Urbana and Champaign are the home of the University of Illinois. The population of Champaign County at the 2020 census was 205,865.
Tags: Urbana County Seat Champaign County East Central Illinois IL Downtown Business District Cohen Building 136 W. Main St. Commercial Architecture Architectural Style Classical Revival Architect Joseph W. Royer Nathan Cohen Cigar Factory Ice Cream and Candy Store Barber Shop Bank Repurpose Reuse Office Building Commercial Building 130 W. Main Millinery Shop Professional Office Legal Office 126 W. Main Flower Shop Restaurant Joseph W. Royer Arts and Architecture District Downtown Urbana Historic District National Register of Historic Places NRHP Reference # 100004308 Canon EOS 7D Mark II Streetview