{"nrhp_refnum":"02000460","name":"West Frankfort City Hall","other_names":["West Frankfort Civic Center Authority"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"108 N. Emma St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"West Frankfort","county":"Franklin County","state":"IL","lat":37.89875017400004,"lon":-88.92661371799994,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"2002-05-09","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Politics/Government"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A two-story blond brick Classical Revival city hall with one-story wings, at 108 North Emma Street in West Frankfort, Franklin County, Illinois, designed by architect John Scribbins and built from 1921 by contractor S. M. Wilson.","why_significant":"The building served as West Frankfort's seat of city government, police, fire and water services during the coal boom years when the city grew rapidly. It also retains detailed brickwork, limestone ornament and original interior features such as the jail cells and courtroom. The truncated text does not state the criteria or the full significance argument.","narrative":"West Frankfort City Hall is a two-story blond brick building at 108 North Emma Street in southern Illinois. Architect John Scribbins presented plans in 1921, and voters approved a bond issue of up to $40,000 for construction. After the first bids proved too high, the council revised the plans and rebid. Contractor S. M. Wilson of Wood River won the contract with a $35,000 bid. The symmetrical Classical Revival front features limestone pilasters, medallions, a cornice and a parapet, along with elaborate brickwork in basket weave, soldier and stack bond patterns. One-story wings once housed the water department and fire department, and a 1954 addition at the rear held more fire equipment. Inside are original jail cells, a split wooden stairway and a large second-floor courtroom that doubled as the council chamber. The building reflects the period when coal mining drove the city's growth from about 300 residents in 1900 to roughly 19,000 by 1927.","period_of_significance":null,"architect_builder":"Architect John Scribbins; contractor S. M. Wilson of Wood River, Illinois","architectural_style":"Classical Revival","criteria":[],"status_note":"Currently listed under social use; parts of the building show deterioration, including boarded windows and fallen plaster in the courtroom. The 1954 rear addition houses city equipment and garbage trucks.","vacant_flag":null,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:55:37.680632-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/53/8928/28892853/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_IL/02000460.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/02000460/fae70b88d4-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/02000460/fae70b88d4-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Nyttend","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:West_Frankfort_City_Hall.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Nyttend</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:West_Frankfort_City_Hall.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/28892853","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/West_Frankfort_City_Hall","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q7985187"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/illinois/franklin-county/west-frankfort-city-hall-02000460/"}