{"nrhp_refnum":"79002919","name":"First National Bank Building","other_names":["Old Bank Building"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"Main and Morgan Sts.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Meridian","county":"Bosque County","state":"TX","lat":31.923266900000044,"lon":-97.65738656899998,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1979-11-07","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Commerce","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A two-story limestone and brick bank building at the northwest corner of Main and Morgan Streets on the courthouse square in Meridian, Bosque County, Texas, erected in 1889.","why_significant":"It is one of the oldest commercial buildings and one of the few surviving 19th century structures in Meridian, and an outstanding example of late 19th century commercial architecture there. It housed the county's first bank, founded by J.W. Rudasill, a long-serving mayor. The building stands on the site of the original county courthouse.","narrative":"Built in 1889 at the northwest corner of Main and Morgan Streets on the courthouse square in Meridian, this two-story bank building combines a coursed, quarry-faced limestone ground floor with a red brick upper level. Round arches resting on limestone piers, a pink granite column with a carved Corinthian capital, and three carved stone faces on the east facade reflect Romanesque Revival influences. The site was once occupied by the original county courthouse. The building housed the county's first bank, founded as the Bosque County Bank in 1884 by J.W. Rudasill and two others. Rudasill served as cashier, president and board chairman, and was mayor of Meridian from 1891 to 1910. The bank later merged with the Farmer's State Bank, yet continued operating here until 1969, when it moved to a new building. The county then bought the structure and uses it for offices. It is among the few remaining 19th century buildings in the city.","period_of_significance":"1889","architect_builder":null,"architectural_style":"Romanesque Revival influences","criteria":[],"status_note":"Owned by Bosque County, which purchased it after the bank moved in 1969 and now maintains offices there; original windows replaced and furnishings removed during remodeling.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:54:19.503057-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/25/9713/40971325/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_TX/79002919.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/79002919/cc5794eea2-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/79002919/cc5794eea2-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"Renelibrary","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:FirstNationalBankMeridian1.JPG\" rel=\"noopener\">Renelibrary</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 3.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:FirstNationalBankMeridian1.JPG"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/40971325","wikipedia":null,"wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q110001691"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/texas/bosque-county/first-national-bank-building-79002919/"}