{"nrhp_refnum":"82000144","name":"Union Banking Company Building","other_names":["Coffee County Bank"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"102 Peterson Ave.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Douglas","county":"Coffee County","state":"GA","lat":31.508912961000078,"lon":-82.85012497299994,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1982-12-10","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Commerce","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A three-story commercial bank building at 102 Peterson Avenue on a corner lot in downtown Douglas, Coffee County, Georgia, built in 1910-1911 by builder R. N. McEachren for the Union Banking Company.","why_significant":"The building is argued to be significant in architecture and commerce. It is a good local example of early twentieth-century commercial style, with unusual terra-cotta gargoyles and an early reinforced concrete frame. It also housed two banks, the Union Banking Company and the Coffee County Bank, that were important to the economic development of Douglas and Coffee County.","narrative":"Standing on a corner across from the Coffee County courthouse in downtown Douglas, Georgia, this three-story bank building dates from 1910-1911. Builder R. N. McEachren framed it with reinforced concrete posts, beams and poured floors, then faced it in Flemish bond brick. Brick spandrels with circle and diamond patterns, a curved corner entrance of cast concrete, and ten terra-cotta gargoyles give it a distinctive look. The concrete frame was the first of its kind in the surrounding area, chosen to make the replacement for a burned bank fireproof. A bank has occupied the site since 1899. The Union Banking Company, Douglas's first bank, founded in 1897, served the town as railroads turned it from a hamlet into a prosperous town, and it closed in 1930 during the Depression. The Coffee County Bank opened in 1931 in the same building, later bought it, and still operates there. The building was recognized for its architecture and its role in local commerce, despite remodeled storefronts and replaced windows.","period_of_significance":"1900-","architect_builder":"R. N. McEachren, builder","architectural_style":"Early twentieth-century commercial style (transitional, with late Victorian details)","criteria":["A","C"],"status_note":"The first floor holds the bank and stores with offices above; the third floor is described as presently unused. The bank is shown as occupied.","vacant_flag":null,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:55:40.377979-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_GA/82000144.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/82000144/758279f0c8-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/82000144/758279f0c8-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","author":"Bubba73 (Jud McCranie)","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Union_Banking_Company_building,_Douglas,_GA,_USA.JPG\" rel=\"noopener\">Bubba73 (Jud McCranie)</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 4.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Union_Banking_Company_building,_Douglas,_GA,_USA.JPG"},"district":{"nrhp_refnum":"93000941","name":"Downtown Douglas Historic District","url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/districts/georgia/downtown-douglas-historic-district-93000941/"},"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/93207628","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Union_Banking_Company_Building","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q24041372"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/georgia/coffee-county/union-banking-company-building-82000144/"}