Downtown Historic Buildings

Downtown Historic Buildings
Picturing Rapid City’s Historic Past

In 2012, the Rapid City Historic Preservation Commission launched the “Picture Rapid City’s Past” website to document the rich photographic history of downtown Rapid City.

  • Sweeney Building
    On this site, the southwest corner of Main and Seventh Street, early Rapid City businessman Thomas Sweeney launched his successful hardware business in 1887. His three-story warehouse had more floor…
    Address: 701 Main Street
  • The Duhamel Building
    The finest example of Chicago Style architecture in Rapid City is the 1909 Duhamel Building, at St. Joseph and Sixth Streets. Built by local entrepreneur Peter Duhamel, it expressed the…
    Address: 503 Sixth Street
  • Motor Service
    Since its construction in 1929, the Motor Service Co. building has managed to avoid the modernization, expansion and flight to the suburbs that most early car dealerships went through. In…
    Address: 402 St. Joseph Street
  • Syndicate Building
    It's hard to believe, but the three one-story storefronts you see today were once the tallest buildings in Rapid City. The Syndicate Block was a three-story building that dominated the…
    Address: 601 to 605 St. Joe
  • Italianate Trio
    These three Italianate-style, brick buildings, appropriately known as "The Italianate Trio," were constructed during a building boom between 1884 and 1888. All exhibit the heavy, decorative cornices and the tall,…
    Address: North side of St. Joseph Street in the 600-block
  • First National
    Two things of interest in this photo -- and at this corner. The first First National Bank of Rapid City was constructed in 1886, but it was replaced by the…
    Address: 631 Main Street
  • Alex Johnson
    Construction on the Alex Johnson Hotel, one of Rapid City's grandest landmarks, began in August 1927, one day before workers began carving the granite faces on Mount Rushmore. On July…
    Address: 523 Sixth Street
  • Main Street
    If you look closely at this 1902 street scene, you'll see some familiar buildings. Many of the structures on this block have been restored in recent years. And like a…
    Address: 600 Block of Main Street
  • Anchor Bar
    Back in the post-World War II era, 710 St. Joseph Street was home to the Anchor Bar -- kind of an odd theme choice considering Rapid City is about as…
    Address: 710 St. Joe
  • Last Chance Saloon
    If there's one thing Rapid City had plenty of downtown, it was saloons. Located between the Black Hills lumber camps, the Northern Hills mining district and the cattle ranching expanses…
    Address: 508 Main Street
  • St. Joseph Street Scene
    This scene from the 1920s or '30s shows St. Joseph Street looking east from Eighth Street (now Mount Rushmore Road). Three of the city's most prominent buildings -- the Alex…
    Address: Mount Rushmore Road & St. Joe
  • Clower Block
    The 1886 Clower building, also known as the Morris Block, represents the finest example of high-style Italianate in Rapid City. "Big Jack" Clower's Saloon, one of the most notorious drinking…
    Address: 606 Main Street
  • Gambrill Building
    The 1910 Gambrill building represents a modest example of commercial Renaissance Revival architecture. Construction is sturdy, owing to its function as a storage warehouse, with 24-inch thick solid stone basement…
    Address: 822 Main Street
  • Buell Building
    Built in 1888, the Buell Building was home to Lakota Banking & Investment Co. Attorney Charles Buell bought it in 1901, renamed it established his law firm on the second…
    Address: 630 St. Joseph Street
  • Fire Hall
    Rapid City's early fire department consisted of three hose companies organized in 1881, and a hook-and-ladder company. The department became formally organized in 1907, and in 1915 this fine new…
    Address: 610 Main Street
  • City Hall
    Rapid City's first City Hall, built in 1903, was nearly as humble as the early Rapid City it served. Just one story tall, built next to the alley, it served…
    Address: 620 Sixth Street
  • Rapid City Garage
    Rapid City Garage, built in 1911, was the first fireproof garage in town. The Cole Roadster was its stock in trade. Large entry doors, reinforced floors, and a ramp to…
    Address: 510 Ninth Street
  • Elks Building
    J.P. Eisentraut designed the Elks Lodge in 1911, combining lavish clubrooms and offices on upper floors with storefronts at street level. The yellow brick, Mission-style edifice displays concrete detailing. The…
    Address: 512 Sixth Street
  • Rapid City Implement
    Rapid City Implement Co. opened in 1907 at the northwest corner of Main and Eighth Streets (Mount Rushmore Road). This building is long gone: As farm equipment became more sophisticated,…
    Address: 445 Mount Rushmore Road
  • Windsor Block
    In 1884, entrepreneur Robert Flormann built the Windsor Block, at St. Joseph and Seventh Streets. Designed in the Italianate Commercial style, it was built with brick from Marshall's Brickyard, located…
    Address: 629 St. Joseph Street
Get In Touch With Us
Contact the Rapid City Community Development Department to reach the City staff Liaison to the HPC. 605.394.4120