Historic District

On August 30, 2007 the Moline Downtown Commercial Historic District was officially placed on the National Register of Historic Places. The distinct includes 114 buildings on 33 acres centered on Fifth Avenue between 12th Street and 18th Street. One hundred of the buildings contribute to the significance of the district because they retain their historic and architectural integrity and reflect the character of the historic downtown.

The establishment of this historic district brings distinction to downtown Moline for its historic and architectural character. It also provides a redevelopment incentive: property owners within the district can qualify for a 20 percent tax credit for substantial rehabilitation projects. The tax credit may be subtracted directly from federal income taxes submitted by the owner.

Map of the Historic District

Scenes in the Historic District

List of Properties

About the Site

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                                             Early Movement of Moline’s Business District

In the last half of the nineteenth century, Moline’s main downtown commercial business district was located near factories that lined the Mississippi, in the area between the railroad tracks and the river. It had developed primarily along Third Avenue between 15th Street and 18th Street with brick Italianate two and three-story commercial buildings, taverns, theatres and hotels lining the Avenue. However, the railroad tracks—which by 1895 carried 75 trains per day—separated most residents from that commercial district.

So, by the turn of the century many businesses began relocating south of the tracks. At first they lined up along 15th Street, which carried the trolley line extending up the hill to the rapidly growing residential districts. Then during the 1910s, several large commercial buildings were built along Fifth Avenue, establishing that street as the primary axis of a “new downtown.” In the process, dozens of stately homes that graced those avenues were replaced by commercial buildings

                                   A Quintessential Twentieth Century American Downtown

About two thirds of the buildings that contribute to the historic character of the district were built between 1900 and 1930. By the 1920s, the area clearly had been established as a quintessential American central business district, with the main axis along Fifth and a secondary axis along Sixth Avenue. It included office and bank buildings, whose upper floors housed offices for a great variety of professional services. It also had department stores, scores of first-floor specialty shops, theatres, hotels, bars, and restaurants. Several institutional structures joined the mix, including the 1904 Carnegie Library, and the 1914 City Hall, the 1924 Elks Club, and the 1928 Unitarian Church.

The most common historic building style is the one, two, or three-story brick commercial building. Two eight-story anchor block buildings are located near the center of the district, the Fifth Avenue Building and today’s Chase Bank. Anchoring the eastern end of the district is the 1922 LeClaire Hotel, which is listed as an individual building on the National Register of Historic Places. At the western end of the district, acting as a visual counterpoise to the fifteen-story hotel, is the tall steeple of the First Lutheran Church, which was built in 1876.

In the 1950s and early 1960s, the historic district continued to be the business and social center of the city. Parades, always drawing big crowds, had celebrated the end of World Wars I and II, along with Homecoming, Fourth of July, and Labor Day parades. Five major department stores now served the area, including Block & Kuhl Company, New York Store (demolished in 1990), J. C. Penny, Sears, Roebuck & Company, and Montgomery Ward & Company. By the 1940s auto dealerships had appeared on the periphery of downtown as did several gas stations. Storefronts were modified during the 50’s and 60’s as attempts to “modernize” took hold. It was not until the late 1970’s and 1980’s that the major department stores made their move away from the downtown out to South Park Mall, forever changing the usage of many of the buildings.

                                               Architecture in the Historic District

A high level of architectural integrity characterizes most of the buildings in the historic district, although numerous modifications appear on street level storefronts. The sense of scale, design and materials remains strong. Architectural building styles include, Beaux Arts, Colonial Revival, Classical Revival, Gothic Revival, Tudor Revival, Italian Renaissance, Prairie School, Moderne, Art Deco, Chateauesque, and Commercial. Prominent local architects designed some of the key buildings within this historic district. They include Olaf Z. Cervin (Chase Bank, Reliance Block), William Schultzke (Bell Telephone, Montgomery Ward, First Midwest Bank, Fifth Avenue Building, Sohrbecks, Carlson Brothers, Elks Club, and City Hall), and H. W. Wittsett (Moline Commercial Club).

                                                    The Historic District Today

Today Moline’s Downtown Commercial Historic District retains a feeling of a historic downtown. Approaching the district from any direction, one can easily identify it from the surrounding area with residential boundaries to the east at 18th Street and west at 12th Street. The railroad tracks form the boundary to the north, and 7th Avenue forms the southern boundary near the base of the city’s rolling bluffs. Although some demolitions have occurred within the district, its historic appearance and its association with Moline’s commercial history remain strong. The overall condition of the district’s commercial buildings is good with many continuing to display a high level of architectural integrity.

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