Local
Looking Backward: Erie County Savings Bank, August 11, 1967
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/ Aug. 29, 2018 7am EST
“A Buffalo duchess will soon return to the dust. Arched of brow (windows), ornamental of coiffure (turrets), and buxom of figure (granite walled), the old Erie County Savings Bank Building will bow to progress.” —Ellen Taussig, 1967
The Erie County Savings Bank was perhaps Buffalo’s most beloved building. Built from 1890 to 1893 and designed in the Romanesque Revival style by acclaimed architect George B. Post, the nine-story building was often referred to simply as “The Castle.” In this 1967 photograph, the 74-year-old building is chipped away by the wrecking ball. The elevator shaft of the Main Place Tower, to be the bank’s new headquarters, is under construction to its north. Harlan J. Swift, Erie County Savings Bank president, made the decision to demolish the old landmark. The bank went out of business in 1990.
Here’s what the corner looks like now: