Original Owner	City National Bank and Park Hotel
Address	5 W State St., Mason City
Year Built	1909

This project was commissioned by J. E. Markley; his daughter attended the Hillside Home School in Spring Green, Wisconsin, run by Wright's aunts; thus he naturally became acquainted with Frank Lloyd Wright.  Markley and his partners Arthur Rule and James Blythe had offices on the second floor of the bank building once it was completed.  The firm also became involved in the 1912 Rock Crest - Rock Glen project; perhaps Wright would have also gained this commission, if it were not for the fact that he left on his European travels before the bank was completed.  Walter Burleigh Griffen, Barry Byrne and William Drummond eventually designed the houses that were completed in this small Praire style subdivision.

The building originally contained a bank (at left center in the above picture), with office on the third floor, and the hotel behind it (at right in the above picture).  The hotel contained a first floor lobby, with a lunch room, bakery and kitchen, and a row of shops facing the street behind the building.  The hotel was rather small, containing less than 50 rooms on the second and third floors.

Today, the hotel and bank have been much altered; a clothing store now occupies the space where the bank once was.  For a picture of the original building, click here. But in recent years efforts have begun to restore the bank and hotel to their original appearance. The project has received a grant from the "Save America's Treasures" program, and work is ongoing to restore the building and return the spaces to their original use. For more details and photos, see www.wrightiniowa.com.

Additional Photos - click thumbnail for full size image