Laramie State Bank Building

Address: 5200 W. Chicago Ave. Year Built: 1927 - 1929 Architect: Meyer & Cook , Northwestern Terra Cotta Company Date Designated a Chicago Landmark: June 14, 1995

At a time when banks usually looked like forbidding fortresses, this Art Deco-style building was given a colorful exterior covered in coins, beehives, harvests, squirrels, and other symbols of savings and prosperity. The rich imagery, sculpted by artisans of the Northwestern Terra Cotta Company, are made of a versatile baked-clay material manufactured in Chicago. It represents some of the city's finest decorative terra cotta work.