What a Great Building the Peoria City Hall Is! by deecat
From the moment that I saw it, I fell in love with the impressive Peoria City Hall. It's a massive stone structure in the Flemish Renaissance style, and the stone is a lovely shade of red. When it was erected in 1899, it sat on the corner of Madison and Fulton Streets, but as Peoria's layout changed over the years, Madison Street no longer crosses Fulton! Instead, today City Hall resides next to the modern Civic Center where Madison meets Fulton. The contrast between the old and new is glorious. This building was designed by Reeves and Ballie, costing $271,000 to construct. It was in 1978 that this stylish building was added to the National Register of Historic Places. Interestingly, City Hall still has the Victorian Ball tower from the original structure, and in the lobby, the marble statue, "Love Knows No Caste" still stands to greet visitors. Guess what? The same local artists who created the Soldiers' and Sailors' Memorial on Main Street sulpted this marble statue. (Fritz Triebel) Over 100 years later, City Hall is still within the same walls, and through careful restoration, it has managed to retain most of its original appearance. That is ever so refreshing!
