A. R. Bowman Memorial Museum - Historic Building

Historic Building

The museum is housed in the historic Crook County Bank building. The building was constructed in 1910. It is a two-story Romanesque style building constructed using stone blocks from a local quarry located west of the Ochoco Viewpoint. This is the same quarry that provided the stone used to build the Crook County Courthouse in 1909.

The building’s interior has not significantly changed since it was a community bank. The first floor still has the bank’s original bronze teller cages, marble counter tops, etched art-glass, gilt and alabaster chandeliers, and the mahogany paneling that were the trappings of a prestigious banking institution in the first half of the 20th century.

The building was first occupied by the Crook County Bank. When the Crook County Bank left in 1923, it was replaced by the Bank of Prineville and later the Prineville National Bank. When that bank became insolvent during the Great Depression, the building was purchased by A. R. Bowman for his title and insurance business. Bowman used the building for his various businesses from 1935 until his death in 1970.

The bank is an excellent example of Prineville’s early twentieth century development. Because of the its unique architecture and its importance to the history of Prineville, the Crook County Bank Building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on 19 June 1991.