List of Stockton Landmarks - Commercial Buildings

Commercial Buildings

• B & M Building (1860s), 125 Bridge Pl. The building was added to the city register by resolution number 40,069 on August 29, 1983.

• Wagner Leather Co. Engine Room (1876), 122 E Oak St. The building was added to the city register by resolution number 30,809 on October 15, 1973.

• The Sperry Building (1888), 146 W Weber Ave. This Victorian Commercial–style building served as the offices for Sperry Flour Company, and was designed by local architect Charles Beasley; in 1917, an addition was constructed to the rear of this building, which matched the original exactly. The Sperry Building was added to the city register by resolution number 29,086 on June 1, 1971. It is #82002255 on the National Register of Historic Places, and was added in 1982 as the Sperry Office Building. Today it houses the headquarters for Stockton’s professional soccer team, the California Cougars.

• Sperry Flour Company (1888), 445 W Weber Ave. Constructed by Charles Beasley in an Early Commercial Gothic style (prevalent from 1875-99 and 1900-24), the building is #79000541 on the National Register of Historic Places, and was added in 1979. It was added to the city register by resolution number 39,265 on July 26, 1982, and is currently home to the Stockton Cougars.

• Tretheway Building (1892), 229 E Weber Ave. Originally constructed as the Argonaut Hotel, with a hardware store at street level, this Queen Anne–style structure includes Romanesque and Moorish elements of cast zinc floral patterns and sandstone. When constructed, the building had a taller false front parapet, which fell during the San Francisco earthquake in 1906; when the false front was reconstructed, it assumed a lower profile. The building is #82000987 on the National Register of Historic Places, and was added in 1982 as the Tretheway Block. The building was added to the city register by resolution number 38,554 on September 8, 1981.

• Santa Fe Depot (1900), 735 S San Joaquin St. The building was added to the city register by resolution number 30,103 on November 20, 1972

• Street Car Barns and Offices (1907), 2850 N California St. The building was added to the city register by resolution number 85-0307 on May 13, 1985.

• Engine House No. 3 (1908), 19 N Pilgrim St. The building was added to the city register by resolution number 31,720 on October 7, 1974.

• Genova Bakery (1908), 749 N Sierra Nevada St. The building was added to the city register by resolution number 85-0325 on May 28, 1985.

• Stockton Savings & Loan Society Bank (1908), 301 E Main St. This Classic Revival–style building was designed by San Francisco architects Myers and Ward, and featured Stockton's first revolving door as well as a marble interior. Known as "Stockton's first skyscraper," this was the third building to serve as headquarters for Stockton Savings & Loan (now Bank of Stockton). The top two floors have always been home to the Yosemite Club, the oldest private club in California. The building is #78000764 on the National Register of Historic Places and was added in 1978. The building was added to the city register by resolution number 34,630 on November 7, 1977. The building is currently home to the downtown office of the Bank of Stockton.

• Sears Roebuck Building (1910-16). 620 N Aurora St. The building was added to the city register by resolution number 86-0274 on May 12, 1986.

• The Hotel Stockton (1910), 133 E Weber Ave, Stockton Weber and El Dorado streets. Constructed in a Mission/Spanish Revival style by local businessmen Lee A. Phillips, Frank A. West, Samuel Frankenheimer, and Edgar B. Brown (architect), the hotel was constructed on a parcel known as "Weber Hold," at the head of the Stockton Channel. As the first reinforced concrete structure in the Central Valley, the hotel was constructed at a cost of $500,000. When it opened for business on May 25, 1910, it included 252 rooms (200 with private baths) and a roof garden with a fountain and pergola. The hotel underwent an extensive renovation in 1950 at a cost of $200,000, but was the victim of poor timing. The increasing use of automobiles led to more convenient roadside motels with ample parking, and rising costs, led the hotel to close on November 26, 1960. For a number of years, the building was home to numerous county offices, including the Department of Public Assistance, due to the demolition of the old courthouse. However, the county offices vacated in 1992 when they moved into new facilities. Since then, the old hotel has been restored, and officially reopened to the public on March 17, 2005; it features exact replicas of the oak railings and wainscoting, the original fireplace, and restored leaded stained glass panels. The upper floors now contain 156 apartments for low- and fixed-income residents, as well as a 10,000-square-foot (930 m2) rooftop terrace. The building is #81000174 on the National Register of Historic Places and was added on April 1, 1981. The building was added to the city register by resolution number 29,086 on June 1, 1971.

• Commercial & Savings Bank (1915), 343 E Main St. This Beaux Arts-Renaissance Revival–style building was built by Dietrich & Liestern Construction in 1915 for the Commercial & Savings Bank. After sustaining heavy fire damage in 1923, the building was repaired and doubled in size along the Sutter Street side. Later owners included the Bank of America and the Grupe Corporation. The building is #80000849 on the National Register of Historic Places and was added on November 25, 1980. The building was added to the city register by resolution number 85-0306 on May 13, 1985, and is currently home to the Cort Companies.

• Farmer's and Merchant's Bank (1917), 11 S San Joaquin St. Constructed in an Italian Renaissance style by San Francisco architect George W. Kelham, the building features 25-foot (7.6 m) high coffered ceilings ornamented with painted plaster, and a central lobby with Tennessee marble floors and walls and pillars of Travertine marble from the region near Rome. It was added to the city register by resolution number 36,120 on April 2, 1979; it was added to the National Register of Historic Places as #80000850 on October 9, 1980. Presently known as the California Building, the structure is home to several professional offices.

• Medico-Dental Building (1927), 242 N Sutter St. Designed by Frank V. Mayo, also known for designing the Manson Apartment (1936) at 345 East Acacia Street, this twelve-story Commercial Gothic was built exclusively for medical and dental professionals; the cornerstone reads “Dedicated to the Practice of Medical Service and to the Service of Humanity.” The lower exterior features gray terra cotta, and the decorative Gothic entrance motif is repeated on the tenth through twelfth floors. The building was added to the city register by resolution number 39,045 on May 3, 1982.

• Fox California Theatre (1930), 242 E Main St. The first theatre on the site, the T & D Photoplay, was constructed by the Wilhoit family and used for a variety of entertainment acts. In 1921, Fox West Coast Theaters leased and remodeled the building, renaming it the California; it was demolished in 1929 to make way for a more modern theatre. Fox signed a long-term lease (50 years), and spent nearly $500,000 on the Colonial Revival style (1925-49) cement and steel structure that was built by Beller Construction Co and Balch & Stanberry. At the time, the theatre was the largest vaudeville house in California, with 2,170 seats and three ($40,000) manual Wurlitzer pipe organs with twin pipe lofts. The new theatre opened on October 14, 1930 with opening acts that included comedy skits as well as the latest "talkie" movies. The next 10 years featured movies as well as stage acts including Al Jolson, the Marx Brothers, Ted Lewis, and Henry Lauder, and the 1940s through the 1960s featured big bands such as Duke Ellington, Paul Whiteman, and the Dorseys. Westland Theatres bought the theatre in 1971, but closed in 1973 due to declining attendance. Amid concerns about demolishment, Edward C. Merlo and Madelein Lawton purchased the theatre in 1979 and were able to get it placed on the National Register of Historic Places, making it one of only two movie palaces left in the Central Valley. Between 1981 and 1988, several rock, jazz, and country music acts performed, without much fanfare. In 1991, the city's Redevelopment Agency included the theatre as part of its efforts to revitalize the downtown area; renovations began in 1995, and in 2000 the Merlo Fox Building Trust donated the building to the city. A refurbished 1928 Robert Morton pipe organ was placed in the now-named Bob Hope Theatre, and renovations were completed in 2004 with funds from the United States Congress and the California Heritage Fund. The theatre officially reopened to the public on September 18, 2005. It is #79000540 on the National Register of Historic Places, and was added on June 27, 1979. It was added to the city register by resolution number 86-0469 on August 4, 1986.