In 1931 the St. Paul skyline was changed forever by the addition of downtown’s new tallest building. At 32 stories high and 396 feet tall, the construction of the First National Bank building was met with great interest and considered to many as “the greatest show St. Paul had seen since-way back when." (Daily News 11.2.30)

In the St. Paul Dispatch on January 12, 1931 a taxpayer wrote:

In the old days when you couldn’t find a fellow you could send someone after him at the corner saloon. Now if you can’t find him the chances are that he’s standing on the corner of Fourth and Minnesota watching the steel construction crew at work on that new bank building.

Crowning the tall building was the addition of an unusual neon sign. Standing 50’ feet high and 26’ wide the sign’s design was considered unique for it’s height and aesthetic brevity. The sign was three sided and lit in a rotating fashion. The number one was originally created in vermillion vitreous porcelain edged with a double row of red neon tubes. In 1973 with the energy crisis looming the sign was turned off. This was said to be more of a symbolic move rather than based on actual need, as the sign did not expend a significant amount of energy. Ten years later the sign went through a major renovation and was relit as the red neon it is known today. It is said the sign can be seen from 20 miles away on a clear day and 75 miles from the air at night.

Related Bits:

• In the 1990’s a Boy Scout Troop camped overnight on the roof below the stars and the red number one sign. Our sources could not verify if this was in pursuit of another Scout badge.
• In 1998, on a summer’s evening a local man proposed on the roof  to his girlfriend beneath the lit neon sign. She said yes. 
• In the basement of the First National Bank Building are the remnants of a 96 ft. long pistol range (shown to the right). The bank guards would practice shooting targets twice a week in the narrow shooting gallery to help keep their aim sharp. There is no recorded robbery of the bank where shots were fired.
• The building originally had 1,066 windows and 20 working elevators with operators.
• Architect: Graham, Anderson, Probst & White. Chicago, IL
• Neon Contractor: Claude Neon Federal Company. St. Paul, MN

Special thanks to Guy LaBarre and Building Superintendent, Craig Telin for their unique insight and tours of the First National Bank Building.

For further information about the First National Bank Building contact Guy LaBarre:
Minnesota Street Associates, Inc.
332 Minnesota Street, Suite W-120
St. Paul, MN 55101
651.225.3665