Jennings Ford Automobile Dealership
- Architect
- Harry Reiger
- Year
- 1919
- Style
- Commercial Vernacular
- City
- Springfield, IL
The Jennings Ford Automobile Dealership at 431 South 4th Street was built in 1919 by Ford dealer Frank Jennings, one of several dealerships that opened along South 4th Street when it served as Springfield's automobile row in the 1910s. Architect Harry Reiger designed the three-story building to house every major function of a dealership under one roof. It is one of the few dealership buildings left in downtown Springfield and the best preserved of the survivors, now housing an operations center for Illinois National Bank.
the building
All-in-one dealership. The three-story building integrated a sales floor, a service center, a car wash, a storage garage, and a repainting facility, combining every major function of an early auto dealership under one roof.
Survivor of automobile row. South 4th Street was Springfield's automobile row in the 1910s, home to several dealerships; this building is one of the few that remain downtown and is the best-preserved of the group.
the style
The building was designed in the early commercial style, reflecting its purpose as a purpose-built automobile dealership from the era when the car was becoming widespread in Springfield.
More on Commercial Vernacularthe architect
Harry Reiger designed the Jennings Ford Automobile Dealership building in 1919.
significance
Jennings Ford closed between 1927 and 1933, but the building remained a car dealership through the 1950s. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places on May 31, 2006, and today houses an operations center for Illinois National Bank.
nearby
- Illinois Governor's Mansion
- Virgil Hickox House
- Vachel Lindsay House
- Christ Episcopal Church
- Illinois State Capitol
- Dana-Thomas House