April 15, 2012

Setting a Great Example

Posted in Friends of Stone Bank, History, Photos, Updates tagged , , , , at 11:39 pm by stonebankblog

Lucky! That’s how we feel at the Stone Bank when we consider our architect.

Why? Because Bobbi Hepper Olson has done this before.

Seriously. Been there. Done that.

Hepper Olson has her own stone bank — in Buxton, ND. She tackled a project much more daunting than ours.  When she took on the project in 2005, the floor had collapsed and there was a mold problem. She not only persisted and accomplished the restoration, but she found an adaptive re-use for the bank. It’s now part-museum, part-community meeting space — and she added space to the back for her architecture firm.

The Buxton Bank — built in 1893 — is very similar in style to our Stone Bank.  But that’s likely because the size of Buxton and Bottineau dictated the size of the banks, and because of prevailing  building styles of the 1890s. But that’s just a theory.

Bobbi knows a bit more about the history of her bank — and she can show you the bullet holes from a 1933 robbery that left one of the bank’s cashiers dead. The robbery was never solved.

Here’s a slideshow of the Buxton Bank — restored and in use. It’s a great example for us as we work toward that very goal on another stone building about 200 miles to the northwest.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Bobbi has a nice website about her project. Check it out at http;//BuxtonInBloom.com

Lucky? Yes. The Stone Bank is very lucky to have an architect who really has been there and done this before.

We’ll also feel lucky if you “Like” this post.

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3 Comments »

  1. Jane said,

    very cool!

  2. It is COOL that we have someone working with us who is NOT daunted by the task ahead. Go, Bobbi!!

  3. […] do we know? Because Bobbi has done this before. Her architecture office operates out of an old stone bank building much like ours.  It’s inspiring to see it done […]


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