Commerce Trust Building

Commerce Trust Building
Map
General information
StatusCompleted
TypeCommercial offices
Location922 Walnut, Kansas City, Missouri
Coordinates39°06′09″N 94°34′57″W / 39.1026°N 94.5824°W / 39.1026; -94.5824
Completed1907
OwnerTower Properties
Height
Roof78.6 m (258 ft)
Technical details
Floor count15
Floor area24,154 m2 (259,990 sq ft)
Design and construction
Architect(s)Jarvis Hunt
Main contractorGeorge A. Fuller Company
References
[1][2]

Commerce Trust Building is a 15-story tower built for Kansas City Missouri's biggest bank Commerce Bancshares in 1907,[3] and was Kansas City's second skyscraper following the New York Life building.

It has a facade of red granite and white terra cotta tiles and was Missouri's tallest building when it opened.

Formerly, the site was the home of the Kansas City Journal, which in turn was taken over by Commerce. Harry Truman worked in the predecessor building.

Its architect, Jarvis Hunt, also designed Union Station and the headquarters of the Kansas City Star. The construction company was the George A. Fuller Company which built the Flatiron Building in the New York City and as a company continues to build major skyscrapers around the world.

In 1965, Commerce built a larger adjoining building Commerce Tower but has continued to use the original building.

In 2004, Commerce Bancshares conducted a $48 million renovation of the building expanding its square footage to 300,000 square feet (28,000 m2)[4] by filling in the light court between the fourth and 15th floors.[5]

Part of the renovation also included illuminating the lobby's ornate glass ceiling to replicate natural sunlight.

  • Street level entrance, with landmark clock and porte-cochère entry on the far right.
    Street level entrance, with landmark clock and porte-cochère entry on the far right.


  1. ^ "Emporis building ID 121846". Emporis. Archived from the original on August 14, 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  2. ^ "Commerce Trust Building". SkyscraperPage.
  3. ^ "JE Dunn Construction". Archived from the original on 2018-03-19. Retrieved 2018-03-18.
  4. ^ ingramsonline - retrieved January 8, 2008 Archived February 5, 2008, at the Wayback Machine
  5. ^ Banking on the Future - June 2003 - buildings.com - Retrieved January 8, 2008