Gold leaf crowns the Buffalo Savings Bank, the Beaux-Arts landmark at 1 Fountain Plaza in front of you, opened in May 1901. Opened in May 1901, this building announces itself with its signature gold‑leafed dome — 23 feet tall and 56 feet across — covered in 13,500 terra‑cotta tiles. Those tiles were originally overlaid with copper that took on a greenish hue; they have been gilded three times.
The last restoration used 140,000 paper‑thin sheets of 23.75‑carat gold leaf at a cost of $500,000, reportedly more than the building’s initial cost. Look up at the 9‑foot clock that perches above the main columned entrance, a steady face over the doorway. In 1983 the original bank gained a larger linked addition on its north side called the M & T Center; the bank company itself became insolvent and was dissolved in 1991.
Today the landmark serves as a branch of M&T Bank and is a designated City of Buffalo Landmark. Picture 10 and 12 Fountain Plaza and 40 and 50 Fountain Plaza across Main Street, with the Electric Tower rising to the southeast.