Concrete raised the Roberts-Banner Building five stories in 1910, a declared historic building in El Paso, Texas. Imagine this exact footprint a century ago: old adobe houses that once filled the block were demolished to make room for the construction of this five-story building in 1910. The solidity you feel beneath your feet is echoed in the building’s material — it was built with concrete — a new, modern choice for its moment.
Look at the proportions and sense the ambition of the designers, Trost & Trost, whose name is tied to this structure’s original plan. This is not just an old commercial block; it is a deliberate statement of early-20th-century building practice, and its significance was later recognized when it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on September 24, 1980. Stand close and allow your eyes to trace the vertical rise of all five stories, then step back and picture the transition from the low adobe neighborhood that once was to the taller concrete form before you.
Picture the old adobe houses that once stood here, cleared away in 1910 to raise this five-story concrete landmark.