Jennings Ford Automobile Dealership

The Jennings Ford Automobile Dealership is a historic automobile dealership located at 431 South 4th Street in Springfield, Illinois. Ford dealer Frank Jennings built the dealership in 1919. The automobile became widespread in Springfield in the 1910s; Jennings Ford was one of several dealerships to open on South 4th Street, which was then the city's automobile row. The three-story building integrated every major function of an auto dealership at the time; it included a sales floor, a service center, a car wash, a storage garage, and a repainting facility. While Jennings Ford closed between 1927 and 1933, the building remained a car dealership through the 1950s. It is one of the few remaining dealership buildings in downtown Springfield and is the best-preserved of the survivors.[2] Today, the building houses an operations center for Illinois National Bank.[3]

Jennings Ford Automobile Dealership
Jennings Ford Automobile Dealership is located in Illinois
Jennings Ford Automobile Dealership
Location in Illinois
Jennings Ford Automobile Dealership is located in the United States
Jennings Ford Automobile Dealership
Location in United States
Location431 S. Fourth St., Springfield, Illinois
Coordinates39°47′51″N 89°39′4″W / 39.79750°N 89.65111°W / 39.79750; -89.65111
Arealess than one acre
ArchitectHarry Reiger
Architectural styleEarly Commercial
NRHP reference No.06000450[1]
Added to NRHPMay 31, 2006

The building was added to the National Register of Historic Places on May 31, 2006.[1]

References

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  1. ^ a b "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
  2. ^ Gihl, Tom (October 2005). "National Register of Historic Places Registration Form: Jennings Ford Automobile Dealership" (PDF). National Park Service. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2015-01-23. Retrieved January 22, 2015.
  3. ^ Schaefer, Marilyn Titone. "Operations Center INB's 21st Century, Electronic Vault". Archived from the original on 2016-11-08. Retrieved 2016-11-08.