F.E. Hoffman Building - Sedalia Commercial Historic District - Sedalia, Missouri - NRHP Historic Districts - Contributing Buildings on Waymarking.com

F.E. Hoffman Building (Keele's Wallpaper World)
1891-92
Romanesque Revival
Rectangular plan, two stories, limestone foundation, brick walls, limestone trim.

The Ohio Avenue facade has a first story "loggia" with three bays. The north end has a dressed sandstone corner pier with plain molded capital; a center pier is with dressed stone on its lower two-thirds and rock-faced random ashlar on the upper one-third. A metal lintel acts as a sign board (Sedalia Decorating Ctr.) and coursed ashlar is above the lintel. The south end bay is an entryway with two coursed ashlar piers with smooth inner surfaces; the upper half of the piers have rounded corner clustered columns and very decorative large end blocks supporting a stone lintel with flanking end blocks with carved faces (north face removed).

Above the lintel is an infilled round arch transom with a stone ashlar round arch, large impost blocks, and random ashlar spandrels. A large metal lintel is between the entryway and the center pier with a smaller clad lintel below. The three loggia bays are capped by a stone frieze with very decorative, foliated end sections and a center diamond pattern; a molded stone cornice is above. Behind the loggia piers is a deeply recessed storefront that has been altered to have wide center multi-light modern display sash over a clad bulkhead; a modern entry is at the north end. An original 1-light wood entry door is at the south end with a wood panel surround and 1-light transom. The second story is smooth red brick divided into three bays by slightly projecting brick piers with unusual narrow rough-faced brick "quoin" bands.

The center bay has a recessed 1/1 center sash with a stone lintel and a decorative brick panel above; a corbelled band is at the top of the recess. Large 1/1 round arch sash flank the center sash; they have brick round arch surrounds with decorative brick archivolts. The north and south end bays have two recessed 1/1 sash with stone lintels and decorative recessed brick panels above separated by plain brick piers; a corbelled band is at the top of the recess. The building is topped by a brick parapet with concrete coping that is stepped in the center and above which the banded piers project slightly. The West Fifth Street facade has an exposed, below grade basement with three exposed basement openings; the first story is battered. The east end opening (105 W. Fifth Street, Cosick's Shoe Repair) has concrete steps down to a 1-light wood door with a 1/1 sash to the east; a single metal column between the door and sash supports a wide stone lintel. The off-center (to east) opening has paired 9-light sash and a concrete window well. The west opening has concrete steps down to a wood panel door set below the sidewalk and an adjacent 1-light and wood panel door on the building. All the openings have metal pipe railings around them. The first story has complex stone work beginning with the east end corner loggia pier that is followed by an opening (to the storefront) spanned by a lintel. The east end of the building has a single slit window topped by a round arch with wide stone voussoirs followed by a triple blind window opening (infilled with random ashlar) with double transoms and wide stone lintels; the window group has smooth stone mullions and transom bars. The lower transoms are infilled with signage, the upper 1-light transoms are covered by grilles. An off-center opening is to the east consisting of a wide stone round arch with decorative impost blocks, keystone and molded archivolt; a narrow semi-circular sash is set below the arch with stone sill, the area below the sash is infilled with stone. To the west are three high windows infilled with wood (signage) with stone lintels, sills and mullions. The west end bay has a raised entryway (blocked) with a wide stone lintel and four 1-light over 1-light sash divided by a wood transom bar; the wall of the bay is random coursed ashlar.

The foliated and diamond frieze returns from the Ohio Avenue facade, but the west end bay (possibly an addition) has a different elaborate stone frieze with five faces inset in foliation; the stone west end pier has a foliated cap. The second story is similar to the Ohio Avenue facade with the east end bay returning the two 1/1 sash and details. This is followed by two round arch 1/1 sash and a large recessed 1/1 sash set in a recessed panel with corbelled top. The west end bay is similar to the east end bay with two round arch 1/1 sash but they are larger and have two brick recessed panels above each sash. The building is set on the southwest corner of Ohio and West Fifth Streets and is attached to 506-510 S. Ohio and, via a hyphen, to the Lona Theater (105-111 W. Fifth).