Scope and Contents

This study was initiated as a class term paper about the architecture and design of the Watkins National Bank building. The interior detail work as well as the larger structure are described, and numerous photographs are included, as are a bibliography of references, interviews, and correspondence used in researching the topic. There is a brief biographical sketch of Jabez B. Watkins and the background on the construction of the bank building.

Overview Jabez Bunting Watkins (1845-1921), capitalist and entrepreneur in Lawrence, Kansas, built one of the largest farm mortgage businesses in the central United States during the last three decades of the 19th century. Most of these papers are business correspondence and records which chronicle the corporate life of J. B. Watkins and Company, the J. B. Watkins Land Mortgage Company, the Watkins Land Company, and various other businesses owned or controlled by J. B. Watkins. The bulk of the papers...