Virginia Department of Historic Resources Virginia Department of Historic Resources
For additional information, read the Nomination Form PDF
VLR Listing Date 06/16/1999
NRHP Listing Date 08/12/1999
NRHP Reference Number 99001005
The Professional Building was constructed from 1916-1919 as the American Bank and Trust Company, and was designed by Norfolk architect John Kevan Peebles. Peebles is noted for his work at the 1907 Jamestown Exposition and the University of Virginia. The Professional Building represents one of a few multi-story skyscrapers built in the city of Suffolk, and it commands a key downtown intersection in the Suffolk Historic District. As such, the building exemplifies an era of prosperity marked by the construction of prominent, impressive structures meant to convey high status. The Professional Building retains its imposing banking lobby with a 20-foot-high coffered ceiling supported by monumental Tuscan columns.
Many properties listed in the registers are private dwellings and are not open to the public, however many are visible from the public right-of-way. Please be respectful of owner privacy.
Abbreviations:
VLR: Virginia Landmarks Register
NPS: National Park Service
NRHP: National Register of Historic Places
NHL: National Historic Landmark
Updated: August 24, 2021
