Farmers and Merchants Bank, built 1896, hits market

By Abigail Allen

Editor

One of the biggest pieces of Pilot Point history is up for sale.

The Farmers and Merchants Bank at the corner of Washington and Main streets is going on the market at $1.5 million.

"As a Realtor, it's an honor to be part of promoting this building," said Whitney Delcourt, owner of Lake Country Lifestyle Real Estate who is the listing agent for the building. "It's going to take a certain person that is going to be able to appreciate the building but also have the funds to put into the building and also be able to work with the city on being able to update it and get a business in it."

The roughly 10,000 square foot structure includes the bank lobby accessible through the front door at the corner of Main and Washington, an office and three large open rooms on the main floor.

Upstairs, there are two apartments—one currently inhabited and one vacant—with a connecting hallway and two staircases—one that exits to the Main Street side and one that exits along Washington Street.

There is also a basement below the main floor, accessible from the backyard, as well as an auxiliary building.

"What's neat about the building is it does have those two apartments so they could be income-producing for someone to have that ability, but then also have the commercial aspect of it," Delcourt said. "I know as far as the town, everything I hear is everybody would love a high-end steakhouse."

The Farmers and Merchants Bank building was constructed in 1896, and it has been home to multiple businesses throughout the years.

A plaque that can be affixed to the building reads, "The Farmers and Merchants Bank was a focal point of the downtown square. It closed during the Depression and never reopened as a bank. Dr. Oliver Clinton Buster had his medical office on the second floor. The building was used in the 1967 movie "Bonnie and Clyde."

The bank building has also part of the set for other movies shot partially in Pilot Point, including "Saving Jessica Lynch" and "Pretty Boy," according to a video by Irick Real Estate Group.

"Luckily, not much has been done to it, so it hasn't lost that history part of it," Delcourt said. "And it does have a recent roof on it, too, so that's a really good thing as far as its age to protect it."

Before the roof was replaced, there was some damage sustained to portions of the building, particularly in the warehouse portion along Washington Street.

The current owner, Konrad Shields, inherited the building from his life partner Wes Miller, who died in 2015, and he has been considering selling the building for a couple of years.

"He had to go through and shut down the gallery part and there was so much that Wes had in the building, and a lot of it was valuable, too," Delcourt said.

The decision was not an easy one for Shields, she added.

"But I think he's definitely ready now," Delcourt said. "He's looking forward, I think, to somebody getting it, loving it and doing something great with it."

Gretel L'Heureux served as the Pilot Point Main Street director and who also served as the volunteer and tourism coordinator for the Denton County Office of History and Culture.

She said that she hopes whoever purchases the Farmers and Merchants Bank will restore it with care and honor its history.

"The bank building is the premier focal point of the square, and Bob Albrecht, when he was there, he told me that it's the second-best building in Denton County after the Denton County Courthouse [-on-the-Square]," she said.

She referenced the Romanesque architecture, stonework and transom windows as key details.

"It's very valuable and unique," L'Heureux said. "It really, really is very special that Pilot Point has it."

She recalled attending art shows hosted by Miller in the space.

"It drew quite a crowd," she said. "A lot of people would come up from Denton or even Dallas sometimes."

Preserving that history matters, L'Heureux added.

"It has a lot of character," she said. "For anybody that understands old buildings and preservation, it's premier."

For more information, contact Delcourt at 214-724-1607 or through her website, lakecountrylifestyle.com.