First National Bank building was one of the first commercial buildings on East Main Street beginning the transition of the business district away from the Plaza. It was the primary financial institution in Ashland for several decades.

When we photographed the building in 2008, it housed administrative offices of the Oregon Shakespeare Festival.

The brick and concrete building at 70 East Main Street shares a common wall with the First National Bank building. Constructed in 1910, it opened with the Vaupel Store on the first floor and the Oregon Hotel on the second.

The buildings were among the most modern in Ashland. The large plate glass windows allowed maximum space for display of merchandise. Brick trim ties the buildings together. The façades are simple, reflecting the move away from the architectural flamboyance of the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

Adapted from the NRHP nomination submitted in 1980.