Rio Grande Valley Bank Building - Trost Society

Rio Grande Valley Bank Building

Hotel Paso Del Norte

Rio Grande Valley Bank Building

The Rio Grande Valley Bank Building, more commonly known as the Abdou Building, was designed by the iconic El Paso firm of Trost & Trost in a Romanesque Revival style. Completed in 1910, it represented part of a unique explosion of substantially large Trost buildings erected in a very short three year period. These included the Abdou, Caples, Stevens, Roberts-Banner, American National, Hotel Paso del Norte, Anson Mills, Posener (Little Caples), White House and Calishers — all completed between 1909 and 1912.

This building was commissioned by the Rio Grande Valley Bank, but approximately 8 months after completion was purchased by the Two Republics Life Insurance company. When Two Republics completed their new building at Texas & Stanton (The International Building, also Trost & Trost) in 1921, the building became property of the City National Bank. On May 21, 1925, after the failure of the bank, it was in turn purchased by Syrian born Salim Abdou (1875-1953), owner of the Abdou Produce and Cold Storage Company, for $150,000 as an investment property – generating the name that El Paso knows the building by today.

Old photographs courtesy of the El Paso Public Library; modern photography by Mark Stone.

— Mark Stone


Additional Details

Other Names: Two Republics Life Building; Abdou Building
Type: Commercial
Construction Date: Mar 1, 1910
Address: 109 N Mesa St, El Paso, TX 79901, USA
Condition: Restored

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