1500 Main Street
2026 Palladium Tour | Life on Main Street
1500 Main Street
Designed by New York firm W.T. Beer & Son and constructed by Clark Waring between 1872-1873, the Central National Bank Building brought a French flair to Main Street as property owners rebuilt the commercial corridor after the Civil War. As The Daily Phoenix noted, the building’s plans presented “the handsomest edifice in the city by odds, and [it] will be highly ornamental to our Main Street.” It was one of two Main Street landmarks done in the Second Empire style that is best articulated through its mansard roof, heavy quoins, and window drip courses.
The banking room was originally at basement floor level, which was several feet below grade. The owners were required to add iron fencing along the sidewalk to keep pedestrians from falling. The main storefront was reached via a “monumental” staircase at the corner of the building. The rest of the building contained office spaces across three above-grade floors. The Sanborn Fire Insurance map from 1884 shows that the bank still operated in the basement, while the first floor main office was rented by Southern Bell. The telephone company arrived in Columbia in 1880 and immediately took up space here.
In 1905, Swedish immigrant brothers Gustav and Johannes Sylvan rehabilitated this property into their jewelry store, Sylvan Brothers, which had already been in operation for nearly a decade. Changes included removing the structure’s front corner staircase, raising the former basement bank up to street level, and adding large windows along Hampton Street for displaying merchandise.
FUN FACT: Did you know that the building has won two Historic Columbia Preservation Awards?
At the inaugural awards ceremony in 1976, 1500 Main Street won a Certificate of Merit for Continuing Preservation. The site won again in 1985 for Restoration. Sylvan Brothers, by then rebranded as Sylvan’s Jewelers, sold the property to developer Don Taylor in 1984, who was able to perform this award-winning restoration work and convert unused storage space into office rental space.
Sylvan’s continued to use the main storefront until the building’s sale in 2025. The sections seen on today’s tour, including the former banking floor (basement), Sylvan’s (main), and Y.M.C.A. rooms (upper), are now awaiting their next revitalization.
