Oriental Building Association - View this location on map The 1909 home of the Oriental Building Association embodies the distinguishing characteristics of a financial institution headquarters in the Italian Renaissance Revival palazzo style. The five-story corner building of buff brick and limestone houses a ground floor banking hall and leasable upper floors. A notable work of the German-American architect Albert Goenner, the building is located in the midst of the downtown mercantile neighborhood historically dominated by German-American businesses. OBA exemplifies the historical importance of immigrant self-help organizations and business relationships. Chartered in 1880, the association originated in 1861 as a building and loan association designed to allow small businesses and average savers to pool resources and offer credit. The association s name suggests that the founders may have been members of a fraternal lodge: at the time of its founding, there was an  Oriental Lodge No. 19 of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows downtown and a Masonic Oriental Lodge in Alexandria. For many years, the officers and directors of the Association were German immigrants; Goenner s selection as architect undoubtedly reflects his connections within that community. The association occupied its building at 6th and F Streets for nearly a century, and continues in business today as OBA Bank, the oldest savings and loan in the nation. 600 F Street, NW, Washington , DC Historical

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