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The city of Phoenix, Arizona is always re-inventing itself. It's a young city, as American cities go, but not as young as some people might think. I was a graphic designer at Valley National Bank (which became Bank One) from 1989 to 1996. When the marketing department closed down, Valley National Bank had just celebrated 90 years in Arizona. Working downtown (in Bank One Center), it amazed me to think of a time when downtown was about all that the city of Phoenix was. I used to walk around during my lunch hour and look at the buildings. When Valley Bank became Bank One in 1992, a lot of history went into the dumpster. I saved as much as I could, especially old photos and maps of Phoenix. I will continue to add more to this page as time allows. These are scans from the original glossy publicity stills from Valley Bank. For corrections and comments please e-mail Brad Hall. Thank you to everyone who is helping me with this site! All photos and collateral on this page were originally from the Valley National Bank Collection. All rights reserved. Special thank you to Tony Toccora and Bob Dreste! For the history of Phoenix street names go here. Updated August 17, 2008
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| Downtown Phoenix looking south. from The Westward Ho Hotel, Central and Fillmore. Many of these buildings are still around. To the far left is the original Valley National Bank Building (called The Professional Building) on Van Buren Street. The handsome building in the center of the photo is The Security Building. In front of it the sign says "Walsh Brother's Office Equipment". The Luhrs Tower is to the right of the Security Building. Directly in the center: Good-Year tires. The elegant three-story building on the far right of the photo is the Salt River Valley Water Users’ Association building. In the lower left, "Mac's Liquors". The main post office hasn't been built yet. Photo circa 1930s. See detail of old buildings on the east side of Central. | Downtown Phoenix looking north. The building in the center is the Valley Bank Building. The sign saying "Valley National Bank" isn't up yet.The banners say "Phoenix Shines in '39, Arizona Welcomes You". See close-up detail of the banner . In the lower right is the Luhrs Hotel. Lower left says "Famous ABC" - what do you suppose that was? Photo 1939. | Downtown Phoenix looking southwest. The building in the middle is the one that Janet Leigh and John Gavin were in at the beginning of Alfred Hitchcock's movie "Psycho". Well, the window at least. The building is still there, looks much smaller now. "Psycho" has some great shots of 1960 Phoenix at the beginning of the movie, by the way. To the right, the tall building is the Luhrs Tower, also still there. The banner across Central Avenue says "Dons' Trek, Superstition Mountains, Sunday March 7", to view close-up detail click here. To find out more about the Don's Trek click here. For detail of Tovrea's Meats on the southwest corner of Central and Washington, click here. To find out more about the Tovrea family, go here. | Phoenix map from 1939. On the outskirts of Phoenix; North Phoenix High School on Thomas Road, The State Fairgrounds, Encanto Park and golf course. To the east of the city, The Arizona Hospital for the Insane, Phoenix Sky Harbor airport. The way to get to Los Angeles in those days was to go up Route 60 (Grand Avenue) through Wickenburg and Prescott and and then west at Ash Fork on Route 66. The original townsite of Phoenix, Arizona Territory, was seven blocks wide by seven blocks deep. The "road out of town" was at Van Buren and 7th Avenue. That's why it's at a 45-degree angle. The very old churches along Van Buren Street face south, because that's where most of the town was when they were built. |
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| The Professional Building, originally built as a medical office, was the headquarters for Valley National Bank before Valley Center was built. This beautiful Art Deco building still stands although it was gutted out in the mid-nineties. The ground floor has a McDonalds now but the entry to the elevators is original and intact. I own one of the original cast-iron signs for this building which says "The Professional Building". This photo is from a postcard, circa 1950s. | The Professional Building, circa 1930s or 40s. Can anyone identify the model and year of the car? This photo says "Merge Studios, 2115 W. Pico Blvd., Los Angeles 6, Calif. Phone 389-2458. Photo © Merge Studios. | The Professional Building, 1970. I'm told that when the new building (Valley Center) went up in 1973, the largest rotating neon sign in the world (as seen in this photo) was dismantled and junked. On the other hand, when Bank One bought out Valley Bank in 1992, the VNB signs from all of the buildings were carefully removed and given to stockholders, customers, employees and museums. I even got one (a little one - about 10" wide) - that's it up in the header of this page). This photo is stamped "Tom Mitten Photography 533 W. Encanto Blvd., Phoenix, Arizona 85003. Ph. Al 3-9328. 1970. Photo © Mitten Photography. | Valley National Bank Branch, Camelback and 44th Street. The photo is marked "4-4-74, FLT 13-23". Don't you wish you had bought all of that empty land back in '74 when it was cheap? This building looks exactly the same today (except for the Valley Bank stuff). Note the old Circle K sign in the lower left. |
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| Downtown Phoenix looking southeast on Central, 1967. This is the site of Valley Center (now Chase Center). In addition to the coffee shop on the corner, I can see a photo shop, a stamp and coin place and the Vista Theater. This photo is stamped "Tom Mitten Photography 533 W. Encanto Blvd., Phoenix, Arizona 85003. Ph. Al 3-9328. Handwritten it says "Expansion Block Nov - 1967" . Photo © Mitten Photography. | Willetta and First Street Office, Valley National Bank. downtown Phoenix. 1400 N. 1st Street. See close-up detail of the “Drive-In Teller” window here.This photos is marked on the back with the stamp of Markow Photography, 741 E. McDowell Phoenix, Arizona 85006 ALoine 8-5191. Copy Neg. No. 25840-3. Photo © Markow Photography. Bob Markow did a lot of photography for Valley Bank through the years. His son, Paul Markow, teaches photography at Phoenix College. Click here to read about Bob and Bea Markow. | Mobile branch, Valley National Bank, circa 1960s. I think they were trying to be funny with this photo. That's an early '60s Triumph TR3 and it probably didn't tow that trailor. Also Markow Photography, Neg. #10087-9. Photo © Markow Photography. | Detail of 1957 Valley National Bank Annual Report Cover. Painting of the Valley National Bank sign on top of The Professional Building. Artist unknown. |
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| Valley Center (now Chase Center) was built in 1973 at Van Buren and Central, just north of the old building. This photo is a good contrast of the old and the new (well, if you consider 1973 new!) Note the San Carlos Hotel in the lower left. | Promoting Valley Center, circa 1970. Looks like they're in Park Central. What do you think? This photo has a stamp on the back that says "Camera Arts Studio, 4525 N. 24th Street 266-3976, Phoenix, Arizona. Negative No. 2475-B-6. Photo © Camera Arts Studio. | Promoting Valley Center, circa 1970. The nametag for the woman standing says "Chris". The nametag for the other woman is not visible in either photo. This photo has the same stamp on the back and is Negative No. 2475-A7. Photo © Camera Arts Studio. | Some Valley National Bank bigshots pondering the model of the new building, circa 1970. Left to right: Jim Patrick, Wilson Barrett, unknown, Les Goldberg, Earl Bimson, Earl Brunken, Len Huck. This photos is marked on the back with the stamp of Markow Photography, 741 E. McDowell Phoenix, Arizona 85006 258-6191. Neg. No. 29848-13. Photo © Markow Photography. |
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| A new Phoenix neighborhood in the fifties . From the 1957 Valley National Bank Annual Report. Camelback Mountain is in the distance. See detail of the street sign. It says E. Elm Street and N. 27th Place. This is a beautiful older neighborhood in Phoenix, called the "Arcadia District". This is the definition of "Arcadia" that I found that seems to fit nicely - Greek landscape which because of its purity and beauty, came to represent virtue, insouciance and happiness in literature and art in the Modern Age. | Downtown Sunnyslope, looking east along Dunlap from about 2nd Street. From the cover of the Sunnyslope & Cactus Business Directory, circa 1950s. The mountains are the same now but that's about it. | Map showing Paradise City and Cactus. From the back cover of the Sunnyslope Business Directory. "North Phoenix Airport" is at the northeast corner of Cactus and Cave Creek Road. Circa 1950s. | Phoenix map 1950. The population of Phoenix is 128, 841. South Phoenix airport is at 16th Street just south of the Salt River. Map © The H. M. G. Co. , distributed by Texaco™ . |
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| Phoenix, Arizona 1950. Today the city limits of Phoenix extend north beyond the boundries of this map. | For a page about Westgate click here | ||
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