Currently Endangered List

Properties on our Currently Endangered list are those where graffiti vandalism is so extensive that it has already resulted in a significant loss of aesthetic and architectural integrity.  At this stage, virtually any type of remediation method (sandblasting, chemical methods, or painting over) will not only be ineffective, but it will ultimately lead to further deterioration and structural damage.  

The Fair Store Annex was built as an addition to The Fair Store located at 37 Main Street.  In 1906, the owners of the Fair Store, Frankenberr and Newman, commissioned renowned architect Henry C. Trost to design the annex, a design that included an upper level walkway between the buildings.  The Old American Legion also occupied this building at one time. 

In his early career, Trost served as a designer for the Chicago Ornamental Iron Company, later becoming the president of the firm.  He left Chicago in 1897 and eventually settled in El Paso where his firm, Trost & Trost was founded.  He was, without question, one of the most important architects of the early 1900's.  His works are spread throughout the Southwest and, in Bisbee alone, he designed and built over twenty three commercial and residential masterpieces.  His most famously regarded building in Bisbee is the Walter Douglas Mansion in the Warren neighborhood.  Built in 1907 for then Phelps-Dodge General Manager Walter Douglas, it is Trost's largest residential design and reflects a mix of architectural features ranging from Craftsman and Prairie School Design to Romanesque and Mission Revival.  

"He was one who let himself be known by his works, rather than his words, one who made a valid and lasting contribution to the development of this great region. His was a life of purpose and achievement, and he leaves the Southwest richer for his having lived and worked in it."

-- El Paso Times 1933