The Bank of Delaware Building Listed in the National Register of Historic Places

DOVER, Del. - The Delaware Division of Historical and Cultural Affairs is pleased to announce that the Bank of Delaware Building, located on Delaware Avenue in downtown Wilmington, was listed in the National Register of Historic Places on April 27, 2026, for its architectural significance and association with commerce in Wilmington, Delaware.

This seventeen-story office building was built in 1970 and was designed with elements of New Formalism and Late Modernism styles. Notable architectural features of the building include a Miesian curtain wall system, a minimalist and modern façade, and a projecting first-story base, complete with a colonnade. A second story penthouse, historically serving as a boardroom for the Bank of Delaware, sits on the corner closest to Delaware Avenue and North West Street.

Dallas, Texas-based architect, Harold A. Berry, designed the Bank of Delaware building. Berry was known for his design of speculative commercial buildings across the United States during the last half of the twentieth century. He typically designed speculative buildings as high-rise headquarters, serving as the anchor tenant for the space, with leasable office space on other floors. This building model was popular among developers as it offered flexibility in different real estate markets during this period in American history.

The Bank of Delaware was first established in Wilmington in 1795. Throughout the nineteenth and twentieth centuries the institution continued to grow, moving its headquarter location around the City. In the late 1960s, the Bank sold their headquarter location on the corner of Ninth and Market Streets to move into their newly constructed location on Delaware Avenue. The location of the headquarters was selected because of its central location in downtown Wilmington's business district. The Bank of Delaware utilized the building until 1989, when the company was acquired by PNC Bank.

The property is currently participating in the Federal Tax Incentive programs to adaptively reuse the building as an apartment complex. For more information on the National Register program or a copy of the nomination, contact Emily Whaley at (302) 736-7406 or [email protected].

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About HCA: The Division of Historical and Cultural Affairs is an agency of the State of Delaware. The division enhances Delaware's quality of life by preserving the state's unique historical heritage, fostering community stability and economic vitality, and providing educational programs and assistance to the public on Delaware history. The division's diverse array of services includes operation of five museums, administration of the State Historic Preservation Office, conservation of the State's archaeological and historic-objects collections, operation of a conference center and management of historic properties across the state. Primary funding for division programs and services is provided by annual appropriations from the Delaware General Assembly and grants from the National Park Service, Department of the Interior, a federal agency. However, the contents and opinions expressed in the division's programs and services do not necessarily reflect the views and policies of the Department of the Interior.