The Active Historian

Hey, Friend! Welcome back to another post. Today, I want to tell you about the historic Rock Island Plow Building in Oklahoma City. This post was inspired after seeing the historic marker pictured below when I was out walking down the sidewalks in OKC. Let’s get started!

History

The Rock Island Plow Building was built in 1909 by the Rock Island Plow Co. This was a subsidiary of the Rock Island Corporation based in Chicago, Illinois. The building permit was issued for $55,000 in January 1909.

The purpose of this building was to be a warehouse and wholesale distribution center. They strategically built this building across the street from the Katy Depot (which was sadly razed and no longer stands in OKC in 2026).

In 1932, the Rock Island Plow Building was sold to the Reinhart and Donovan construction company.

After this, the building was used for general storage and eventually fell into disrepair.

In 1983, the Rock Island Plow Building was added to the National Register of Historic Places.

The building was restored by the Lingo Construction Company in 2015. They did a “core/shell renovation” which reinforced the original elements and repaired the decorative elements as well. In total the building is 43,000 square feet spread across multiple stories. The budget for the project was 5-20 million dollars.

Today, the building is used as office spaces.

Historic Marker Transcription

The Rock Island Plow Building was constructed in 1909 by the Rock Island Plow Co., a subsidiary of the Rock Island Corporation of Chicago. Located next to the Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad Depot, the building was designed to serve as a wholesale distribution center, warehouse and showroom.

The Plow Building was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1983 but had fallen into disrepair since its registration. Registration is #83002106 NRIS.

In 2015 the building was fully restored and brought back into service by Rock Island Plow LLC. This redevelopment would not have been possible without the generous support of the City of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma City Economic Development Trust, the State Historic Preservation Office and the National Park Service.”

Architect: Allford Hall Monaghan Morris

Contractor: Lingo Construction

Developer: Rock Island Plow LLC

Visit

29 E Reno Avenue

Oklahoma City, OK

Sources

Secondary Sources

Websites

“Rock Island Plow Building.” Lingo Construction.

Primary Sources

National Register for Historic Places – Website

Newspapers

“Building Permits Last Week $99,700.” The Daily Oklahoman (Oklahoma City, Oklahoma), January 17, 1909.