Mercantile National Bank Building

Known affectionately as The Merc, the Mercantile National Bank Building is a 31-story 1940s skyscraper in the Main Street District in Downtown Dallas. Notably, it was the only major skyscraper in the country built during World War II and served as the headquarters of Mercantile National Bank, later MCorp Bank, until 1989. Designed by Walter W. Ahlschlager, the skyscraper features Moderne styling from the Art Deco era with a series of setbacks crowned by an ornamental four-sided clock and a decorative weather spire. In its heyday, The Merc was the main element of a four-building complex on a full city block, but from 2006 to 2009, the original building was converted into 225 apartments with ground-floor retail while the three other buildings were demolished and replaced with a 15-story residential building. The base still reveals the original façade while balconies were added to the east side.

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