Union Loan and Trust Building

Built in 1907, the Union Loan and Trust Building was one of Centralia's most impressive early commercial landmarks. Rising three stories along North Tower Avenue, it represented the city's financial ambition during a period of renewed growth after the economic hardships of the 1890s.

Constructed for the Union Loan and Trust Company at a reported cost of about $75,000, the building was regarded as a major achievement. In 1909, the Centralia Daily Chronicle described it as by far the most handsome and costly building between Tacoma and the Columbia River. That statement captures both the pride and aspiration the building carried. Centralia was positioning itself not merely as a stop between larger cities, but as a regional center of business and finance.

The Union Loan and Trust Company occupied the south half of the building, with offices on the first and second floors. Its leadership included prominent local businessmen F. B. Hubard, president, and F. T. McNitt, vice president. Walk-in vaults remain part of the building's story, evidence of its original financial use and the trust placed in its walls.

But the building was never only a bank. Its basement housed the Centralia Daily Chronicle, extending beneath the sidewalk with access once available from the street before flooding from China Creek led to changes. Professional offices filled additional portions of the second floor. The third floor became the home of Elks Lodge No. 1083, which dedicated its new hall on July 24 and 25, 1908 after investing $6,000 in interior design. That upper-floor lodge space remained remarkably intact, with a pool room, ballroom, stenciled walls, lounge, and massive working fireplace.

In later decades, the building continued to adapt. During the 1930s, it was purchased by Gisler McNiven Furniture Company and converted to retail use. The McHugh family later acquired the property and opened Ken Schoenfeld Furniture. In the mid-1990s, Isaacson's moved in, continuing the building's long commercial life.

Today, the Union Loan and Trust Building - also known in recent memory as the Ayala Building - stands as one of Centralia's most layered historic structures. It has held banking, journalism, fraternal life, professional offices, retail, and community memory within the same walls. Few buildings better capture the ambition and adaptability of downtown Centralia.