Contact Information & Locations - Hazel

Reliabank - Hazel 
11 West William
PO Box 81
Hazel, South Dakota 57242

Phone: (605) 628-2961
Telebank: (877) 250-2112
Fax: (605) 628-2630

Lobby
Monday - Friday 8am - Noon
Friday Afternoon 1 pm - 5 pm

Email us at reliabank@reliabank.com

Bank Preserves the Past

These days, bankers who spend too much time in the past usually end up missing out on the future. David Johnson, CEO of Reliabank, is one banker who not only works, but lives, in the past. His preoccupation with the past has preserved a piece of history for the future. Johnson was instrumental in getting the 96-year old Reliabank building in Hazel placed in the National Register of Historic Places this year.

Johnson said he has always been interested in preservation. When the bank he ran in Estelline purchased the former First State Bank of Hazel in 1992, Johnson decided to restore it to its former splendor. In order to get the building on the National Register of Historic Places, the bank had to present its work plan, detail what would be restored, and why.

The why was the easiest. To earn its place in history, a building must have been the site of a historical event; be a unique example of period architecture; or have contributed significantly to the area's economic development.
The bank fell into the last category. It is the only bank in the town of 100 and is the center of economic activity, Johnson said.

The bank relied on 1910 photographs of the building to ensure accurate preservation. The state historical society also provided direction. "There isn't anything we didn't replace, other than the furnace," Johnson said. "It was a real top-to-bottom restoration."
At the top was the ceiling. The original tin ceiling was in horrible shape, Johnson said. At some point, the building's former owners had installed a suspended ceiling, which left holes in the tin. Johnson hired a local craftsman who artfully restored the ceiling armed only with body putty and dental picks.

To recapture the turn-of-the-century feel inside, Johnson purchased a teller line, fixtures and desks from another bank that had been torn down. The oak teller line has four and a half inches of wainscotting at the bottom and 20-inch frosted windows.

Getting to the bottom of things, Johnson noticed that the orginal maple floor in front of the teller line had worn away. Past repair attempts included carpeting and sheeting, he said. Johnson opted for one-inch ceramic tile in the customer service area.

The exterior of the building was in dire need of repair as well, Johnson said. The first step was removing the paint from the bricks. So the walls didn't come tumbling down, the old mortar was taken out of the grooves and replaced with new mortar, a process called tuck pointing. Even the mortar had to be historically correct in color -- red, not gray or white, Johnson said.

To get a clear view, windows were restored. The two original windows had been replaced with glass blocks in the 1950s and an air conditioner in the 1970s, he said.

Restoration of the 25-foot by 60-foot building took about seven months, Johnson said, and cost about $55,000. Johnson credits customers with being patient during the restoration. "They had been involved with remodeling their own houses, so they knew what it was like to have sawdust in the kitchen," he said.

The bank had an open house celebration for Christmas 1995. Having the building placed on the National Register a year later is the icing on the cake. It ensures that the historic character will remain for generations to come.