The Centennial National Bank is a historic building in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Designed by noted Philadelphia architect Frank Furness and significant in his artistic development, it was built in 1876 as the headquarters of the eponymous bank that would be the fiscal agent of the Centennial Exposition. The building housed a branch of the First Pennsylvania Bank from 1956 until Drexel University purchased it . Drexel renovated it between 2000-2002 and now uses it as an alumni center. The Centennial National Bank, described as "one of the best pieces of architecture in West Philadelphia," was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1971. History The Centennial National Bank opened for business in January 1876, shortly before its permanent building was constructed the same year. Architect Frank Furness, who had just parted ways with business partner George Hewitt, received the commission due to personal connections with the directors. The bank obtained a monopoly over handling ticket receipts and currency exchanges for the Centennial Exposition, which opened on the Fourth of July to celebrate the 100-year anniversary of American independence, and operated a branch on the fairgrounds. It continued to operate as the only national bank in West Philadelphia for decades, and the building remained in use as a bank branch until it was vacated by the First Pennsylvania Bank between 1965 and 1971. Drexel University purchased the building , using it primarily as office space and later to house university's alumni center. Design and construction The bank was chartered on January 19, 1876, to finance Philadelphia's coming-out on the world stage, the Centennial Exposition. The Exposition was the first World's Fair held in North America and its opening day, July 4, coincided with the 100-year of American independence. Its first president was Clarence Howard Clark, Sr., a financier and West Philadelphia resident and developer. Clark hired Frank Furness, whom he had met in Unitarian circles, to design the bank's headquarters building. (Furness likely also knew bank co-founder Samuel Shipley.) He had worked previously on one of his most successful bank designs, the Guarantee Trust and Safe Deposit Company, with his partner George Hewitt. However, the partnership dissolved in the fall of 1875, leaving the firm without a mechanical engineer. The Centennial Bank was the first major project Furness took on afterward. Strategically located at the corner of 32nd and Market streets, a building on the site would terminate the line