800 Main St, Susanville CA

Completed in 1901, the furniture store doubled as an undertaker, since making furniture and coffins used the same materials and skill set.

The Bank of Lassen County occupied the building beginning in 1913. It was the first financial institution In Lassen County.

Renovations to the building completed by the bank included a vault at the back of the large open room. Sadly the double vault doors that once occupied the space have since been removed, leaving a room with two-foot thick concrete walls that is currently used for storage. There are rumors of a second vault in the little-visited basement of the historic building ;)

The vault wall housing two very cool vault doors. These doors were removed at some point in time, and the wall now looks like any other wall, aside from being two feet thick and made of solid concrete.

Another shot from inside the bank, this time facing towards Main St. This shot is a good look at the historic paneled ceiling that is still intact and visible throughout the building (which now houses a law office and includes many rooms).

800 Main was renovated and occupied by the Bank of Lassen County beginning in 1913. This image of Main St. is from somewhere close to that date, with the new bank looking very impressive. Two doors down was the Orpheum Theater, which was constructed in 1913 as well. One has to assume that this picture was taken of this section of Main Street shortly after the “new look” that these buildings brought to the uptown area.

This image shows the Bank of Lassen County with “The Mail” in the back section under the awning. After the first major remodel, we can see the current roofline here, as the building has begun its evolution into its current form. The covered porch with its archways (now enclosed and a part of the gallery) is still open in this shot.

800 Main St serves as the backdrop to this cool photo (50’s?) of a soapbox derby race on the perfect slope of Main St. in Uptown Susanvile. We can see the post that held the shingle sign for the Bank of Lassen County, but the bank is apparently no longer the occupant. A couple other banks occupied the building after the Bank of Lassen County finally closed its doors.

Using a green laser to pinpoint hole locations, I snapped this photo of the vintage ceiling while hanging gallery lighting.

The 1995 blockbuster (term used loosely) “Werewolf” was partially filmed in Susanville. in what is probably the most dramatic scene in the film, the werewolf is hit by a car outside 800 Main St, climbs up onto the roof of the building, and stands with arms outstretched… apparently overwhelmed at the historic uptown Susanville experience. It’s a very moving scene.

I can’t confirm the presence of a vintage 1913 bank vault in the basement of the building, but you can imagine how cool it would be if there was one.

We found a set of chandeliers in the basement, and experimented with which ones to use. Eventually the decision was made to replace them all with new fixtures. The back wall partially visible here is the one that once housed the vault doors in the other photos.

Taken just before we took ownership of the building, this exterior shot shows the building as it was for several years. The red stripe was the result of the last occupant of the building before it sat empty for a couple of years: Verizon Wireless.

April 2024… the paint and stucco work is almost done here, and the new color scheme is coming together. Signage for the gallery and Mrs. Robbins’ Law Office is the next thing on our list.