Date:  December 2, 2024  |   Story: Tiffany Adams  |   Art Direction: Bailey Dougan  |  

Building History: The Loft on the Square

As a real estate investor with a love of architecture, Magnolia native Kevin Barker has a penchant for buildings with history. This passion recently led him and his wife, Heather, to purchase The Loft on the Square in the heart of the town.

Built in 1892 as the home of Columbia Bank, it was the first two-story structure in Columbia County, drawing crowds from around the small farming community who were eager to see a dual-level building. During the Great Depression, the bank ceased operations and the bottom floor became a grocery store while attorney and dentist offices went in upstairs. Kevin believes this arrangement lasted until the late 1950s or early 1960s. Following that, other businesses have come and gone on the ground floor, including a jewelry store, but the classic structure remained largely vacant until it was renovated in the early 2000s. Today, five fully furnished loft-style hotel rooms are available for rent on the top level.

The Barkers, who currently operate The Loft on the Square and own four other buildings on the Magnolia Square, have plans to renovate the downstairs portion as well. “We don’t have a lot of old buildings in Arkansas like they do in the Northeast. This is about as old as you will find,” Kevin says. “It was built by hand in an era when everything had to be brought in by mules and wagons, and you can tell people really took pride in their work,” he adds, pointing out floral details that were incorporated into the stone, the original tin that can still be seen on the upstairs ceilings, and two enormous walk-in bank vaults—one of which he has plans to turn into a wine cellar. “That’s why I love old buildings—you can’t afford to build them like this today and nobody would do it. They will last, and with some care, hopefully we will have 200-year-old buildings someday,” he says.

Illustration by Bailey Dougan