Chamber of Commerce Building, Berkeley
historic place
The Chamber of Commerce Building in Berkeley, California, is a historic place in Alameda County. Designed by architect Walter H. Ratcliff, Jr., this twelve-story structure was built between 1925 and 1927, becoming Berkeley's first high-rise. The Berkeley Chamber of Commerce initially occupied the top floor. The American Trust Company later opened a ground-floor branch, and the building was renamed. A notable event occurred in 1930 when the Stanford Axe was famously stolen from the American Trust Company's vault within this building. Now home to Wells Fargo Bank, the building was designated a City of Berkeley Landmark in 1984 and listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1985. It remains a significant example of early 20th-century commercial architecture in Berkeley.