by Michael R. Allen
Vandals have been pillaging the Murphy Building in the last few weeks. On Sunday, March 6, we arrived to find that three of the ornamental terra cotta keystones above the fifth-floor windows on the main facade had been removed. The vandals had removed the boards covering the front door of the Murphy Building — until then mostly inaccessible — and left the boards lying on the sidewalk outside. They had crudely removed the keystones, leaving jagged openings.
The building is owned by the City of East St. Louis, which did not authorize the removal. This is an illegal act.
If you come across the keystones or other parts of the Murphy Building, please contact your local police department.
Facade shot showing the missing keystones.
One of the locations of a keystone. The crude cut of the vandals is evident.
The vandals removed the plywood on the front door.