The Downtown Commercial District in Lexington,

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...

, includes 70 contributing properties, some dating from the early 19th century. Most sites are commercial buildings, but the district also features a courthouse, two monuments, a camel sculpture, a drinking fountain, and a clock. Various architectural styles are represented, including

Federal Federal or foederal (archaic) may refer to: Politics General *Federal monarchy, a federation of monarchies *Federation, or ''Federal state'' (federal system), a type of government characterized by both a central (federal) government and states or ...

Greek Revival The Greek Revival was an architectural movement which began in the middle of the 18th century but which particularly flourished in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, predominantly in northern Europe and the United States and Canada, but ...

Italianate The Italianate style was a distinct 19th-century phase in the history of Classical architecture. Like Palladianism and Neoclassicism, the Italianate style drew its inspiration from the models and architectural vocabulary of 16th-century Italian R ...

Victorian Victorian or Victorians may refer to: 19th century * Victorian era, British history during Queen Victoria's 19th-century reign ** Victorian architecture ** Victorian house ** Victorian decorative arts ** Victorian fashion ** Victorian literature ...

, Queen Anne,

Richardsonian Romanesque Richardsonian Romanesque is a style of Romanesque Revival architecture named after the American architect Henry Hobson Richardson (1838–1886). The revival style incorporates 11th and 12th century southern French, Spanish, and Italian Romanesque ...

, Beaux Arts, and

Modern Modern may refer to: History * Modern history ** Early Modern period ** Late Modern period *** 18th century *** 19th century *** 20th century ** Contemporary history * Moderns, a faction of Freemasonry that existed in the 18th century Phil ...

. Architects include

Gideon Shryock Gideon Shryock (November 15, 1802 – June 19, 1880) was Kentucky's first professional architect in the Greek Revival Style. His name has frequently been misspelled as Gideon Shyrock. Biography Shryock was born in Lexington, Kentucky on Novembe ...

Benjamin Henry Latrobe Benjamin Henry Boneval Latrobe (May 1, 1764 – September 3, 1820) was an Anglo-American neoclassical architect who emigrated to the United States. He was one of the first formally trained, professional architects in the new United States, draw ...

, H.L. Rowe,

Frankel & Curtis Frankel & Curtis was an architectural firm of Lexington, Kentucky. It was a partnership of Leon K. Frankel and of John J. Curtis, along with associates James Slaughter Frankel and Melbourne Mills. A successor name is Frankel, Curtis & Coleman. U ...

, and

McKim, Mead & White McKim, Mead & White was an American architectural firm that came to define architectural practice, urbanism, and the ideals of the American Renaissance in fin de siècle New York. The firm's founding partners Charles Follen McKim (1847–1909), Wil ...

. Also included within the district are 17 noncontributing properties. The Downtown Commercial District was added to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

in 1983. With Lexington's street grid was platted beginning in 1780, and the Downtown Commercial District is contained within the oldest part of the city. The district is roughly bounded by Church St, N Limestone St, E Short St, E Main St, W Main St, and N Mill St.

Contributing properties

Some buildings in the district were constructed after fires in 1875 and in 1917 destroyed previous buildings, and other historic buildings were destroyed by urban renewal. This list of contributing properties includes the street group and where available the name, year, address, architect, and style of each building. Cheapside * Fayette Safety Vault and Trust Company Building (1890) NRHP, 111-113 Cheapside, H.L. Rowe, Victorian * Robert S. Todd Store Building (c1807), 115-117 Cheapside, Federal * Second National Bank Building (1955), 119-121 Cheapside, Nicholas Warfield Gratz, Neoclassical * Payne Building (1891), 125-127 Cheapside, Victorian * Loughridge Building (1895), 129-131 Cheapside, H.L. Rowe, Richardsonian Romanesque Church Street * Building (1935), 108-114 Church St North Limestone Street * Thomas Lyons Building (c1875), 109-113 N Limestone St, Italianate * Lyons Block (c1875), 106-108 N Limestone St, Italianate * Lyons Block (c1875), 110-112 N Limestone St, Italianate * James McCormick Building (c1875), 122 N Limestone St, Italianate * Harold Fine Building (1920), 124-128 N Limestone St, Arts and Crafts movement * David Clohesey Building (c1875), 130-132 N Limestone St, Italianate * Gratz Real Estate Building (1920), 131-137 N Limestone St, possibly Nicholas Warfield Gratz, Colonial Revival * Charles Berryman Building (c1915), 134-136 N Limestone St, Colonial Revival * Piggly Wiggly Store (c1920), 139-143 N Limestone St * Building (c1920), 147 N Limestone St * Feeney's Shoe Store Building (c1920), 149-153 N Limestone St * Hotel (c1928), 155 N Limestone St * Hotel (1928), 159 N Limestone St, Arts and Crafts East Main Street * Waters Block, AKA Lyons Block (c1875), 101-109 E Main St, Italianate * Hallmark House (c1923), 111 E Main St, Frankel & Curtis * Benton Ross Todd Company Building, AKA Charles Berryman Building (1920), 113-117 E Main St, possibly Frank L. Smith, Beaux Arts * Nunan Building (1912, possibly 1860s), 123-125 E Main St, Neoclassical * Carty Block (c1871), 129-131 E Main St, Italianate * Byrnes & Hall Drug Store (c1920), 133 E Main St * Lexington Steam Laundry Company (c1890), 135 E Main St * Old Bank of Commerce Building (c1918), 137 E Main St, possibly Frankel & Curtis, Neoclassical * Lexington Laundry Company (c1929), 139 E Main St, Art Deco * Graham Building (1902), 141-143 E Main St, possibly H.L. Rowe, Neoclassical West Main Street * John B. Johnson's Saddlery (1830s), 101-103 W Main St, Federal * Odd Fellows Temple (1869) NRHP, 115-119 W Main St,

Cincinnatus Shryock Cincinnatus Shryock (Lexington, Kentucky, 1816 – Lexington, 1888) was an American architect. A number of his works are listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places. Life and career Shryock was born into a famous American archi ...

, Italianate * Skuller's Clock (c1910), 119 W Main St, Brown Street Clocks, Neoclassical * Randall Building Bogaert's Jewelry Store (1870s) NRHP, 127-129 W Main St, possibly Phelix L. Lundin, Italianate * Higgins Block (c1872) NRHP, 145-151 W Main St,

John McMurtry John McMurtry may refer to: * John McMurtry (academic), professor of philosophy at the University of Guelph * John McMurtry (architect) John McMurtry (September 13, 1812 – March 3, 1890) was a 19th-century American builder and architect who w ...

, Italianate *

Fayette National Bank Building The Fayette National Bank Building, also known as the First National Bank Building or 21C Museum Hotel Lexington, is a historic 15-story high-rise in Lexington, Kentucky. The building was designed by the prominent architecture firm McKim, Mead & ...

(1913) NRHP, 159-167 W Main St,

, Beaux Arts * McAdams and Morford Building (1849) NRHP, 200-210 W Main St, Italianate * Fayette County Courthouse (1900), 215 W Main St, Lehman & Schmitt, Richardsonian Romanesque *

John Hunt Morgan Memorial The John Hunt Morgan Memorial in Lexington, Kentucky, is a monument created during the Jim Crow era, as a tribute to Confederate General John Hunt Morgan, who was from Lexington and is buried in Lexington Cemetery. The monument was originally ...

(1910) NRHP, Corner W Main & N Upper Sts,

Pompeo Coppini Pompeo Luigi Coppini (19 May 1870 – 26 September 1957) was an Italian born sculptor who emigrated to the United States. Although his works can be found in Italy, Mexico and a number of U.S. states, the majority of his work can be found in T ...

* Ellis Fountain (1921), 215 W Main St * Union Station Camel (c1920), Corner W Main St & Cheapside *

John C. Breckinridge Memorial The John C. Breckinridge Memorial, originally on the courthouse lawn of Lexington, Kentucky, was placed on the National Register of Historic Places on July 17, 1997, as part of the List of Civil War Monuments of Kentucky, Civil War Monuments of Ken ...

(1887) NRHP, Cheapside between W Short & W Main Sts,

Edward Virginius Valentine Edward Virginius Valentine (November 12, 1838 - October 19, 1930) was an American sculptor born in Richmond, Virginia. He studied in Europe—in Paris with Thomas Couture and François Jouffroy, in Italy under Bonanti, and with August Kiss in Berl ...

* Lexington City National Bank Building (1904) NRHP, 259-265 W Main St,

Richards, McCarty & Bulford Richards, McCarty & Bulford was an American architectural firm. The General Services Administration has called the firm the "preeminent" architectural firm of the city of Columbus, Ohio. A number of the firm's works are listed on the National R ...

, Beaux Arts *

Benjamin Winslow Dudley Benjamin Winslow Dudley (1785-1870) was an American surgeon and academic in Kentucky, United States. Trained at the University of Pennsylvania, in London, and in Paris, he performed hundreds of lithotomy, trephinations and treated aneurysms. In his ...

Hospital (c1834), 301-305 W Main St, Federal * Wilgus Block (c1805 or c1872), 309-315 W Main St, Italianate North Mill Street * James Dunn House (1807), 108-110 N Mill St, Federal * Richardson Building (1900), 109 N Mill St, Neoclassical * Robert Peter Building (1890), 115-117 N Mill St, Italianate * Geary & Roche Plumbing Company Building (1871), 119 N Mill St, Italianate * Margaret Price Building (1915), 121 N Mill St * Monsieur Giron's Confectionary (1829) NRHP, 125 N Mill St, Greek Revival West Short Street * Alexander Hotel (c1875), 102-110 W Short St, Italianate * Merrick Lodge #31 (c1893), 101-105 W Short St, H.L. Rowe, Neoclassical * Morton Realty Company Building (1928), 107 Short St * Still Building (1925), 129-131 W Short St * Remington Rand Building (1928), 133 W Short St, Tudor Revival * Messick Building (1928), 155-157 W Short St, possibly Frankel & Curtis, Neoclassical * McClelland Building (1901), 159-167 W Short St, Richards, McCarty & Bulford; Arthur Giannini, Beaux Arts * Guarantee Bank & Trust Company Building (1924), 201-211 W Short St, Art Deco * Old First National Bank Building (1895), 215-219 W Short St, possibly H.L. Rowe, Beaux Arts * Northern Bank Building (1890), 249-257 W Short St, H.L. Rowe, Victorian * Northern Bank Building (1890), 259-267 W Short St, H.L. Rowe, Victorian * Security Trust Building (1905), 267-275 W Short St, Richards, McCarty & Bulford, Beaux Arts * Harting Block (1905), 300 W Short St, H.L. Rowe, Neoclassical * Old U.S. Post Office (c1825), 315 Short St, Federal * Lewis Ramsey Meat Market (1870s), 310-312 W Short St, Italianate * Hotel Reed Annex (c1901), 313-315 W Short St, Martin Geertz, Queen Anne * Campbell Building (c1886), 316-318 W Short St, probably H.L. Rowe, Greek Revival North Upper Street * Chinn & Todd Building (1896), 108 N Upper St, possibly Aldenburg & Scott * Clay-Worsley Building (c1805), 110-112 N Upper St, Federal * Berkley, Guthrie & Watson Building (1885), 114-116 N Upper St, H.L. Rowe, Victorian * Berkley, Guthrie & Watson Addition (c1891), 118-120 N Upper St, possibly H.L. Rowe, Victorian * Walter Warfield Building (1806), 122-124 N Upper St, possibly Mathias Shryock, Georgian

References

External links

{{National Register of Historic Places National Register of Historic Places in Lexington, Kentucky Historic districts on the National Register of Historic Places in Kentucky Commercial buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in Kentucky