The Dayton Memorial Hall is a historic meeting venue on First Street in downtown Dayton,

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

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. Constructed shortly after the turn of the twentieth century, this Beaux-Arts structure is one of many memorial halls statewide from the same time period, and it has been named a

historic site A historic site or heritage site is an official location where pieces of political, military, cultural, or social history have been preserved due to their cultural heritage value. Historic sites are usually protected by law, and many have been rec ...

. The Memorial Hall is a brick building with a concrete

foundation Foundation may refer to: * Foundation (nonprofit), a type of charitable organization ** Foundation (United States law), a type of charitable organization in the U.S. ** Private foundation, a charitable organization that, while serving a good cause ...

, a

ceramic A ceramic is any of the various hard, brittle, heat-resistant and corrosion-resistant materials made by shaping and then firing an inorganic, nonmetallic material, such as clay, at a high temperature. Common examples are earthenware, porcelain ...

tile roof, and elements of stone and

terracotta Terracotta, terra cotta, or terra-cotta (; ; ), in its material sense as an earthenware substrate, is a clay-based unglazed or glazed ceramic where the fired body is porous. In applied art, craft, construction, and architecture, terracotta ...

. Its central section, meant to hold the activities for which the building was constructed, is a two-

story Story or stories may refer to: Common uses * Story, a narrative (an account of imaginary or real people and events) ** Short story, a piece of prose fiction that typically can be read in one sitting * Story (American English), or storey (British ...

structure, while other sections vary in scale: a grand Neoclassical entrance,Owen, Lorrie K., ed. ''Dictionary of Ohio Historic Places''. Vol. 2.

St. Clair Shores St. Clair Shores is a suburban city bordering Lake St. Clair in Macomb County of the U.S. state of Michigan. It forms a part of the Metro Detroit area, and is located about northeast of downtown Detroit. Its population was 59,715 at the 2010 ...

: Somerset, 1999, 1051. complete with paired columns in the Ionic order, sits atop a flight of steps in the middle of the facade, while lesser sections flank the entrance and compose the building's sides. Small towers are placed atop the sides, between the central auditorium and the surrounding land. Although the main entrance is only accessed via the flight of steps, side entrance may be gained by the use of a ramp.,

Ohio Historical Society Ohio History Connection, formerly The Ohio State Archaeological and Historical Society and Ohio Historical Society, is a nonprofit organization incorporated in 1885. Headquartered at the Ohio History Center in Columbus, Ohio, Ohio History Connect ...

, 2007. Accessed 2010-02-24. The building's entrance comprises the memorial itself, housing inscriptions honoring local Civil War soldiers and a sculpture honoring Spanish–American War soldiers; a World War I sculpture sits in the same area. Legislation enacted by the General Assembly in 1902 encouraged the construction of memorial buildings in communities statewide; for the first time, municipalities were permitted to float bonds in order to obtain money needed to construct such buildings. Designed by William Earl Russ, erected in 1907, and dedicated in 1910,Memorial Hall
Montgomery County, n.d. Accessed 2015-02-03. Dayton's was typical of the numerous memorial buildings built soon after the law's passage, both architecturally and functionally. Throughout the century following, it served as a meeting place for community activities ranging from entertainment festivities to educational events to cultural activities. In 1988, the Memorial Hall was listed on 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 ...

, qualifying both because of its significant architecture and its important place in Dayton's history. Similar recognition has been awarded to other memorial halls in the Ohio cities of

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, Greenville, and

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, all of which are Neoclassical structures completed soon after the 1902 legislation.

References

External links

Official website
{{Authority control Buildings and structures completed in 1907 Beaux-Arts architecture in Ohio Buildings and structures in Dayton, Ohio Concert halls in Ohio National Register of Historic Places in Montgomery County, Ohio Spanish–American War memorials in the United States Tourist attractions in Dayton, Ohio Union (American Civil War) monuments and memorials in Ohio

See also

References

External links