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

Dayton, Ohio Dayton () is a city in Montgomery County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of cities in Ohio, sixth-most populous city in Ohio, with a population of 137,644 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. The Dayton metro ...

, United States. 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 re ...

. The Memorial Hall is a brick building with a concrete foundation, 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, porcela ...

tile roof, and elements of stone and

terracotta Terracotta, also known as terra cotta or terra-cotta (; ; ), is a clay-based non-vitreous ceramic OED, "Terracotta""Terracotta" MFA Boston, "Cameo" database fired at relatively low temperatures. It is therefore a term used for earthenware obj ...

. Its central section, meant to hold the activities for which the building was constructed, is a two- story 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: Somerset, 1999, 1051. complete with paired columns in the

Ionic order The Ionic order is one of the three canonic classical order, orders of classical architecture, the other two being the Doric order, Doric and the Corinthian order, Corinthian. There are two lesser orders: the Tuscan order, Tuscan (a plainer Doric) ...

, 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 A general assembly or general meeting is a meeting of all the members of an organization or shareholders of a company. Specific examples of general assembly include: Churches * General Assembly (presbyterian church), the highest court of presby ...

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 Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

, 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

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ; colloquially nicknamed Cincy) is a city in Hamilton County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. Settled in 1788, the city is located on the northern side of the confluence of the Licking River (Kentucky), Licking and Ohio Ri ...

, Greenville, and

Lima Lima ( ; ), founded in 1535 as the Ciudad de los Reyes (, Spanish for "City of Biblical Magi, Kings"), is the capital and largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón River, Chillón, Rímac River, Rímac and Lurín Rive ...

, 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