STATE BOARD RECOMMENDS 19 OHIO NOMINATIONS TO THE NATIONAL REGISTER OF HISTORIC PLACES

COLUMBUS, Ohio - Members of the Ohio Historic Site Preservation Advisory Board have voted to recommend to State Historic Preservation Officer Rachel M. Tooker that nominations for the following properties and historic districts in Ohio be forwarded to the Keeper of the National Register of Historic Places for her consideration:

Bellevue, Huron County
Tremont House, 101-103 E. Main St.

Canton, Stark County
Upper Downtown Canton Historic District, roughly bounded by Sixth St., Walnut Ave., Second Ave., Dewalt Ave., and McKinley Ave. between Tuscarawas St. and Third St.

Bentleyville, Cuyahoga County
Cleveland Metroparks Look About Lodge, 37374 Miles Rd.

Cleveland, Cuyahoga County
Brownell School, 1300-1360 Sumner St.

Clinton Apartments, 3607 Clinton Ave.

Federal Knitting Mills (Boundary Increase), 2820 Detroit Ave.

Franklin Boulevard - West Clinton Avenue Historic District (Boundary Increase), 6705, 6803, 6809, 6901, 6905, 6913, 6929, 6933, 7001, 7319, and 7405 Detroit Ave.

Old River Road Historic District, 1220-1330 Old River Rd.

Columbus, Franklin County
Truman and Sylvia Bull Coe House, 75 E. Lakeview Ave.

Dayton, Montgomery County
Dayton Power and Light Building Group, 601, 607-609, 613-645 E. Third St.

Dennison, Tuscarawas County
Dennison High School, 220 N. Third St.

Findlay, Hancock County
Charles H. Bigelow House, 2816 N. Main St.

Garfield Heights, Cuyahoga County
St. Joseph Convent and Academy Complex, 12215 Granger Rd.

Monroe Township, Clermont County
Aaron Fagin House, 2088 Lindale-Nicholsville Rd.

Niles, Trumbull County
Niles Masonic Temple, 22 W. Church St.

Smoketown, Stark County
St. Paul’s Reformed Church, 9669 Erie Ave. S.W.

Steubenville, Jefferson County
First United Methodist Church (Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church), 300 S. Fourth St.

Toledo, Lucas County
Ohio Theatre, 3114 LaGrange St.

Westlake, Cuyahoga County
Lilly House, 27946 Center Ridge Rd.

The board's recommendations were made on Friday, December 2, 2005, during a meeting held at the State Library of Ohio in Columbus. As a result, nominations for each of the properties and districts will be forwarded to the Keeper of the National Register, who directs the program for the U.S. Department of the Interior.
If the Keeper agrees that the properties and districts meet the criteria for listing, they will be added to the National Register of Historic Places. A decision from the Keeper is expected in about 90 days.

In other actions, the board re-elected Kathleen M. Fox of Columbus as chair for 2006 and Aaron Askew of Columbus as vice-chair. Fox is executive director of the Ohio Cultural Facilities Commission. Askew is director of architectural production for Moody Nolan, Inc., of Columbus.

About the National Register

The National Register lists places that should be preserved because of their significance in American history, architecture, archaeology, engineering, and culture. It includes buildings, sites, structures, objects, and historic districts of national, state, and local importance.

To be eligible for listing on the National Register a property or district must:

· be associated with events that have made a significant contribution to the broad patterns of our history, or

· be associated with the lives of people significant in our past, or

· embody the distinctive characteristics of a type, period, or method of construction, or represent the work of a master, or possess high artistic values, or represent a significant, distinguishable entity whose components may lack individual distinction (e.g. a historic district), or

· have yielded, or be likely to yield, information important in prehistory or history.

National Register listing often raises community awareness of a property. However, listing does not obligate owners to repair or improve their properties and does not prevent them from remodeling, altering, selling, or even demolishing them if they choose to do so.

Owners or long-term tenants who rehabilitate income-producing properties listed on the National Register can qualify for a 20 percent federal income tax credit if the work they do follows the Secretary of the Interior's Standards for Rehabilitation, guidelines used nationwide for repairs and alterations to historic buildings.
In Ohio anyone may prepare a National Register nomination. Nominations are made through the Ohio Historic Preservation Office of the Ohio Historical Society.

Proposed nominations are reviewed by the Ohio Historic Site Preservation Advisory Board, a governor-appointed panel of citizens and professionals in history, architecture, archaeology, and related fields. The board reviews each nomination to see whether it appears to be eligible for listing on the National Register, then makes a recommendation to the State Historic Preservation Officer. The final decision to add a property to the register is made by the National Park Service, which administers the program nationwide.

The Ohio Historic Preservation Office is Ohio's official historic preservation agency. A part of the Ohio Historical Society, it identifies historic places in Ohio, nominates properties to the National Register of Historic Places, reviews federally-assisted projects for effects on historic, architectural, and archaeological resources in Ohio, consults on the conservation of older buildings and sites, and offers educational programs and publications.

-30-

Background

At its December 2, 2005, meeting, the Ohio Historic Site Preservation Advisory Board voted to recommend that the following properties in Ohio be nominated to the National Register of Historic Places. Additional background information is available. Contact Tom Wolf, 614.298.2000, 614.297.2340, or twolf@ohiohistory.org.

Bellevue, Huron County / Tremont House, 101-103 E. Main St.

The Tremont House was recommended for nomination to the National Register for its architectural significance as a commercial building in the Greek Revival style of the 1830s-1850s. Built as a hotel that opened in 1846, the Tremont House is one of the two oldest commercial buildings remaining in Bellevue, and is believed to be the most well-preserved pre-1850 hotel in Huron County. The most distinctive feature of the three-story brick building is the portico, originally three stories, now enclosed at ground level. Although examples of the Greek Revival style are found throughout Huron County, reflecting its popularity at the time when the county was being settled, surviving Greek Revival style commercial buildings are rare.

Bentleyville, Cuyahoga County / Cleveland Metroparks Look About Lodge, 37374 Miles Rd.

Completed in 1938, Look About Lodge was recommended for nomination to the National Register for its historical and architectural significance. A project of the Cleveland Metropolitan Park District, Cleveland Natural Science Club, and Works Progress Administration (WPA), the two-story meeting hall was designed by Anton George Nosek, Jr., in the tradition of the rustic lodges of the National Parks. It features exposed chestnut walls and beams, varnished maple and pine floors, split log stair steps, WPA-made iron chandeliers and iron and punched copper sconces, split log benches, and chestnut tables. Since its completion it has been in continuous use for recreation, social activities, and nature education.

Canton, Stark County / Upper Downtown Canton Historic District, roughly bounded by Sixth St., Walnut Ave., Second Ave., Dewalt Ave., and McKinley Ave. between Tuscarawas St. and Third St.

The Upper Downtown Canton Historic District was recommended for nomination to the National Register for its association with the era when local manufacturing and commerce first put Canton on the world map. Buildings in the district illustrate architectural styles and tastes of the 1880s to 1950s, reflecting Canton’s evolution as a county seat, center of commerce, and major manufacturing center.

Cleveland, Cuyahoga County / Brownell School & Annex, 1300-1360 Sumner St.

Recommended for nomination to the National Register for their association with the history of education in Cleveland, the Brownell School & Annex comprises two buildings built in 1884 and 1903 as annexes to the original 1865 Brownell School (which was demolished in 1930) and a 1909 gymnasium. All date to a time when much of the area of downtown Cleveland east and south of Public Square was residential.

Cleveland, Cuyahoga County / Clinton Apartments, 3607 Clinton Ave.

The 1897 Clinton Apartments building was recommended for nomination to the National Register as an example of the type of apartment building designed to appeal to upper middle class Clevelanders in the late 19th century, and for its association with Cleveland architects Steffins, Searles & Hirsch.

Cleveland, Cuyahoga County / Federal Knitting Mills (Boundary Increase), 2820 Detroit Ave.

Federal Knitting Mills was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2001 for its association with Cleveland's garment industry. The nomination recommended by the Ohio Historic Site Preservation Advisory Board on December 2, 2005, would extend the boundary of the area listed on the National Register to include a secondary building which was not included in the previous nomination for Federal Knitting Mills. Cleveland once ranked fourth among American garment-making centers, and Federal Knitting Mills was "one of the largest companies in its field west of New York." The company occupied the primary building from 1910-1937 and the secondary building from 1931-1937, closing as a result of heavy union activities that occurred in 1937.

Cleveland, Cuyahoga County / Franklin Boulevard - West Clinton Avenue Historic District Boundary Increase, 6705, 6803, 6809, 6901, 6905, 6913, 6929, 6933, 7001, 7319, and 7405 Detroit Ave.

The Franklin Boulevard - West Clinton Historic District was added to the National Register in 1993. The nomination recommended by the Ohio Historic Site Preservation Advisory Board on December 2, 2005, would expand the boundary to include properties at 6705, 6803, 6809, 6901, 6905, 6913, 6929, 6933, 7001, 7319, and 7405 Detroit Ave. The area was recommended for nomination to the National Register for its well-preserved houses, churches, and commercial landmarks in architectural styles of 1878 through 1929. The proposed district expansion includes a portion of Detroit Ave. with a concentration of early 20th century flat-type apartment buildings.

Cleveland, Cuyahoga County / Old River Road Historic District, 1220-1330 Old River Rd.

Located in the Flats, the Old River Road Historic District was recommended for nomination to the National Register for its association with Cleveland's maritime history and for its local architectural significance. A well-preserved group of small-scale commercial and industrial buildings dating from the mid-19th to mid-20th centuries, the district developed as a commercial and industrial center early in Cleveland's history because of its transportation advantages--near the confluence of the Cuyahoga River and Lake Erie and the terminus of the Ohio and Erie Canal.

Columbus, Franklin County / Truman and Sylvia Bull Coe House, 75 E. Lakeview Ave. (Clintonville)

Believed to have been built between 1880 and 1885, the Truman and Sylvia Bull Coe House was recommended for nomination to the National Register as one of the few remaining large houses associated with 19th century Clintonville, and for its local architectural significance as an example of the Eastlake and Queen Anne styles of the 1870s-1890s. Mrs. Coe was a granddaughter of Thomas Bull, one of the early settlers of Clinton Township, and the Coe house is a reminder of the rural community that existed in the area before 1910, when Clintonville was annexed to Columbus and developed with the bungalows and Colonial Revival style houses that are its hallmark today.

Dayton, Montgomery County / Dayton Power and Light Building Group, 601, 607-609, 613-645 E. Third St.

The Dayton Power and Light Building Group was recommended for nomination to the National Register for its association with the history of transportation and industrial development in Webster Station from 1895-1955. The buildings are part of a larger district of light manufacturing and warehousing buildings all built in the area because of its proximity to rail lines and roadways. Over the years, the buildings housed a wide variety of businesses that contributed to the importance of the Webster Station industrial district. The dominant businesses included grocery warehousing, paint manufacturing, paper distribution, general storage, and steam generation.

Dennison, Tuscarawas County / Dennison High School, 220 N. Third St.

Dennison High School was recommended for nomination to the National Register for its significance in the educational history of the village of Dennison; for its association with broad trends in public education in Ohio in the early 20th century; for its significance as a well-preserved major early-20th century building in Dennison; and for its importance as a prominent local visual landmark.

Findlay, Hancock County / Charles H. Bigelow House, 2816 N. Main St.

The Charles H. Bigelow House was recommended for nomination to the National Register for its local architectural significance as a well-preserved late 19th century Queen Anne style house. Designed by Henry O. Wurmser, it was built in 1888-89, during a period of rapid economic growth in Findlay spurred by discovery of gas fields nearby. Son of an early settler and community leader, Bigelow built on his father's achievements to become a successful farmer, livestock breeder, and business leader. He was one of many Findlay residents whose fortunes and social status grew in tandem with the booming regional economy of the late 19th century.

Garfield Heights, Cuyahoga County / St. Joseph Convent and Academy Complex, 12215 Granger Rd.

The St. Joseph Convent and Academy Complex was recommended for nomination to the National Register for its association with the contributions by the Sisters of St. Joseph of the Third Order of St. Francis to the greater Cleveland area, and specifically to the city's Polish American communities. Established in 1901 in Stevens Point, WI, to minister to Polish immigrants, the order has had a presence in Cleveland since 1908. In 1926, in their continuing commitment to greater Cleveland's Polish community, the order opened a permanent province and motherhouse for the sisters, as well as a high school for girls, in Garfield Heights. The school (which became coeducational in 1973) has remained in continuous operation ever since, and the sisters living at Marymount have continued their active involvement in the community. With construction of the Shrine of Our Lady of Czestochowa in 1939, the complex also became an important site of religious pilgrimage for Polish Catholics throughout the region and nation.

Monroe Township, Clermont County / Aaron Fagin House, 2088 Lindale-Nicholsville Rd.

The Aaron Fagin House was recommended for nomination to the National Register for its local architectural significance as an example of an early 19th century rural southern Ohio vernacular house with Federal and Greek Revival style influences, and as a locally rare subtype of a house with two front doors. The distinctive features of the Federal style are the simple massing of the main block, the brick walls laid in Flemish bond, standing-seam metal roof, simple transoms above the doorways, flat lintels, and stone sill. The mantels are also fine examples of early 19th-century vernacular design in rural Clermont County.

Niles, Trumbull County / Niles Masonic Temple, 22 W. Church St.

Completed in 1923 and recommended for nomination to the National Register for its importance as an example of early 20th century architecture in Niles, the Second Renaissance Revival style Masonic Temple is among the few remaining downtown buildings associated with the city's early 20th century growth and development. The architectural style, plan, and function reflect the importance of the Masonic order as a longstanding fraternal organization in Niles, and the overall shift in Freemasonry in the 1920s to a more civic, service-focused emphasis.

Smoketown, Stark County / St. Paul’s Reformed Church, 9669 Erie Ave. S.W.

St. Paul's Reformed Church was recommended for nomination to the National Register for its local architectural significance as a well-preserved rural Late Gothic Revival style church. The 1913 building is notable for its simplicity of design reflecting Reformed traditions, and its rural setting. The congregation was founded in 1845.

Steubenville, Jefferson County / First Methodist Episcopal Church (Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church), 300 S. Fourth St.

The building built for First Methodist Episcopal Church, now housing Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church, was recommended for nomination to the National Register as a local example of early 20th century Neo-Classical Revival architecture, and for its artwork. The church recalls Italian Renaissance designs, particularly Andrea Palladio's "Villa Rotonda". Built in 1914, it reflects a time in the early 20th century when many Methodist churches were being built in the Neoclassical style. One of seven churches built in Steubenville between 1912 and 1915, during a peak of growth and prosperity, it served as First Methodist until 1943 when the congregation merged with another. Since 1946 it has been Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church. The interior features art and icons, as well as woodwork added from 1946-1950 by local carpenters James Kirlangitis and Nicholas Tsangeos.

Toledo, Lucas County / Ohio Theatre, 3114 LaGrange St.

The Ohio Theatre was recommended for nomination to the National Register for its association with Toledo's largest Polish community, Lagrinka, and its role in the history of entertainment in Toledo's North End. During the early 20th century, when Toledo ranked among the Midwest's fastest-growing industrial cities, the city attracted thousands of southern and eastern European immigrants. Its population rose from 131,000 in 1900 to 243,000 in 1920. Fraternal clubs, vaudeville halls, and theaters offered social, recreational, and entertainment opportunities to the city's immigrants. A group of Lagrinka residents of Polish descent established an amusement company that built the Ohio Theatre, which opened in 1921.

Westlake, Cuyahoga County / Lilly House, 27946 Center Ridge Rd.

Built c.1844, the Lilly House was recommended for nomination to the National Register as a rare local example of 19th century sandstone construction and for the skill and craftsmanship with which it was built. The one-and-one-half story house built of sandstone blocks reflects the influence of the Greek Revival style of the 1830s-1850s in its form, simplicity, and details such as its cornices, doors, and windows.

-30-