Nomination for Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Building and Madison Theater

From the form

The catalogue entry the section above was filed under.

Form No. 10-300 REV. (9/77) UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR FOR NPS USE ONLY NATIONAL PARK SERVICE RECEIVED APR 15 1980 NATIONAL REGISTER OF HISTORIC PLACES MAY 2T 1980 INVENTORY -- NOMINATION FORM SEE INSTRUCTIONS IN HOW TO COMPLETE NATIONAL REGISTER FORMS TYPE ALL ENTRIES - COMPLETE APPLICABLE SECTIONS Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Building and Madison Theater AND/OR COMMON STREET & NUMBER _NOT FOR PUBLICATION CITY. TOWN CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT . VICINITY OF PRESENT USE X PUBLIC AGRICULTURE _WORK IN PROGRESS PRIVATE RESIDENCE PUBLIC ACQUISITION _IN PROCESS XYES: RESTRICTED -BEING CONSIDERED - YES: UNRESTRICTED 4 OWNER OF PROPERTY Ohio 44902 LOCATION OF LEGAL DESCRIPTION REGISTRY OF DEEDS, ETC. Recorder's Office, County Administration B1dg. 50 Park Ave.

East REPRESENTATION IN EXISTING SURVEYS DEPOSITORY FOR SURVEY RECORDS 039 LOCATION CODE 139 UNOCCUPIED DATE STATE Mansfield XENTERTAINMENT ACCESSIBLE CLASSIFICATION Richland OWNERSHIP COUNTY SITE INDUSTRIAL CATEGORY XGOVERNMENT RELIGIOUS NAME Ohio PRIVATE XMILITARY _DISTRICT STRUCTURE STATUS 17-John Ashbrook OTHER: COURTHOUSE. February 1979 SCIENTIFIC _TRANSPORTATION Madison Township Memorial Association XBUILDING(S) Ohio Historic Inventory DATE ENTERED Ohio State University Mansfield Campus _EDUCATIONAL 36 Park Avenue West -COMMERCIAL - MUSEUM _OBJECT _PARK - BOTH _FEDERAL XSTATE COUNTY LOCAL TITLE DETERIORATED XORIGINAL SITE X GOOD _MOVED DATE_ The Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Building and the Madison Theater is a complex of two joined structures which are located on the major east-west street in downtown Mansfield. The buildings are closely bordered by commercial structures.

Directly east is the twelve story Farmer's Bank Building, while to the west are a series of smaller two story commercial buildings. At the rear is a narrow alley and parking lot. square in plan and has a sixty foot frontage along Park Avenue West. A massive tower on the main entrance porch, reached by a broad flight of stone steps through a large center. The exterior has been sandblasted and aluminum storm windows have been added. Otherwise the building's exterior has been well preserved. A series of doors leads into several spacious parlors on the first floor which are nature, but there are also extensive natural history and archeological collections. crete. It occupies the site of an earlier opera house, which was constructed with Memorial Building, sandwiched between it and the bank building, to form a twenty foot frontage along Park Avenue West.

The theater front forms a high parapet of buff Inside, a long theater lobby, recently redecorated in the art deco style, extends oriented with the stage at the rear with rear lobbies on the first and second floors. UNEXPOSED CONDITION 7DESCRIPTION XUNALTERED FAIR maintained and still have sequential lighting, are a major exterior attraction. The Memorial Building.Only a low one story wing extends along the east end of the CHECK ONE remainder of the theater's exterior is simply finished with exposed concrete. Southwest, arched window openings on the corner tower and a shed dormer window in the fresco work on the walls and ceiling.

The second floor lobby isagrander space, however, pitched hip roof.It is Richardsonian Romanesque in style.The building is nearly the Memorial Building.Most of the Madison Theater lies concealed behind the The first floor lobby features a series of Egyptian-like arches with cloud-like _EXCELLENT features a series of large rectangular windowsof great height spaced closely The Memorial Building is the earlier of the two structures.It is a three story houses the largest meeting room in the building.This meeting room occupies well over open stairway with ornate oak woodwork.The second floor has very tall ceilings and colored brick and limestone and supports a large vertical marquee in addition to the _RUINS and storage areas. The top floor, located under the massive hip roof, is a single open space filled with display cabinets and memorabilia.

Much of the display is of a military museum is presently closed to the public. The basement, which has been remodeled in recent years, houses a township meeting room, organizational meeting rooms and storage. The Madison Theater is a large art deco structure constructed with reinforced con- to the theater itself, located behind the Memorial Building. The auditorium is with a tall spacious ceiling and ornate plasterwork. It leads into large men's and DESCRIBE THE PRESENT AND ORIGINAL (IF KNOWN) PHYSICAL APPEARANCE

Description of the property

together. The third or attic story features a Palladian window in the gable end at the On the first floor, the entrance leads into an octagonal foyer with a domed ceiling. traditional canopy-type theater marquee. These marquees, which have been well half the floor and has a shallow barrel vaulted ceiling.The floor also has a kitchen UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SERVICE NATIONAL REGISTER OF HISTORIC PLACES INVENTORY -- NOMINATION FORM Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Building and Madison Theater, Mansfield, Richland Co.,OH ITEM NUMBER in inspiration and typical of the art deco period.

Plaster relief work, accented by in the center of the ceiling, but this auditorium does not possess a large series of small dressing rooms on several levels and below the stage is the boiler PAGE women's lounges, each in a good state of preservation with their original furniture CONTINUATION SHEET rectangular and is ornamented by rich assortment of angular designs, possibly Mayan room for both buildings. DATE ENTERED FOR NPS USE ONLY Form No.10-300a (Hev. 10-74) altogether, with a main floor and a large balcony. The proscenium arch is gold leaf, highlights the walls and ceiling of the auditorium. A large rosette is RECEIVED APR 1 5 1980 intact.The auditorium is a large cavernous space, seating about l500 people AREAS OF

Statement of significance

/ARCHITECT Oscar Cobb, Chicago; John Eberhard, STATEMENT OF SIGNIFICANCE The Madison Theater and the Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Building constitute a major architectural landmark in downtown Mansfield that also has a rich history as the setting for an impressive display of memorabilia,ameeting place for veterans groups, and as a major public assembly hall that has held live shows and films. These two connected buildings Mansfield and Richland County. The Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Building was conceived as a monument to Civil War recently completed structure which was hailed as the first of its kind in the country, not only a beautiful monument to the honored dead, but of material benefit to the city.

special act of The Ohio Legislature and the approval of a $40,000 bond issue by the voters organizations, the public library, the museum and other functions housed in the front section. In fact, a sizeable surplus was built up. battle flags and memorabilia from the Civil War, but for its extensive display of historical material on Richland County, was finally closed in 1955 by the state fire both the theater and the memorial building have experienced a decline in their use. the past, the buildings were the center for public entertainment and enrichment. Now, these historic buildings have potential for revitalizing the downtown by serving 1500-1599 1600-1699 1400-1499 LAW COMMERCE EDUCATION COMMUNICATIONS ARCHEOLOGY-HISTORIC PERIOD AGRICULTURE SIGNIFICANCE POLITICS/GOVERNMENT MILITARY ENGINEERING INDUSTRY SCULPTURE N.Y.C. _EXPLORATION/SETTLEMENT PREHISTORIC successful operation.

INVENTION marshall.The collection still exists but is not open to the public.In recent years, SOCIAL/HUMANITARIAN _CONSERVATION leveling it and damaging other nearby buildings.Two people were killed by collapsing rental of the opera hall were sufficient to cover the expenses of the veterans' front section of the building from suffering more than minor damage.Almost immediately, asa focal point for cultural and entertainment activities.

_1700-1799 discussed for future use of the memorial building that will give ita public use.In Street.On the night of February 10,1929,a disasterous fire swept the opea house, -RELIGION In 1908,the public library moved to new quarters in a separate building on Mulberry 193l.Named the Madison after the township's name,this theater proved to bea -TRANSPORTATION Active work on restoration of the theater is well underway and plans are being -ECONOMICS - LITERATURE in 1887 enabled this building tobe constructed.0scar Cobb,who had recently designed _PHILOSOPHY -SCIENCE - MUSIC were constructed with public funds and remain a valuable resource for the people of veterans that would also function as a place for public gatherings and to house the newly Wellington's ornate town hall and opera house, was the architect for the building.

Dedication ceremonies were held in the opera house on October 2, 1889. The rear portion walls in what was Mansfield's worst fire. Fortunately, a heavy fire wall prevented the architect, furnished the plans for the $172,000 art deco structure. It was completed in The museum on the third floor, long an attraction, not only for its collection of ARCHEOLOGY-PREHISTORIC COMMUNITY PLANNING formed public library and museum. The Memorial Building was to be patterned after Toledo's XTHEATER of the building was an opera hall which seated l,100 people.The revenues derived from

The rest of the file

Bibliography, boundary description, and the people who prepared and reviewed the nomination.

MAJOR BIBLIOGRAPHICAL REFERENCES Mansfield Daily Shield and Banner, Oct. 3, 1889, p. 3. Duff, William A., History of North Central Ohio, 1931, vol. 1, p. 502. 10 GEOGRAPHICAL DATA Mansfield North, Ohio QUADRANGLE NAME - QUADRANGLE SCALE 1:24,000 UTM REFERENCES VERBAL BOUNDARY DESCRIPTION Located on the lot are two buildings which share two common walls.

LIST ALL STATES AND COUNTIES FOR PROPERTIES OVERLAPPING STATE OR COUNTY BOUNDARIES STATE - 11 FORM PREPARED BY NAME / TITLE Steven McQuillin, Regional Preservation Officer STREET & NUMBER (419) 755-4011 CITY OR TOWN 12 STATE HISTORIC PRESERVATION OFFICER CERTIFICATION THE EVALUATED SIGNIFICANCE OF THIS PROPERTY WITHIN THE STATE IS: NATIONAL - LOCAL X As the designated State Historic Preservation Officer for the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966 (Public Law 89-665).I hereby nominate this property for inclusion in the National Register and certify that it has been evaluated according to the criteria and procedures set forth by the National Park Service.

STATE HISTORIC PRESERVATION OFFICER SIGNATURE I HEREBY CERTIFY THAT THIS PROPERTY IS INCLUDED IN THE NATIONAL REGISTER DATE 5-13.80 GPO 921-803 44906 TELEPHONE CODE DATE Mansfield ORGANIZATION COUNTY NORTHING Ohio ACREAGE NOT VERIFIED 1680 University Drive Ohio State University Mansfield Campus ZONE EASTING The nominated property consists of lot 13l of the original town plat of Mansfield.

FOR NPS USE ONLY CHIEF OF REGISTRATION UTM NOT VERIFIED KEEPER OF THE NATIONAL ZONE June 1979 180 4/3/80 United States Department of the Interior Heritage Conservation and Recreation Service received APR 1 5 1980 MAY 27 SOLDIERS and SAILORS MEMORIAL BUILDING and MADISON THEATER The Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Building is an excellent example of Richardsonian Romanesque architecture, the only major non-religious building in downtown Mansfield texture which differentiate this building from its surrounding commercial structures, an entrance portal beneath the corner tower. It also has no display windows like its achieves the status of a visual landmark because of its unique physical charactertistics which contrast with surrounding buildings.

downtown, it is one of downtown Manfield's largest buildings and is its best example the grandeur and lavish ornamentation is reserved for interior spaces such as the lob- palaces to be built in Ohio and is an extremely rare example of contemporary Art Deco design, as opposed to more traditional architectural detailing found in most theaters medium size Ohio city. are under the same public ownership, and have a history of operation as a joint center for public meetings, displays and office space. Structurally, the two buildings are funds and are operated jointly by a public board for various community and social functions. Historically, the Madison Theater replaces a large auditorium on the same site which was built as part of the memorial building complex, but was destroyed by Page National Register of Historic Places date entered Inventory-Nomination Form fire in 1929.

For HCRS use only FHR-8-300 (11-78) Continuation sheet of its neighbors and contrasts with their flat roofs. The memorial building has its principal floor above the street level and is reached by a broad flight of steps into neighboring commercial buildings. Thus the Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Building of Art Deco architecture. The front, which consists of a marquee with entrances below and a stepped parapet above, is finely crafted but not particularly monumental.

Instead, with its tall corner tower, three part facade and large hip roof, towers above most While the Madison Theater has the most limited frontage of any building in the Photos - ARCHITECTURAL HISTORIAN BRANCH CHIEF HAER Inventory CONTROL KEEPER TECHNICAL Review HISTORIAN Send-back Maps Re-submit National Register Write-up REVIEW UNIT CHIEF 5.13.80 2.3.81 United States Department of the Interior-Heritage Conservation and Recreation Service Federal Register Entry OTHER State Oh-Rihlard 1. Soldiers & Sailors Mem. Bldg. & Madison Theater 2. Mansfield, Ohio 3. Steven McQuillin 4. June 1979 APR 1 5 1980 MAY 2 7 1980 7. SSMBMT-1 6. Southwest corner, looking northeast 5. M-OSU ALL SEATS UNDER ITS ALWAYS WARM INSIDE FREE CONCERT MADISON JUNE L 1. Soldiers å Sailors Mem. Bldg. & Madison Theater 2. Mansfield, Ohio Richland co. 3. Steven McQuillin - June 1979 5. M-OSU 6.

Theater front, looking north 7. SSMBMT-2 APR 1 5 1980 MAY 2 T 1980 1. Soldiers å Sailors Mem. Bldg. & Madison TheAter 2. Mansfield, Ohio 3. Steven McQuillin 4. June 1979 5. M-OSU APR 1 5 1980 MAY 2 T 1980 6. Theater interior, looking toward stage 7. SSMBMT-3 OHIO-RICHLAND CO GEOLOGICAL SURVEY UNITED STATES Madison Theater MANSFIELD NORTH QUADRANGLE DIVISION OF GEOLOGICAL SURVEY DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR REGISTER MANSFIELD NORTH, OHIQ STATE OF OHIO Manshreld Ohio APR 1 5 1990 STATE OHIO MAY 27 1980 Honorable Howard M. Metzenbaum Honorable John H. Glenn, Jr. Mx. David Brook Columbus, Ohio 43211 Byers/bjr 6/4/80 Location Name Madison Theater Richland County Mansfield Also Notified North Sandusky Street Historic District The Ohio Historical Society State Historic Preservation Officer Honorable John M.

Ashbrook Date Entered ENTRIES IN THE NATIONAL REGISTER Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Building and For further information, please call the National Register at (202)343-6401. Seneca County Honorable Delbert L. Latta Interstate 7l at 17th Avenue Tiffin