Main and Third Street Cluster | |
 Comprehensive view of the cluster | |
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| Location | 300-302 and 304-306 Main St. (also 308-318 Main), and 208-210 E. 3rd St., Cincinnati, Ohio |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 39°5′58″N84°30′31″W / 39.09944°N 84.50861°W Coordinates: 39°5′58″N84°30′31″W / 39.09944°N 84.50861°W |
| Area | Less than 1 acre (0.40 ha) |
| Built | 1862, 1893, 1910 |
| Architect | William Walters |
| Architectural style | Italianate, Neoclassical, Victorian |
| NRHP reference # | 83001984 [1] |
| Added to NRHP | July 15, 1983 |
The Main and Third Street Cluster is a group of three historic buildings in downtown Cincinnati, Ohio, United States. Named for its location on the northeastern corner of the intersection of Main and Third Streets, [1] the cluster is historically significant for its general homogeneity despite being constructed over a long period of time. [2]
Downtown Cincinnati contains the central business district of Cincinnati, Ohio, as well as a number of urban neighborhoods in the low land area between the Ohio River and the high land areas of uptown. These neighborhoods include Over-the-Rhine, Pendleton, Queensgate, and West End.
Cincinnati is a major city in the U.S. state of Ohio, and is the government seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line with Kentucky. The city is the economic and cultural hub of the Cincinnati metropolitan area, the fastest growing economic power in the Midwestern United States based on increase of economic output, which had a population of 2,190,209 as of the 2018 census estimates. This makes it Ohio's largest metropolitan area and the nation's 28th-largest. With a city population estimated at 302,605, Cincinnati is the third-largest city in Ohio and 65th in the United States. Cincinnati is also within a day's drive of 49.70% of the United States populace.
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the Great Lakes region of the United States. Of the fifty states, it is the 34th largest by area, the seventh most populous, and the tenth most densely populated. The state's capital and largest city is Columbus. Ohio is bordered by Pennsylvania to the east, Michigan to the northwest, Lake Erie to the north, Indiana to the west, Kentucky on the south, and West Virginia on the southeast.
Three buildings compose the cluster:
- The Anderson Building, which faces Main, was built in the Victorian style in 1893. [2]
- The former McMicken School of Design, located on the corner, is an Italianate structure completed in 1862. [2] Four stories tall, it is constructed of sandstone. [3]
- The Burkhardt Building, which faces Third, is a Neoclassical building; [2] it was erected in 1910. [1]
Victorian architecture is a series of architectural revival styles in the mid-to-late 19th century. Victorian refers to the reign of Queen Victoria (1837–1901), called the Victorian era, during which period the styles known as Victorian were used in construction. However, many elements of what is typically termed "Victorian" architecture did not become popular until later in Victoria's reign. The styles often included interpretations and eclectic revivals of historic styles. The name represents the British and French custom of naming architectural styles for a reigning monarch. Within this naming and classification scheme, it followed Georgian architecture and later Regency architecture, and was succeeded by Edwardian architecture.
The Italianate style of architecture was a distinct 19th-century phase in the history of Classical architecture.
A storey or story is any level part of a building with a floor that could be used by people. The plurals are "storeys" and "stories", respectively.
Although the ages of the three buildings are nearly fifty years from oldest to newest, they nevertheless compose an architecturally important unit; architectural historians have ranked both the McMicken School and the Anderson Building as premier examples of their styles, due in part to their high-quality construction methods and artistry. Although the Burkhardt Building is of lesser significance, it remains a good example of Neoclassical architecture. Together, the three buildings are typical of late nineteenth-century and early twentieth-century architecture, which combined a range of styles in the same geographical area. [2]
Due to their location very close to the shoreline of the Ohio River and to the oldest parts of Cincinnati, the cluster occupies land that formerly held other important buildings. Chief among these is a previous occupant of the land under the McMicken School of Design: during the 1830s, the building on the site was used as offices for young lawyer Salmon P. Chase; a well-regarded book about Ohio law that he wrote while working at Third and Main helped propel him to prominence in Ohio politics and eventually to the position of Chief Justice of the United States. [3] In 1983, the Main and Third Street Cluster was listed on the National Register of Historic Places, qualifying both because of its historic architecture and because of its place in local history. [1] In late 2012, the cluster was expanded by the addition of buildings as far north as 318 Main Street; the addition was given the name of "Main Street Buildings". [4]
The Ohio River is a 981-mile (1,579 km) long river in the midwestern United States that flows southwesterly from western Pennsylvania south of Lake Erie to its mouth on the Mississippi River at the southern tip of Illinois. It is the second largest river by discharge volume in the United States and the largest tributary by volume of the north-south flowing Mississippi River that divides the eastern from western United States. The river flows through or along the border of six states, and its drainage basin includes parts of 15 states. Through its largest tributary, the Tennessee River, the basin includes several states of the southeastern U.S. It is the source of drinking water for three million people.
Salmon Portland Chase was a U.S. politician and jurist who served as the sixth Chief Justice of the United States. He also served as the 23rd Governor of Ohio, represented Ohio in the United States Senate, and served as the 25th United States Secretary of the Treasury. Chase was therefore one of a few US politicians who served in all three branches of the federal government.
The chief justice of the United States is the chief judge of the Supreme Court of the United States, and as such the highest-ranking officer of the federal judiciary. Article II, Section 2, Clause 2 of the Constitution grants plenary power to the president of the United States to nominate, and with the advice and consent of the United States Senate, appoint a chief justice, who serves until they resign, are impeached and convicted, retire, or die.
