Pythian Castle (Toledo, Ohio)

Last updated
Pythian Castle
Pythian Castle, Toledo.jpg
Front and eastern side
USA Ohio location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Usa edcp location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Location801 Jefferson Ave., Toledo, Ohio 43604
Coordinates 41°39′8″N83°32′25″W / 41.65222°N 83.54028°W / 41.65222; -83.54028
Arealess than one acre
Built1890
ArchitectBacon & Huber
Architectural styleRomanesque
NRHP reference No. 72001032 [1]
Added to NRHPFebruary 23, 1972

The Pythian Castle in Toledo, Ohio, is a Romanesque-style building built in 1890. Located in Toledo's Center City at the corner of Jefferson Avenue and N. Ontario Street, it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1972. [1]

Contents

History

The 30,000-square-foot building [2] was built in 1890 by the Knights of Pythias, a fraternal organization and secret society, to use as a meeting place. [3] The building was designed by Norval Bacon and Thomas Huber, partners of the Toledo architectural firm of Bacon & Huber. [4] The highest point of the Pythian Castle, the turret on Jefferson Avenue at City Center, rises 122 ft (37 m) above the street. The height of the main roof is 79 ft (24 m).

In 1908, it was described as "the finest building to be found anywhere entirely devoted to the uses of Pythianism." [2]

The building also had retail space. One early tenant was the J.W. Green Co., a retail and wholesale dealer in pianos and organs. [2]

In 1951, the group sold the building to Greyhound Lines and left. [3]

In the 1970s, the building was owned by Ed Emery, a resident of Sylvania, Ohio. He ran a youth center and rented space to a music store, an art studio, and an antique shop. In 1972, he got the building placed on the National Register of Historic Places. [2]

A fire in 1978 put an end to the building's active occupation, and it fell into disrepair. In 2006, then-Mayor Carty Finkbeiner put it on his 'Dirty Dozen" list of the city's worst-maintained buildings. [5]

In the late 20th and early 21st century, the building was owned by Robert Shiffler, who died in 1997, and Brian Uram, who died in 2011. Uram said in 2004 that the two men had poured $250,000 into attempts to stabilize the decaying building, including a temporary replacement roof. [2]

In 2013, the building was owned by Toledo's Pythian Castle LLC, an Ohio limited liability corporation. [2]

In early 2013, the Toledo Blade wrote about the building's history. A series of photos revealed a dilapidated interior. [6]

On July 10, 2013, the building was acquired by the Lucas County Land Bank for redevelopment.

In November 2016, the Land Bank sold the building to developer David Ball for $300. [7] The deal also gave a $274,000 loan to Ball to cover the cost of a new roof and the stabilization of its turret. [8] Lucas County Treasurer Wade Kapszukiewicz, the Land Bank's chairman, said the loan would be forgiven if the renovations produced "a certificate of occupancy for the building from the city saying it is a habitable building" within three years. [7]

In February 2017, renovations were begun by Ball's company, Water Street Development LLC. [9]

In June 2022, the Toledo Blade reported "progress on the project, putting on a new roof, replacing windows, and getting the heat and electricity on again. The building could be ready to take in tenants soon." [10]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Toledo, Ohio</span> City in Ohio, United States

Toledo is a city in and the county seat of Lucas County, Ohio, United States. At the 2020 census, it had a population of 270,871, making Toledo the fourth-most populous city in the state of Ohio, after Columbus, Cleveland, and Cincinnati. Toledo is also the 79th-largest city in the United States. It is principal city of the Toledo metropolitan area, which had 646,604 residents in 2020. Toledo also serves as a major trade center for the Midwest; its port is the fifth-busiest on the Great Lakes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sylvania, Ohio</span> City in Ohio, United States

Sylvania is a city in Lucas County, Ohio, United States. The population was 19,011 at the 2020 census. Sylvania is a suburb of Toledo, and encompassed by Sylvania Township. Its northern border is the southern border of the state of Michigan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Whitehouse, Ohio</span> Village in Ohio, United States

Whitehouse is a village within the Toledo Metropolitan Area in Lucas County, Ohio, United States. The population was 4,149 at the 2010 census.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fifth Third Field (Toledo, Ohio)</span> Home venue of the Toledo Mud Hens

Fifth Third Field is a Minor League Baseball stadium in Toledo, Ohio. The facility is home to the Toledo Mud Hens, an International League team and the Triple-A affiliate of the Detroit Tigers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Glass City Center</span> Building in Ohio, United States

The Glass City Center is a performing arts and convention center located in downtown Toledo, Ohio. Opened on March 27, 1987, as the SeaGate Convention Centre, the center's exhibit hall measures 74,520 square feet of space and seats up to 5,100 for a banquet, 9,000 for a meeting, and 4,000 in a classroom configuration. It can be divided into three smaller halls, and when used for concerts with a 60 foot by 40 foot stage, can seat 2,000, 3,000, or 5,900 for concerts, stage shows, and other shows, this so that there are no bad seats in the house. Many of those seats used for concerts are in telescopic risers; there are 18 telescopic units at the arena, set up in sections of six; as a result, there are six sections of riser seating and a total of 3,216 in the risers. The center also features 17,552 square feet (1,631 m2) of meeting space.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sylvania Tam-O-Shanter</span>

Sylvania Tam-O-Shanter and the Sylvania Sports and Exhibition Center are a combined, multi-purpose athletics complex and convention center located in Sylvania, Ohio. The original Tam-O-Shanter complex consisted of a single ice rink built in 1972, was expanded upon in 1993 and 2001, and as of 2019 is operated by the Sylvania Joint Area Recreational District.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Martin Luther King Jr. Plaza (Toledo)</span>

Martin Luther King Jr. Plaza is the main passenger rail and intercity bus station of Toledo, Ohio.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Huntington Center (Toledo, Ohio)</span> Arena in Toledo, Ohio

The Huntington Center is an 8,000-seat multi-purpose arena in downtown Toledo, Ohio. It was completed in 2009 and cost $105 million to build. It replaced the Toledo Sports Arena, which has since been demolished.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">North Towne Square</span> Former shopping mall in Toledo, Ohio

NorthTowne Square, briefly known as Lakeside Centre, was a shopping mall in Toledo, Ohio developed by Simon Property Group.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Toledo-Lucas County Public Library</span> Public library system in Ohio, U.S.

Toledo Lucas County Public Library is a public library system located in Toledo, Ohio.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tower on the Maumee</span> Skyscraper in Toledo, Ohio

Tower on the Maumee is a skyscraper at 200 North Saint Clair Street in Toledo, Ohio. Constructed in 1969, the 400 feet (120 m) building is an example of the international style of architecture. In 2012, the building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places under the name "Riverview".

Downtown Toledo is the central business district of Toledo, Ohio. Both the Warehouse District and the area surrounding the Huntington Center have been areas of recent growth.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">PNC Bank Building (Toledo, Ohio)</span>

The PNC Bank Building is a 368 ft (112 m) tall skyscraper located at 405 Madison Avenue in Downtown Toledo, Ohio. The limestone-faced steel-frame building was constructed in 1930 and is an example of the Art Deco style of architecture. It stood as Toledo's tallest building for 39 years, from its completion in 1930 until the completion of the Tower on the Maumee in 1969. The PNC Bank Building is currently the third-tallest building in Toledo.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Oliver House, Toledo, Ohio</span>

The Oliver House is a historic hotel building in Toledo, Ohio, designed by the architect Isaiah Rogers and opened in 1859. It was converted to industrial use in the 20th century and is now home to the Maumee Bay Brewing Company and its brew pub, as well as a patisserie, restaurants, event spaces, a theater company, art gallery, and residential apartments. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. as Successful Sales.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Woodville Mall</span> Former shopping center in Northwood, Ohio

Woodville Mall was an enclosed shopping mall off of Woodville Road in Northwood, Ohio, outside the city of Toledo, Ohio. The mall opened in 1969 and, after losing most of its stores in the 2000s, became a dead mall. The mall's interior was closed in December 2011 and demolished in March 2014.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lucas County Courthouse (Iowa)</span> United States historic place

The Lucas County Courthouse located in Chariton, Iowa, United States, was built in 1893. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1981 as a part of the County Courthouses in Iowa Thematic Resource. In 2014 it was included as a contributing property in the Lucas County Courthouse Square Historic District. The courthouse is the third building the county has used for court functions and county administration.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Paula Hicks-Hudson</span> American politician

Paula S. Hicks-Hudson is an American politician currently serving as a member of the Ohio House of Representatives. She is the former Mayor of Toledo, Ohio.

The following is a timeline of the history of the city of Toledo, Ohio, USA.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wade Kapszukiewicz</span> American politician

Wade Kapszukiewicz is an American politician serving as the 64th mayor of Toledo, Ohio. A member of the Democratic Party, he previously served as treasurer of Lucas County, Ohio.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2013 Toledo, Ohio, mayoral election</span>

Toledo, Ohio, held an election for mayor on November 5, 2013. The election was officially nonpartisan, with the top two candidates from the September 10 primary election advancing to the general election, regardless of party. Incumbent independent mayor Michael Bell lost reelection to independent city councilor D. Michael Collins.

References

  1. 1 2 "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places . National Park Service. March 13, 2009.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Pythian Castle a monument to hard times". The Blade. 2013-02-25. Retrieved 2017-11-16.
  3. 1 2 "Crews work to secure tower in downtown Toledo's Pythian Castle". The Blade. 2017-02-28. Retrieved 2017-11-16.
  4. ↑ "Memoirs of Lucas County and the City of Toledo... Volume 2 - Bacon". Western Historical Association. 1910. Retrieved 25 April 2018.
  5. ↑ "THE DIRTY DOZEN ARE BACK". The Blade. 2006-03-30. Retrieved 2017-11-16.
  6. ↑ "Inside Pythian Castle". The Blade. 2013-03-03. Retrieved 2017-11-16.
  7. 1 2 "Pythian Castle is purchased by developer". The Blade. 2016-11-22. Retrieved 2017-11-16.
  8. ↑ Ignazio Messina, Lucas County Land Bank sells Pythian Castle, Toledo Blade, November 21, 2016.
  9. ↑ Bickle, Jonathan Monk, Mark. "Downtown Toledo's Pythian Castle is seeing new life" . Retrieved 2017-11-16.
  10. ↑ "Pythian Castle still searching for tenants". The Blade. Retrieved 2022-09-21.

Commons-logo.svg Media related to Pythian Castle (Toledo, Ohio) at Wikimedia Commons

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.