Old Municipal Hall - Hamilton, OH
N 39° 24.039 W 084° 33.841
16S E 709753 N 4364069
The former Hamilton Municipal Building - Built in 1935. 20 High Street, Hamilton, OH 45011
Now home of Heritage Hall and the Robert McCloskey Museum.
Waymark Code: WM3TE6
Location: Ohio, United States
Date Posted: 05/15/2008
Views: 106
For history of the site visit here (
visit link)
The following is from the Jim Blount's website cited above-A federal Depression program aimed at relieving unemployment enabled Hamilton civic leaders to fulfill "a long-cherished dream" in 1935. The Hamilton Municipal Building at 20 High Street was dedicated Sunday, Nov. 24, 1935, and opened for business the next day.
Local architects -- George Barkman, R. E. Smith, Frederick G. Mueller and Walter R. Hair -- cooperated on the project. "The new building is to be five stories in height, the first three stories to be over the entire ground area and the fourth and fifth floors to taper off toward the center of the building," said the Journal-News as work began. The building "will be 150 feet long east and west, and 120 feet wide, north and south." About 2,000 people attended the cornerstone ceremony Sunday, June 30, 1935.
"Its beauty has been enhanced by the stone carvings, medallion and seal located near the several entrances," Kahn said of the structure, which cost $548,088 when completed. "Models of these were executed by our fellow townsman, Robert McCloskey, Kahn said. "This young sculptor has, with fine artistry, caught the spirit of civic growth from the days of the beginning to the present." (Within a few years, McCloskey would be an award-winning, world-renowned children's author and illustrator.) City offices and municipal court opened in the new building Monday, Nov. 25, and the first council meeting in new chambers was Wednesday evening, Dec. 4, 1935. Razing of the old city hall -- which sat on the driveway of the fire station in the new building -- started Nov. 27, and was completed Dec. 16, 1935.
Sixty years later, the Hamilton Municipal Building at 20 High Street is described as "one of only two Art Deco structures in the city in Walking Tours of Historic Hamilton, a guide published by the Greater Hamilton Convention and Visitors Bureau. The building interior features Italian and Belgian marbles.
Staffed hours are Friday, 9AM-5PM and Saturday 9AM-2PM; otherwise open by appointment only. It takes approximately 45 minutes to view the history exhibit, the McCloskey Room and the Council Chambers. There are two separate video presentations on the life of Robert McCloskey. A touch-screen kiosk shows different historic sites in Hamilton, the architecture of the Municipal Building and information on Robert McCloskey. Young McCloskey played a prominent role in both the exterior and interior design of this historic structure. Donations are accepted.
(513) 737-5958