Avalon Apartment Building
The Avalon apartment building was built by Alva Wilcox around the year 1900. It is one of the larger apartment structures in Newark’s downtown and often functioned as a mixed commercial and residential space with apartments above and offices at street level. The architectural style of the structure is late Second Empire, which was popular during the Victorian era. The Avalon was saved from demolition and renovated in 2004.Image 1: Early photograph of the Avalon with the trolley car lines visible on Main Street.Image 2: The Avalon stands in the background as the Nortwest Territories Parade passed by in 1938.
Old Newark Public Library
The building at 88 West Church Street was the third location of Newark Public Library, now known as Licking County Library. The library opened at this location on August 9, 1950, and was used until the current library opened on February 2, 2000. The original location of the Library was in the Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Memorial Building, later known as the Auditorium, before moving to a house at 105 West Church Street, across the street from this building.Image 1 : Photograph of Newark Public Library and its Bookmobile as they appeared in 1958.Image 2: Architect's rendering of the proposed library facility at 88 West Church Street before construction.
Union Block
This downtown landmark was originally built in 1903. It received the label "Union" through a public contest to provide the structure with a name. The 22,000 square foot building opened with the Powers-Miller department store and several other businesses, as well as an elaborate ballroom on the second floor, but its celebrated opening was cut short. In December 1903 a fire struck Union Block. The structure was damaged but survived. After a few months of renovations, the stores reopened in 1904. For more than a century it has been an important anchor to the downtown commercial district. The longest tenant in residence was Stewart Brothers Furniture Company, which was located in the building for 86 years from 1906 to 1992.Image 1: Exterior of Union Block in 1904 with its distinctive columns and arches.Image 2: Scene from one of the Union Blocks stores in 1904.Image 3: Display at the Union Music Co., one of the Block's stores present at its opening in 1903.Image 4: Advertisement for Powers-Miller department store, the Block's flagship store when it opened.
Arcade
Long before shopping malls existed, the Arcade revolutionized the way people shopped for goods. Built in 1909, the Arcade once housed over 30 shops as well as apartments on the upper level. Newark’s Arcade was one of eight glass-ceilinged shopping centers built in Ohio. The building was designed by Carl Howell and funded by a cadre of prominent local businessmen such as Carl Weiant, Charles Spencer, and E.T. Rugg. It featured a number of attractions, including a theater, fountain, and, during Prohibition, a rumored speakeasy. Details such as the Italianate cornice and arched windows, as well as the theater and fountain, have been removed over the years, yet renovations have begun with new owners.Image: The Arcade as it appeared around 1911. A crowd enjoys the glass-ceiling promenade and the fountain in the center.
Hull Building & Newark Trust
The Hull Building was for years known as King’s Department Store. It was built between 1908-1910 by Eli Hull, whose mansion still stands on West Main Street near Neal Avenue. At least three fires have occurred in the building, leading to several remodels. It was home to Newark Bargain Shoes until 1986 when the Newark Trust Building was demolished and the Central Trust Co. moved into the building. The Newark Trust building was completed in 1908 and was known as “Newark’s Skyscraper” for nearly 80 years during its existence on the square. The nine-story building no longer exists. The space is now occupied by various businesses and nonprofits in an atrium formerly owned by Chase Bank.Image 1: The Newark Trust Building in 1911.Image 2: The facade of the Hull Building as it appeared in 1911.Image 3: Interior of the Newark Trust Building with its teller windows.
Sullivan Building
In 1914, Emmett Melvin Baugher of the Home Building Association Company commissioned famous architect Louis Sullivan to design and build this building. Known as the "Old Home Bank," it was completed in 1915. It is considered one of eight “Jewel Box Banks” designed by Sullivan. It was known as the Old Home Bank. It merged with the Franklin National Bank in 1928, changed its name to the Union Trust Company becoming the largest financial institution in Licking County. The building has also been home to a jewelry store, ice cream parlor, and even a butcher shop. The “Old Home,” as it is affectionately called, has undergone a restoration project in the last few years which is now nearing completion.Image 1: Postcard of the Home Building Association Company building in 1915.Image 2: Photograph of the Sullivan Building.
Lansing Block
The Lansing Block was built in 1859 by Charles Daugherty in the Victorian Italianate style. The building now houses several businesses. It originally featured Corinthian pillars cast at Mary Ann furnace out of iron ore dug in Licking County. The picture to the left shows the building when it was occupied by the Murray House, which was a hotel. The Lansing Block replaced a row of log cabins that were previously on the site.Image 1: The Lansing House Hotel and accompanying shop from the 1875 Atlas of Licking County.Image 2: The Lansing Block and North Park Place in 1911.
Cornell Clothing
Cornell Clothing has been in business on North Park Place since 1910. The building dates to before 1860 and was renovated in 2011 to reflect its original appearance. Having once been a three-story structure, the building now only contains two floors.Image 1: View of the site of Cornell Clothing and its North Park Place neighbors around 1900.Image 2: Another view of the site of Cornell Clothing and its North Park Place neighbors around 1900.
Park National Bank
The building at 32 North Park Place, where the law office of Schaller, Campbell, and Untied is located today, was the original site of Park National Bank. It opened in 1908 and was at this location until its 50th anniversary. In 1958 the bank moved to its current location on the corner of Church and Third. This building was then occupied by First Federal Savings. The original façade was replaced with the current design during the 1960s.Image: Original facade of the Park National Bank building.
Midland Theatre
The original Midland Theatre opened on December 20, 1928 as a 1000-seat theater. The theater featured movies, Vaudeville acts and live music for 50 years. It once housed an organ that could raised and lowered for performances. This staple of Newark’s entertainment scene suffered severe damage in the blizzard of 1978; its boilers froze and cracked and the ceiling leaked, flooding the seating in the lower level. The once-elegant venue sat vacant until Dave Longaberger of Longaberger Basket fame purchased it in 1992 and began restoring it. He died in 1999, but his company continued to follow his wishes until it was restored and then donated to the Newark Midland Theatre Association. The second grand opening was on September 14, 2002.Image 1: Photograph of the Midland in 1929 when The Man and the Iron Mask starring Douglas Fairbanks appeared on the screen.Image 2: Photograph from around 1975 of the Midland and its neighbors.
Auditorium
The Auditorium was located where the Licking County Foundation is today. The building was built in 1894 and was originally called the Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Memorial Building. The theater hosted many famous acts, such as Harry Houdini, Count Basie and Gene Autry. The building was also home to the Newark Public Library before it moved to 105 West Church Street in 1920. On April 29, 1968, a fire was set inside the building, destroying the elaborate façade. Architects opted to replace it with a more modern appearance, choosing to face the structure in brick and glass. In 1992, Dave Longaberger purchased the building for $70,000, with hopes of restoring its original appearance. Due to the extreme cost of restoring the theater, the property was deeded to the Licking County Foundation, which funded its demolition. The Foundation built the current structure and Foundation Park in 2002.Image 1: The Soldiers' and Sailors' Memorial Building in 1911.Image 2: The Auditorium bedecked for a parade and holiday around 1930.Image 3: Program cover of the 1899-1900 season at the Auditorium.
Hotel Warden
The corner of East Main and 2nd Street, where Wendy’s stands today, has been host to many hotels. The first was in 1802 when a log cabin on the property acted as an inn. The Buckingham House was built here in the 1850s and operated as such until it was added onto becoming the Hotel Warden in the 1870s. When the renovations finished the Hotel Warden sported marble floors, eight apartments, a barbershop, wine room, hydraulic elevator, and an electric call board by which guests could reach clerks in the office. The Hotel Warden was a very prosperous and well-known establishment until its closing on March 28, 1959.Image 1: Postcard of the Hotel Warden from 1915.Image 2: The Warden in 1911.
Licking County Courthouse
This is Licking County’s fourth courthouse. It was designed by architect H. E. Myer of Cleveland and built between 1876 and1878 after the third courthouse was destroyed by fire in 1875. A mile-long parade celebrated the laying of its cornerstone on July 4, 1876. The outside walls on the upper level are almost two feet thick, and the inside walls are 15 inches. The structure was built to be fireproof, but five months after opening in 1879 the upper section caught fire, damaging the building and destroying some court records. The windows in the west courtroom on the second floor feature prominent figures of American history, including Geroge Washington and Benjamin Franklin. These windows, believed to be made by Louis Comfort Tiffany, underwent restoration in 2016 during extensive renovations to the building that included a new roof, a new dome, and many other improvements. The windows returned to their rightful place in 2019 after the 10 million-dollar project was completed.Image 1: Postcard depicting the courthouse in 1915.Image 2: The county's third courthouse as it appeared in 1866 Atlas of Licking County.Image 3: View facing east from the courthouse steps around 1975.
Newark Lynching Site
The Temperance Movement was a powerful force in the early twentieth century. As a result, a vote was made in 1909 to make Licking County “dry,” but many saloons in Newark boldly stayed open. After the sheriff and the mayor failed to respond to complaints, Wayne B. Wheeler of the Anti-Saloon League in Columbus hired a group of special detectives from Cleveland to infiltrate Newark and identify the culprits. One of the agents was seventeen-year-old Carl Etherington, who had lied about his age to join the force. On July 8, 1910, detectives entered a saloon that had refused to comply with the vote, but they were no match for the crowd that had already assembled. Although the others escaped, Etherington was caught and beaten. He shot a police officer in self-defense and was taken to the jail. By 9:00 P.M., 5,000 people were gathered outside the jail. A group stormed in at 10:30 and took him, and by 10:35 P.M. they had hanged him from a telegraph pole at the southeast corner of the square.Image 1: Corner of Second and South Park as it appeared shortly after Carl Etherington's lynching in 1910.Image 2: Portrait of Carl Etherington.Image 3: Photograph of the Licking County Jail doors after being battered down by the angry mob.
Old Licking County Jail
The final stop on this tour is the Old Licking County Jail, perhaps the most haunted place in Newark. The site has even been featured in paranormal television programs!Completed in 1889 and in service until 1987, the Old Licking County Jail is a lovely edifice in an imposing, Romanesque style. Unlike the medieval fortresses that inspired its architectural design, the jail proved to be rather ineffective in its goals of protecting the people of Newark. In 1910, a mob stormed the building to lynch Carl Etherington. Jailbreaks were common occurences and twelve people died within its walls in less than a hundred years, including four Licking County sherrifs. Inmates died in a variety of ways, but most took their own lives. A female inmate, Mae Varner, died in 1953 after setting herself on fire, her second, and ultimately successful, attempt at suicide. Many of these deaths can be attributed to the poor management of the facility, but also to the improper care for inmates who suffered from mental illnesses. If prisoners perished in a variety of gruesome ways, the deaths of the four sheriffs occurred in an eerily similar pattern. Four men—Ross Embrey in 1934, Albert Roe in 1947, William McElroy in 1962, and Bernard Howarth in 1971—each died in a virtually identical manner. The sheriff lived in the jail with a residence set aside for their use. When Sheriff Embrey retired to the residence on the night of September 13, 1934, he suffered a heart attack and died. The same affliction struck Albert Roe in the same section of the jail in 1947, Sherriff McElroy in 1962, and Bernard Howarth in 1971. Howarth made it to the hospital before he passed away, but the others died at the jail in which they lived and worked. Some people believe that the sheriffs fell victim to the spirits of the prisoners that sought retribution upon the figure charged with the care of the facility. The Old Licking County Jail is a beautiful structure and a remarkable monument to Newark’s past, yet also a reminder of the tragic events that haunt the city. Image 1: Image from 1895 of the jail with the canal, moat-like before it.Image 2: View of the jail over the canal.Image 3: Image of the jail from the 1911 book, Greater Newark.Image 4: A contemporary view of the Old Licking County Jail
First National Bank
First National Bank of Newark was founded in 1865 and was one of the first banks in Ohio to operate under the 1913 Federal Reserve Act. This building was erected in 1870 and features a corner entrance and striking stonework, including an unusual stone face. Legend claims that this is the face of Adam Kiesel, sculpted by T. D. Jones of Granville. Kiesel was a south-side property owner who suffered a series of failed businesses after his return from the Civil War. When fire struck the wooden buildings on the south side of the square in 1868, Kiesel was accused of deliberately setting the fire for the insurance money. He was charged with arson, but acquitted by townsmen who were glad to see the old eyesore buildings destroyed. More likely, the face is an apotropaic symbol meant to ward off bad luck of evil intent, such as another fire.Image 1: First National Bank of Newark and its neighbors on South Park Street in 1911.Image 2: Close up of the apotropaic face in the First National Bank, believed by some to be the face of Adam Kiesel.Image 3: Sketch of First National Bank from Brister's Centennial History of 1909.Image 4: First National Bank building and its neighbors on South Park around 1975.
Site of Current Licking County Library
The main library location of the Licking County Library has been the site of a variety of establishments over the years. One building that once stood on the corner was Joe Bader Pool & Billiard Parlor. In addition to the pool hall, the site hosted several grocers during its existence, and the southern portion of the lot lies on the filled-in sections of the Ohio and Erie Canal.Image 1: South Fifth Street and Main in 1895 with Joe Bader's tavern.Image 2: Aerial photograph from 1999 of the construction of the current Library building.Image 3: Detail from 1853 map of Newark showing the corner of Fifth Street and Main Street with the canal passing parallel to Main Street.
