End of Year Shines a Spotlight on Endangered Historical Columbus Buildings
We’re in the middle of the holiday season and everyone is focused on buying the right gift for their loved one, while the city is focused on giving the gift of renovation. Columbus Landmarks announced its second annual “Most Endangered Buildings” list this year, and more than half of the list are within King Lincoln District, Franklinton, Old Towne East, and Downtown, Columbus area.
Woods Development Group, LLC. (WDG) restored the historic Theresa Building in the King Lincoln District and it is now beautiful, functioning, and holds tenants of all different trades, such as: Development Companies, Real Estate, Flower Shop, and soon even a bakery. WDG would love to see fellow neighbors/historical buildings get renovated versus demolished. Preserving the areas historical value and appeal has been a goal of Michael Woods, Owner and CEO of WDG.
[endif]--Some of the buildings on the list go back to the early 1800’s and have a mass amount of history. For example, the Macon Hotel, built in 1888, and located at 366 N. 20th Street, was also known as the “Cradle of Jazz.” The historical Hotel held many famous performers and allowed the artists to showcase their talent, according to Columbus Landmark.
Another amazing historic building is the Railway Power and Light Company Building. The historic building was built in 1915, located on Cleveland Avenue, which once was the location of the Columbus Central Street Railway Car Depot and Power House and afterwards became a Bus Depot for COTA. This remaining building is a two-story brick structure with steep hipped roof, an octagonal tower, and round-arched windows.
Although, The Original Port Columbus Airport Control Tower is not near the downtown area, its history can explain the importance of Columbus’s need for constant renovation to older buildings. The Original Port Columbus Airport Control Tower, was built in 1920 following the 1913 flood at 4920 E. Fifth Avenue. According to Columbus Landmark, the octagonal control tower and two-story building marked the transfer point of New York passengers by railroad to the Transcontinental Air Transport Ford Tri-Motors to Waynoka, Oklahoma where they boarded another overnight train in New Mexico for a TAT flight to Los Angeles. The entire coast-to-coast trip took only 48 hours, and the inauguration of air service in Columbus was marked on July 8, 1929, with the appearance of noted aviators Charles Lindbergh, Amelia Earhart, and Henry Ford, with the arrival of Captain Eddie Rickenbacker the next day.
City of Columbus, private owners, and development agencies are trying to restore the old and bring life back into the history of Columbus. So on your way to that specific store and you see a deteriorating building look up its history or better yet ask if your relatives have some stories to share around the table about it.
Happy Holidays!
Pictures: The Original Port Columbus Airport Control Tower
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