{"nrhp_refnum":"01001482","name":"Newark Downtown Historic District","other_names":[],"category":"district","location":{"address":"Roughly bounded by Church St., Second St., Fifth St., and Canal St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Newark","county":"Licking County","state":"OH","lat":40.05800005650005,"lon":-82.4030776644845,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"2002-01-15","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture","Commerce"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A downtown commercial historic district in Newark, Licking County, Ohio, centered on the four-acre Courthouse Square and covering 96 buildings along the square, West Main Street, and Third, Fourth and Second Streets.","why_significant":"The district holds cohesive blocks of late 19th and early 20th century commercial buildings in a wide variety of styles, reflecting a period of great growth and prosperity in Newark. That growth was driven by railroads, the canal, natural resources and major industries such as stove, glass and rail car manufacturing. It also includes landmarks such as the 1876 Licking County Courthouse and Louis Sullivan's 1914 bank building.","narrative":"Downtown Newark, Ohio, is organized around Courthouse Square, a four-acre green park laid out on the Harrisonburg plan, with the 1876 Second Empire Licking County Courthouse at its center. The historic district takes in 96 buildings on the north, west and south sides of the square and along nearby stretches of Main, Third, Fourth and Second Streets. Most are commercial blocks from the late 19th and early 20th centuries, built in Italianate, Second Empire, Neo-classical and other styles. Notable examples include the 1870 First National Bank, the 1928 Midland Theater, and the 1914 bank at 1 North Third Street designed by Louis Sullivan. The district reflects Newark's rapid growth after 1870, fueled by railroads, the Ohio Canal, natural gas and large industries such as stove, glass and rail car manufacturing. Several buildings were listed individually before the district was recognized, though the east side of the square has lost its historic buildings to modern replacements.","period_of_significance":null,"architect_builder":"H.E. Myer (Licking County Courthouse); Louis Sullivan (Home Building Association bank, 1 N. Third St.); Preston Janvok (Lansing House)","architectural_style":"Late Victorian (Italianate, Second Empire, Romanesque Revival); Neo-classical Revival; Sullivanesque; Art Deco and International","criteria":[],"status_note":"Contains 78 contributing and 14 noncontributing resources. Some buildings have modernized storefronts or later facades. The east side of the square has modern replacement buildings, and a vacant lot remains where a fire destroyed a historic building.","vacant_flag":null,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:52:07.049503-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_OH/01001482.pdf"},"photo":null,"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/71989718","wikipedia":null,"wikidata":null},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/ohio/licking-county/newark-downtown-historic-district-01001482/"}