{"nrhp_refnum":"12001146","name":"Marion Veterans Administration Hospital Historic District","other_names":["Marion vterans Affairs Medical Center / 219300"],"category":"district","location":{"address":"2401 W. Main St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Marion","county":"Williamson County","state":"IL","lat":37.72542790000006,"lon":-88.95598522917265,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"2013-01-09","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture","Politics/Government","Health/Medicine"],"significance_levels":["state"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A hospital campus at 2401 West Main Street in Marion, Williamson County, Illinois, built in 1940 as a general medical and surgical veterans hospital. The district covers about 47 acres and has nine contributing and ten noncontributing resources.","why_significant":"The nomination argues the district is significant at the state level in architecture. It is the only Period II Second Generation Veterans Hospital built in the Egyptian Revival style, a choice tied to southern Illinois's nickname 'Little Egypt'. Its massing follows VA standardized plans, but its terra cotta ornament and stucco are unique to Marion.","narrative":"Marion's veterans hospital campus, on West Main Street about 1.5 miles west of downtown, was built in 1940 and began admitting patients in 1942 to provide general medical and surgical care. The district covers roughly 47 acres of a property once 341 acres. Its main building, dining hall, staff quarters and maintenance buildings follow standardized Veterans Administration layouts, yet they are dressed in Egyptian Revival detail, including terra cotta pilasters with lotus capitals, cavetto cornices, sun disks, a pyramidal roof over the central pavilion and stucco walls. The style referred to southern Illinois's nickname, Egypt or Little Egypt, and reportedly followed a suggestion from VA Administrator Frank T. Hines. It is the only Second Generation Veterans Hospital to use this style. Planned domiciliary buildings and wings were dropped because of rising costs and wartime shortages. The district was recognized for its architecture at the state level, with a period of significance of 1940 to 1950.","period_of_significance":"1940-1950","architect_builder":"Exterior decoration of the main building attributed to L. E. Twery, apparently a VA staff architect, though the attribution is described as unclear; buildings designed under the Veterans Administration's Construction Service.","architectural_style":"Late 19th and 20th Century Revivals: Egyptian Revival","criteria":["C"],"status_note":"Still in use as a hospital (Marion Veterans Affairs Medical Center); later additions and post-1950 buildings exist outside and within the district.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:55:37.364284-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_AL/12001146.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/12001146/86a8a2128b-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/12001146/86a8a2128b-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Nyttend","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Marion_VA_Hospital_HD.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Nyttend</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Marion_VA_Hospital_HD.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/77835622","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marion_Veterans_Affairs_Medical_Center","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q16894665"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/illinois/williamson-county/marion-veterans-administration-hospital-historic-district-12001146/"}