{"nrhp_refnum":"73001409","name":"Cleveland Grays Armory","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"1234 Bolivar Rd.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Cleveland","county":"Cuyahoga County","state":"OH","lat":41.498825339000064,"lon":-81.68203948199994,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1973-03-28","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"The Cleveland Grays Armory is a brick and stone armory at 1234 Bolivar Road in Cleveland, Cuyahoga County, Ohio, built in 1893-1894 and designed and supervised by architect Fenimore C. Bate.","why_significant":"The nomination presents it as the home of the Cleveland Grays, founded in 1837 and described in a correction as the oldest organization of its kind west of the Alleghenies. It is also called an excellent local example of Richardsonian Romanesque architecture. Many state, civic and military events took place there, including the Cleveland Orchestra's 1919 debut.","narrative":"Built in 1893-1894 at 1234 Bolivar Road in Cleveland, the Cleveland Grays Armory was designed and supervised by architect Fenimore C. Bate for the Cleveland Grays military organization. Its brick walls, rock-faced stone trim, deep window reveals and arched openings give it the weight typical of Richardsonian Romanesque design. The north entrance has an arch carried on small polished pink granite columns, with a cast iron fan tympanum bearing the initials CG. A round tower at the northeast corner, ringed with vertical slits near the top, gives the building a fortress-like look. Inside are a drill hall about 30 feet high with a balcony, a basement firing range, offices, a ballroom and recreation rooms. A later correction notes that the Grays, founded in 1837, were mustered into the Army in every U.S. war through World War II, and that the Cleveland Orchestra made its debut in the drill hall in 1919. The armory is still used by the Grays.","period_of_significance":"1893-1894","architect_builder":"Fenimore C. Bate (architect and construction supervisor)","architectural_style":"Richardsonian Romanesque","criteria":[],"status_note":"Marked occupied and in good condition on the form. A later correction states that the Cleveland Grays still use the armory.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:53:10.013529-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_OH/73001409.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/73001409/65c83f79ef-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/73001409/65c83f79ef-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"User:Nyttend","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Cleveland_Grays_Armory_Comprehensive.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">User:Nyttend</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Cleveland_Grays_Armory_Comprehensive.jpg"},"district":{"nrhp_refnum":"05000580","name":"Lower Prospect-Huron Historic District (Boundary Increase)","url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/districts/ohio/lower-prospect-huron-historic-district-boundary-increase-05000580/"},"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/71987470","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grays_Armory","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q5598338"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/ohio/cuyahoga-county/cleveland-grays-armory-73001409/"}