{"nrhp_refnum":"73001437","name":"Ohio Theatre","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"39 E. State St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Columbus","county":"Franklin County","state":"OH","lat":39.95986734300004,"lon":-82.99931891599994,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1973-04-11","is_nhl":true,"nhl_designated_date":"1977-05-05","areas_of_significance":["Architecture","Performing Arts"],"significance_levels":["national"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A brick theater with a stone-faced facade at 39 East State Street in Columbus, Franklin County, Ohio, built in 1928 and designed by architect Thomas White Lamb. It is about 200 feet square and nearly eight stories tall.","why_significant":"The nomination calls it one of the most magnificent theaters of its type in the United States, with an ornate interior of gesso and gilt decoration and near-perfect acoustics. It highlights the Robert Morton pipe organ known as the \"Mighty Morton\". It also credits a public fund drive with saving the theater from demolition in 1969.","narrative":"Completed in 1928 at 39 East State Street in Columbus, the Ohio Theatre is a brick building with a stone-faced facade, about two hundred feet square and nearly eight stories tall. Its exterior is fairly severe, with embellishment limited to the north side, where a recessed entrance occupies the center three bays of a five-bay front. Inside, a nearly three-story lobby, a crystal chandelier, gesso wall decoration, gilt ornament and original brocade curtains create an elaborate setting. The theater was designed by Scottish-born architect Thomas White Lamb. Its Robert Morton pipe organ, called the \"Mighty Morton\", is described as one of the finest in the nation. In 1969 the owner of the theater chain sold it to a holding company that threatened demolition, but a public fund drive allowed the Columbus Association for the Performing Arts to buy it for $1.8 million. The association then worked to restore the interior to its original condition.","period_of_significance":"20th Century (built 1928)","architect_builder":"Thomas White Lamb","architectural_style":null,"criteria":[],"status_note":"Listed in excellent condition and occupied, in entertainment use; the owner was restoring remaining interior decoration to its original appearance at the time of nomination.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:53:10.419251-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_OH/73001437.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/73001437/0cd285e498-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/73001437/0cd285e498-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY 2.5","author":"The original uploader was Analogue Kid at English Wikipedia.","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ohio_Theatre.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">The original uploader was Analogue Kid at English Wikipedia.</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.5\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY 2.5</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ohio_Theatre.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/71988553","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ohio_Theatre_(Columbus,_Ohio)","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q7080981"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/ohio/franklin-county/ohio-theatre-73001437/"}