{"nrhp_refnum":"78002146","name":"Kuhns, Benjamin F., Building","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"43 S. Main St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Dayton","county":"Montgomery County","state":"OH","lat":39.75823642600005,"lon":-84.19190999899996,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1978-04-24","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A commercial Romanesque office and store building at 43 South Main Street, at the northwest corner of Main and Fourth Streets in downtown Dayton, Ohio, built in 1883 of pressed brick with terra cotta ornament.","why_significant":"The nomination calls it an outstanding example of late nineteenth century brick commercial architecture and a distinguished downtown landmark with strong popular attachment. It was designed by the Dayton firm Peters and Burns and is reported to be the first major American office building to install a mail chute. It is also tied to Benjamin Kuhns, a prominent farm implement manufacturer and philanthropist.","narrative":"Rising at the northwest corner of Main and Fourth Streets in downtown Dayton, the Kuhns Building is a Romanesque commercial block completed in 1883, as an date cartouche on its facade records. Its pressed brick walls carry abundant terra cotta ornament, arcaded bays, stone belt courses and a slate mansard roof with elaborate wall dormers. A tower was lost to fire in 1945, and the street-level storefronts have been renovated, though the upper floors remain well preserved. The Dayton firm Peters and Burns designed it, with Luther Peters believed to be the principal designer, and Beaver and Butt served as contractors. It housed well-remembered businesses, including Cohen's Manhattan Clothing Store and later Oleman's Department Store, and is reported to be the first major American office building with a mail chute. It is named for Benjamin Kuhns, a farm implement manufacturer who helped bring the Soldiers' Home to Dayton and helped found Miami Valley Hospital. It was listed for its architecture and its place in the downtown scene.","period_of_significance":"1883","architect_builder":"Beaver and Butt (contractors); Peters and Burns (architects)","architectural_style":"Commercial Romanesque","criteria":[],"status_note":"Upper levels are described as in an excellent state of preservation; the ground-level commercial front has been totally renovated. A tower above the facade was destroyed by fire in 1945. The form marks the property as occupied.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:53:10.034411-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_OH/78002146.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/78002146/cae2eeb4c2-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/78002146/cae2eeb4c2-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY 3.0","author":"Photo by Greg Hume (Greg5030)","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:KuhnsBuilding.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Photo by Greg Hume (Greg5030)</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY 3.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:KuhnsBuilding.jpg"},"district":{"nrhp_refnum":"100004316","name":"Downtown Dayton Historic District","url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/districts/ohio/downtown-dayton-historic-district-100004316/"},"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/71990438","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benjamin_F._Kuhns_Building","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q4888547"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/ohio/montgomery-county/kuhns-benjamin-f-building-78002146/"}