{"nrhp_refnum":"85002833","name":"Broadway Building","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"SE corner of W. Erie Ave. and Broadway","address_restricted":false,"city":"Lorain","county":"Lorain County","state":"OH","lat":41.468327989000045,"lon":-82.17738760799995,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1985-11-14","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Industry","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A four-story yellow brick and stone office building at the southeast corner of Erie Avenue and Broadway in downtown Lorain, Ohio, built in 1926 to designs by architect Ernest McGeorge of Cleveland.","why_significant":"It has been the largest office building in Lorain since 1926 and is a local landmark at the city's most important intersection. It reflects the 1920s economic optimism and the rebuilding of downtown after the 1924 tornado. It is also the only building in the downtown built specifically for ground-floor storefronts with commercial offices above.","narrative":"Rising four stories at the corner of Erie Avenue and Broadway in downtown Lorain, this yellow brick office building measures 200 by 100 feet and was completed in 1926. Brick pilasters frame rows of windows, a crenelated cornice crowns the walls, and arched sandstone entrances lead to vaulted, marble-walled corridors. Cleveland architect Ernest McGeorge designed it for the Drummond-Miller Company, whose principals were also involved in the Argyle Company that bought the cleared site. The lot had been the home of the Old Reid House and later a commercial and lodge building destroyed by the 1924 tornado. The structure was planned with eleven storefronts and 78 offices, making it the largest office building in Lorain and the only downtown building designed for that mix. It symbolized the city's recovery and the optimism of the 1920s. Ground-floor alterations were made in the 1960s and 1970s, but the upper floors and massive scale retain the original character.","period_of_significance":"1900-","architect_builder":"Architect Ernest McGeorge, Cleveland; builder Drummond-Miller Co., Cleveland","architectural_style":"Classical lines, faced with yellow brick and stone trim","criteria":["A","C"],"status_note":"Occupied; occupancy has fallen to about one-half of the leasable space after downtown Lorain declined as a commercial center. Ground-floor windows were altered in 1967-68 and 1973, but the upper exterior is largely unchanged.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:53:14.754826-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_OH/85002833.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/85002833/0428ce366a-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/85002833/0428ce366a-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"Chris Light (talk)","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Broadway_Block_(SW_Erie_n_Washington)_P2160036.JPG\" rel=\"noopener\">Chris Light (talk)</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 3.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Broadway_Block_(SW_Erie_n_Washington)_P2160036.JPG"},"district":{"nrhp_refnum":"100007496","name":"Broadway Historic District","url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/districts/ohio/broadway-historic-district-100007496/"},"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/71989805","wikipedia":null,"wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q138508676"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/ohio/lorain-county/broadway-building-85002833/"}