{"nrhp_refnum":"87000686","name":"Valentine Theater Building","other_names":["Renaissance Building"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"405--419 Saint Clair and 402--412 Adams","address_restricted":false,"city":"Toledo","county":"Lucas County","state":"OH","lat":41.65315574700003,"lon":-83.53333695699996,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1987-05-19","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A four-story yellow brick commercial and theater building at 405-419 St. Clair and 402-412 Adams Streets in Toledo, Lucas County, Ohio, built in 1892 (completed 1895) and designed by local architect Edward Oscar Fallis.","why_significant":"The nomination argues it is a significant example of turn-of-the-century commercial architecture and of Toledo's shift toward taller buildings, and the work of prominent architect E.O. Fallis. It contains Toledo's oldest remaining theater, with a cantilevered balcony unique in the city in 1895 and a 1942 Rapp and Rapp Chinese-themed redecoration. It is also an early example of mixed use, combining a theater, city offices and later a hotel.","narrative":"Occupying nearly half a city block in downtown Toledo, this four-story yellow brick building combined a large theater with offices. Edward Oscar Fallis designed it for businessman George Ketcham, who named it for his father, Valentine Ketcham. The theater opened on Christmas Eve 1895. Its cantilevered balcony gave unobstructed stage views, and its stage was reported to be the largest between New York and Chicago. The upper floors served as Toledo's city hall until the 1920s, housing mayors Samuel Jones and Brand Whitlock, and were converted to a hotel in 1936. In 1942 Rapp and Rapp redecorated the interior in a modernistic Chinese theme, and the first-floor storefronts received a Tudor Style remodeling. The building is considered Toledo's oldest remaining theater and a good example of early mixed use. The city bought it in 1976 and left it vacant in 1983. Its exterior remains in good condition.","period_of_significance":"1892-1895/1942","architect_builder":"Edward Oscar Fallis","architectural_style":"Late 19th-century commercial style with terra cotta detailing; first floor remodeled in Tudor Style (1942); interior in modernistic Chinese theme (1942)","criteria":["C"],"status_note":"Vacant since 1983; exterior in good condition and theater and commercial interiors in fair condition.","vacant_flag":true,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:53:15.103362-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_OH/87000686.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/87000686/5b0c9e91a9-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/87000686/5b0c9e91a9-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"Smithr1981 (talk)","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:ValentineTheatre.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Smithr1981 (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:ValentineTheatre.jpg"},"district":{"nrhp_refnum":"100007510","name":"Toledo Central Business Historic District","url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/districts/ohio/toledo-central-business-historic-district-100007510/"},"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/71989895","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Valentine_Theatre","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q7911022"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/ohio/lucas-county/valentine-theater-building-87000686/"}