{"nrhp_refnum":"89002084","name":"Kingston Armory","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"280 Market St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Wilkes-Barre","county":"Luzerne County","state":"PA","lat":41.25286346850007,"lon":-75.89142446641142,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1989-12-21","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Military","Engineering","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["state"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A three-story Classical Revival armory of yellow brick with a U-shaped plan, located on a flat lot beside a park across the Susquehanna River from Wilkes-Barre, Luzerne County, Pennsylvania. It was built in 1923 for the 109th Field Artillery of the Pennsylvania National Guard.","why_significant":"The armory is significant under criteria A and C as a member of the State Armory Building property type in the Pennsylvania National Guard Armories multiple property nomination. Its unique U-shaped plan and the arched truss system spanning the drill hall, regarded as a representative example of technology for spanning wide spaces, support its listing. It was designed by Thomas H. Atherton of Wilkes-Barre, who designed at least seven armories in central Pennsylvania.","narrative":"Built in 1923 for the 109th Field Artillery of the Pennsylvania National Guard, the yellow brick armory in Wilkes-Barre has a U-shaped plan of three sections: an administration block, a drill hall, and stable wings extending behind it. Two-story arcades filled with metal casement windows run across the front and rear facades, and the drill hall has an arched monitor roof with clerestory windows. Its significance rests on its architecture and engineering. The arched truss system of the drill hall is regarded as a representative example of technology for spanning wide spaces, and the plan is considered unusual, with the building one of four large plans in Pennsylvania. The architect, Thomas H. Atherton of Wilkes-Barre, designed at least seven armories in central Pennsylvania between 1930 and 1938. Alterations include replaced windows and doors and an organizational maintenance shop added in the 1950s, though the building is still regarded as retaining good integrity.","period_of_significance":"1923-1939","architect_builder":"Atherton, Thomas H. (architect)","architectural_style":"Classical Revival","criteria":["A","C"],"status_note":"Integrity is described as good; original wood windows and doors on the front and rear facades were replaced with aluminum and glass, stables were converted to offices and storage, and an Organizational Maintenance Shop was added in the 1950s.","vacant_flag":null,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-haiku-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.1-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 17:11:36.745667-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_PA/89002084.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/89002084/c9bb0f3f65-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/89002084/c9bb0f3f65-1600.webp","licence":"CC0","author":"Smallbones","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Kingston_Armory_LuzCo_PA_3.JPG\" rel=\"noopener\">Smallbones</a>, <a href=\"http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/deed.en\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Kingston_Armory_LuzCo_PA_3.JPG"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/71993348","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kingston_Armory","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q6413457"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/pennsylvania/luzerne-county/kingston-armory-89002084/"}