{"nrhp_refnum":"90002212","name":"Soldiers Memorial Parkway and McKinley Memorial Parkway","other_names":[],"category":"site","location":{"address":"Soldiers Memorial Pkwy. and McKinley Memorial Pkwy.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Fremont","county":"Sandusky County","state":"OH","lat":41.34123226500006,"lon":-83.13339112882011,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1991-01-25","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Community Planning and Development","Landscape Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A cruciform pair of landscaped brick parkways in Fremont, Sandusky County, Ohio, built in 1919-1920 as a memorial to county war dead. The Soldiers Memorial Parkway runs about four blocks and is crossed by the McKinley Memorial Parkway.","why_significant":"The nomination argues local significance under Criterion A because a local committee and civic leaders organized the project, reflecting community participation typical of City Beautiful civic efforts. It also qualifies under Criterion C for its formal axial plan, its use as transportation corridors and its date of construction, which place it in the City Beautiful context. It honors 85 Sandusky County soldiers of the 37th Ohio Division killed in World War I, and may be among the first memorials of its kind.","narrative":"Two intersecting landscaped streets in Fremont, Ohio, form a cross-shaped memorial to Sandusky County's war dead. The Soldiers Memorial Parkway runs about a third of a mile, with brick lanes and sandstone curbs flanking grass islands lined with horsechestnut trees. The McKinley Memorial Parkway crosses it and runs east toward Spiegel Grove. Built in 1919 and 1920 to plans by county surveyor L. H. Wismer, the project began when Colonel Webb Hayes and a citizens committee decided that a living memorial would honor individual soldiers better than a bronze tablet. Eighty-five trees were planted for World War I dead, each originally labeled with a soldier's details. County, state and city funds supported construction, and the parkways opened in March 1921. The nomination places the design within the City Beautiful Movement and notes that it may be the first memorial of its kind. Today the shaded, brick-paved streets still serve a residential neighborhood.","period_of_significance":"1918-1920","architect_builder":"L. H. Wismer, Surveyor","architectural_style":"Other: City Beautiful Movement","criteria":["A","C"],"status_note":"Still serves as residential streets with mature trees and brick paving. Some trees have died and been replaced, and the original memorial tree plates were removed.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:53:14.176058-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_OH/90002212.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/90002212/4dd5d65823-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/90002212/4dd5d65823-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Nyttend","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:McKinley_Memorial_Parkway_in_Fremont.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Nyttend</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:McKinley_Memorial_Parkway_in_Fremont.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/71991236","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soldiers_and_McKinley_Memorial_Parkways","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q7557401"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/ohio/sandusky-county/soldiers-memorial-parkway-and-mckinley-memorial-parkway-90002212/"}