{"nrhp_refnum":"91001581","name":"St. Adalbert Polish Catholic Church","other_names":["St. Adalbert Parochial School"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"1511 Valley St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Dayton","county":"Montgomery County","state":"OH","lat":39.78366738900007,"lon":-84.15608191099994,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1991-11-07","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture","Religion","Other-Ethnic"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A brick combination church, school and rectory/convent building at 1511 Valley Street in Dayton, Montgomery County, Ohio, built in 1904-1905 and designed by Frank Sutter for Dayton's Polish Catholic parish.","why_significant":"It is the best reminder of Polish immigration into Dayton in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries and the oldest Eastern European ethnic parish in the city. It is also the only Polish parish remaining in the Archdiocese of Cincinnati. Architecturally it represents a common church type with the sanctuary above a schoolroom, mixing Romanesque and classical influences, and it retains a high level of integrity.","narrative":"Built in 1904-1905 on Valley Street in Dayton, this brick building combined a church, parochial school and rectory/convent under one roof. Designed by Frank Sutter, it has a two-story front section with square towers topped by eight-sided belfries, a rose window, and a rear three-story section that housed the priest and later the teaching sisters. The sanctuary occupied the second floor above classrooms, a common arrangement for churches of the period. The parish was established in 1903 to serve Polish immigrants who came to work in the city's foundries and factories. The school taught in Polish in the mornings and English in the afternoons, and parish societies kept language and customs alive. It is the oldest Eastern European ethnic parish in Dayton and the only Polish parish left in the Archdiocese of Cincinnati. A newer church was added in 1966, and the original building now serves as the church hall.","period_of_significance":"1904-1941","architect_builder":"Frank Sutter","architectural_style":"Late nineteenth & twentieth centuries/Classical Revival (described in the text as Romanesque Revival and vernacular with classical influences)","criteria":["A","C"],"status_note":"The 1904-1905 building is now used as the church hall after a new church was built behind it in 1966; the second-story sanctuary has suffered from age and falling plaster, and the congregation is planning rehabilitation.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:53:14.307605-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_OH/91001581.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/91001581/8bf1638d9c-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/91001581/8bf1638d9c-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"Wdzinc","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:St._Adalbert_Polish_Catholic_Church.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Wdzinc</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:St._Adalbert_Polish_Catholic_Church.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/71985935","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St._Adalbert_Polish_Catholic_Church","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q7586688"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/ohio/montgomery-county/st-adalbert-polish-catholic-church-91001581/"}