{"nrhp_refnum":"96000927","name":"Piqua High School","other_names":["Piqua Central High School"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"316 N. College St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Piqua","county":"Miami County","state":"OH","lat":40.14893086700005,"lon":-84.24900714499995,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1996-08-22","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture","Education"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"Piqua High School is a three-story brick and limestone school building at 316 North College Street in Piqua, Miami County, Ohio, built in 1914 with additions from 1951 and 1965.","why_significant":"The nomination argues it reflects broad trends in Ohio public education in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, as a local response in one city. It also embodies the type and period of the early 20th century urban public high school and retains a high level of integrity. It was the only surviving historic building in Piqua constructed as a high school.","narrative":"Piqua High School is a large educational complex on North College Street in Piqua, Ohio, just west of downtown. The original three-story school opened in September 1914, designed by the Columbus firm Harvard and Merriam. Its buff brick walls, limestone and terra cotta trim, and rusticated ground floor combine Neo-Classical Revival and Second Renaissance Revival influences. Inside, a tall auditorium with a coffered ceiling, paired pilasters and a serpentine balcony front is the standout space. Additions in 1951 and 1965 added shops, music space, a library and lunch facilities while leaving most of the original building intact. The school was listed for its place in the growth of public high school education in Ohio and as a representative early twentieth century urban high school. It offered an auditorium, gymnasium and vocational training, unlike earlier Piqua schools, and local residents saw it as a symbol of civic progress. A newer high school replaced it in 1981, and it is now vacant.","period_of_significance":"1914-1945","architect_builder":"Harvard and Merriam, Columbus, Ohio","architectural_style":"Mixed: Neo-Classical Revival, Second Renaissance Revival; Miesian for 1965 addition","criteria":["A","C"],"status_note":"Current function listed as vacant/not in use; the school was replaced by a new high school opened in 1981.","vacant_flag":true,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:52:07.504634-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_OH/96000927.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/96000927/e1adbf1b39-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/96000927/e1adbf1b39-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Nyttend","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Old_Piqua_High_School.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Nyttend</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Old_Piqua_High_School.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/71990317","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Old_Piqua_High_School","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q7084738"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/ohio/miami-county/piqua-high-school-96000927/"}