Dunbar Historic District

Three blocks of North Summit Street in Dayton, Ohio, along with a few buildings on nearby West First and West Second Streets, make up a small district built around the Paul Laurence Dunbar House. The buildings date largely from the last quarter of the nineteenth century. Most are brick houses in the High Victorian Italianate style, with rockfaced stone foundations, bracketed box cornices, polygonal bays and decorated metal window caps. At least one is a frame Eastlake house, described as the best preserved in the district. Several have wrought or cast iron fences. The district was drawn to give the Dunbar House, home of the celebrated Black poet, an architectural setting that helps visitors understand it. Nearby demolition and heavy renovation had damaged the surrounding historic character, so the boundaries include only the remaining buildings that contribute. Dunbar was born in Dayton in 1872 and gained national attention for his poetry. The nomination links the district to literature and to the social history of his career.