Jefferson Town Hall
Why it's listed
Jefferson Town Hall, at 27 East Jefferson Street, is a one-story stuccoed brick building with round-arched openings, a low hip roof covered in red tile, and a projecting entrance vestibule. It is what remains of a two-and-a-half story Second Empire hall built between 1877 and 1880 by John Waters for $12,000. That building held a second-floor auditorium used for lectures, meetings and plays. Fire destroyed the upper floors on November 10, 1927. Cleveland architects J. Ellsworth Potter and Henry Gabele redesigned the surviving first story, and the council authorized $13,500 for a "Spanish-effect" look. The first council meeting in the rebuilt hall took place on November 2, 1929. The building is considered locally significant because it has housed town and village government continuously since 1880. Its lease from the township trustees in 1928 also reflects the shift from township to village government. Residents still associate it with lectures given there by William Jennings Bryan and others.
Significance in brief: The nomination argues the building is locally significant as the seat of town and village government continuously since 1880. It also illustrates the shift from township to village government, since the village leased the lot from the township trustees in 1928. It is also remembered locally for the lectures held in its former second-floor auditorium.
Machine-generated summary. This summary was generated by a language model from the official nomination document and has not been reviewed line by line by an editor. It may contain errors. Check the source document before relying on any detail. Source: nomination document (PDF) · National Archives catalog entry. NRHP reference 81000428, listed June 18, 1981. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | 27 E. Jefferson St., Jefferson |
|---|---|
| County | Ashtabula County |
| Listed | June 18, 1981 |
| Reference number | 81000428 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | 1900- |
| Architect / builder | John Waters; Potter and Gabele |
| Architectural style | Spanish Colonial Revival (rebuilt remnant of a Second Empire building) |
| Areas of significance | Politics/Government |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Occupied and in excellent condition, though altered; the upper stories were lost to fire in 1927 and the first story was rebuilt in 1929. Owned by the Village of Jefferson and used as a government building. |
| Acreage | 0.9 |
| Coordinates | 41.73868, -80.76796 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
For a publicly owned building or structure, listing mainly matters when federal funds, permits or licences are involved: projects then go through Section 106 review so effects on the property are considered. Listing also strengthens applications for preservation grants and, for leased income-producing uses, can enable the federal rehabilitation tax credit.
General information, not legal or tax advice. Rules change; confirm with your State Historic Preservation Office or a qualified adviser.
Sources and further reading
- National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places database (snapshot May 2026), reference 81000428.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikidata Q137599189
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.