Globe Iron Works Building
Also known as: American Ship Building Company Building; Cuy-2922-3
Why it's listed
Built around 1890 in Cleveland's industrial Flats, this four-story L-shaped brick building at Center Street and Spruce Avenue housed the engine works of the Globe Iron Works Company, which made steam engines for Great Lakes vessels. It has red-orange brick street facades, segmental arched windows with stone lintels, a modest corbelled cornice and a wood post, beam and joist interior. The site was close to the Cuyahoga River, Lake Erie, railroads and supplier industries. Globe built the Onoko, the first compartmentalized iron-hulled freighter on the Lakes, in 1882 and the steel-hulled Spokane in 1886. In 1899 the firm merged into the American Ship Building Company, which used this building as a pattern shop and engine plant. Later tenants included makers of storm windows and cleaning chemicals. It was listed for its role in Cleveland's industrial and shipping history. The building has been empty since the late 1980s and has lost much of its original window and ground-floor detail.
Significance in brief: The building is significant under Criterion A in the area of industry. It played a prominent role in Cleveland's growth as an industrial city in the late 19th century and in the history of Great Lakes shipping. Steam engines for lake vessels were built here, close to the river, dry docks and suppliers.
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 94000245, listed March 17, 1994. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | 2320 Center St., Cleveland |
|---|---|
| County | Cuyahoga County |
| Listed | March 17, 1994 |
| Reference number | 94000245 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | ca. 1890-1942 |
| Architectural style | Late 19th Century Functional Industrial Building |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Industry |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Vacant since Hadco Corporation left in the late 1980s; windows are covered with plywood and the ground-floor arched openings stand empty or have been filled in. |
| Acreage | 0.9 |
| Coordinates | 41.49587, -81.70861 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
For an income-producing building, listing (individually or as a contributing building in a district) is the gateway to the 20% federal rehabilitation tax credit on qualified rehabilitation costs, often stackable with state credits. Work claiming the credit must follow the Secretary of the Interior's Standards and be approved in advance.
Listing does not restrict a private owner acting without federal money or permits; where federal funding or licensing is involved, Section 106 review applies.
Noted as vacant in the nomination. Nomination documents can be decades old; current status may differ. If you are considering buying an empty listed property, read the due-diligence checklist.
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 94000245.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikidata Q137711788
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.