Stanley Block
Also known as: Cuy-119-1
Why it's listed
Located one block from Public Square in downtown Cleveland, the Stanley Block is a four-story Italianate commercial building with a plain, nine-bay facade of smooth dressed ashlar stone. Segmental-arch windows, a stringcourse at each story and a modest bracketed cornice with the name STANLEY in relief complete the front. Businessman George A. Stanley built it between 1874 and 1878, and an 1878 map shows a hall on the fourth floor, offices on the second and a store at street level. James Jared Tracy bought it in 1882, and his family kept it until 1967. The ground floor has been heavily altered, but the upper floors retain original woodwork, hardwood floors, a pressed-tin ceiling, cast-iron columns and early stenciling and wallpaper. The building is one of only two stone commercial facades in downtown Cleveland from the third quarter of the nineteenth century, and a local historian called it an architectural rarity.
Significance in brief: The building is one of only two stone commercial facades in downtown Cleveland from the third quarter of the nineteenth century. Its upper floors keep an almost unaltered late-nineteenth-century commercial interior, including a fourth-floor social hall. It is significant for its architecture and for its role in the commercial development of downtown Cleveland.
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 94000591, listed April 27, 2011. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | 2115--2121 Ontario St., Cleveland |
|---|---|
| County | Cuyahoga County |
| Listed | April 27, 2011 |
| Reference number | 94000591 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | ca. 1875-1944 |
| Architect / builder | unknown |
| Architectural style | Late Victorian/Italianate |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Commerce, Architecture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Ground floor holds law offices and a bridal shop; the upper floors are vacant. The fourth-floor social hall has some water damage and its ceiling is stabilized with wooden posts. |
| Acreage | 0.9 |
| Within district | Euclid Avenue Historic District |
| Coordinates | 41.49787, -81.69161 (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.
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 94000591.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.