Washington Armory
Why it's listed
Brick armory in the Borough of Washington, built in 1915 for Company H, 10th Infantry of the Pennsylvania National Guard. Designed by the W.G. Wilkins Company of Pittsburgh in the Colonial Revival style, the building sits on a narrow lot and follows a T plan, with a two-story front administrative section joined to a larger, slightly sunken rear drill hall. A projecting center entrance bay with a stone-framed doorway and shallow arch marks the main facade, while the drill hall's sides are divided by brick buttresses into panels of paired six-over-six windows. Its interior drill hall has a wood floor and a ceiling carried on trussed rib arches. The building is significant as one of at least thirty-seven Pennsylvania armories laid out on a T plan, reflecting the state's organization of its National Guard armory building type. It was abandoned by the Commonwealth around 1968, leased to the Washington School District from 1970 to 1988, and returned to military use in 1989.
Significance in brief: The nomination argues the building is significant under criteria A and C as a member of the State Armory Building property type in the Pennsylvania National Guard Armories multiple property nomination. It is one of at least thirty-seven Pennsylvania armories laid out on a T plan. The form also describes the building as having very good integrity.
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 91000520, listed May 9, 1991. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-haiku-5-5, prompt v1.1-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | 76 W. Maiden St., Washington |
|---|---|
| County | Washington County |
| Listed | May 9, 1991 |
| Reference number | 91000520 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | 1915-1939 |
| Architect / builder | W.G. Wilkins Company of Pittsburgh (architect); W.M.T. Blair and Son (builder) |
| Architectural style | Colonial Revival |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Architecture, Military |
| Level of significance | State |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Abandoned by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania circa 1968, leased to the Washington School District from 1970 to 1988, and a National Guard unit was restationed there in April 1989; asbestos roof shingles were replaced with asphalt shingles. |
| Acreage | 0.9 |
| Within district | Washington Commercial Historic District |
| Coordinates | 40.16790, -80.24115 (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 91000520.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q7971660
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.