Tour of Downtown Toledo
Downtown Main Library
A black and white photograph of workers from the Willis Day Storage Company as they load boxes from their van on a conveyor belt to go into the new Main Library in Downtown Toledo. Each box held a shelf of books. The building across the street on the left is the Soldier's Memorial Building, now demolished. The new library opened to the public in September of 1940.
Libbey-Owens-Ford Building
A black and white photograph of the exterior plaza on the northwest corner of the Libbey-Owens-Ford Building in Downtown Toledo, Ohio. 5 1/2 feet by 20 feet half-inch polished plate windows line the ground lobby walls. Built in 1959 by LOF, the fifteen-story building was purchased by Hylant and renamed the Hylant Building in 2004. Photograph was taken by Hedrich-Blessing of Chicago shortly after construction of the building was completed.
Meredith Building
A black and white photograph of the Meredith Building on Michigan Street in Toledo. The 19th Century Commercial Style building was built in 1892 for the Central Chandelier Company. In 1906 it was renamed the Meredith Building and it endured changes of ownership and tenants as well as names. In 1947, the building became the Franklin Building and in 1956, the Port Lawrence Building. The building was nominated by Eric Johannesen for the National Register of Historic Places in August of 1970. Photo was taken by Tom Deupree in 1970. The building has since been demolished.
Monroe Bar
A black and white snapshot of the Monroe Bar on the corner of Monroe and Michigan Streets in downtown Toledo, Ohio. Building has since been demolished. Photo was taken by Howard MacKenzie in June of 1972.
Ontario and Monroe Street
A black and white snapshot of Ontario Street at Monroe Street in downtown Toledo, Ohio. Visible are the Continental Trailways Bus Terminal and the Arbuckle and Ryan Building. The Arbuckle and Ryan Building has since been demolished. The photo was taken by Howard MacKenzie in July of 1963.
Shaw and Kilduff Company Building
The Shaw and Kilduff Company, at 610 Monroe Street in downtown Toledo.
Seagate Convention Centre
A black and white snapshot of the Seagate Convention Centre in downtown Toledo, Ohio during construction. Photo was taken from the Monroe Street side of the building looking straight down St. Clair. The convention center opened in March of 1987. Photo was taken by Russ Haudan around 1986.
101 to 105 Summit Street
This black and white photograph was included in a report written by the J. F. Rupert & Company, a real property counselling firm from Toledo, Ohio. The report was commissioned by the city of Toledo to provide a preliminary appraisal of the fair market value of 21 parcels of real estate located in the Riverview Urban Renewal Project area, which comprises three blocks near the center of Downtown Toledo. The report, "Preliminary Appraisal of Parcels of Real Estate in the 'Riverview' Urban Renewal Project", was submitted in June of 1964. This photo shows the buildings at 101 to 105 Summit Street. The building, deemed in "poor condition" by the appraiser, has since been demolished.
Holiday Inn Hotel
A black and white photograph of a large crane at work on top of the Holiday Inn Hotel in downtown Toledo, Ohio. The hotel, built in 1969 and opened in 1970, was the first new hotel built downtown in nearly 40 years. The hotel was later sold by Holiday Inn and renamed Hotel Seagate. In 2019, the gutted building awaits renovation.
Federal Office Building
An architects' concept for the new Federal Office Building in Toledo, Ohio. The Federal Building, designed by architects, Bellman, Gillett & Richards, opened in 1962 on Summit Street in downtown Toledo. The building was demolished in 2001. After demolition the property became part of Promenade Park.
Tiedtke Building
A black and white photo taken in September of 1936 of the businesses in the Tiedtke Building at the corner of Adams and Summit Streets in Toledo, Ohio, with the Tiedtke's Toys sign displayed prominently at the corner. The Tiedtke Brothers Department Store was known for the quantity and quality of its merchandise thus making it a popular place to shop for Christmas. The photo was taken by Milton Zink.
Tiedtke's Annex
A black and white photograph of a man using a bulldozer to pick up rubble from the demolition of Tiedtke's annex in October of 1974. The building was first occupied in 1881 and Tiedtke's brought the property in 1955. Tiedtke's closed the building, located on the corner of Adams and Summit Streets, in February of 1972 and the city of Toledo brought the building with Federal Urban Development funds in May of 1974.
Pedestrian Mall
A downtown pedestrian mall between St. Clair Street and Huron Streets in the 1960s.
Paramount Theatre
Located on the corner of Adams Street and Huron Street. The Paramount Theatre opened on February 16, 1929 and it was closed as a regular movie theatre on November 5, 1960 and was converted into a Cinerama theatre. It was closed on November 3, 1963 with “How the West Was Won”. The Toledo Paramount Theatre was demolished in September 1965. The site is now used for car parking.
County Courthouse
A black and white photograph of the Lucas County Courthouse on Adams Street in downtown Toledo, Ohio. The courthouse, built in 1897, was designed by David L. Stine. The photo is undated but includes the original fountain in front of the building which was later replaced with a monument to President McKinley. The funds for the monument were raised in 1901, thus this photograph was taken between the late 1890s and early 1900s.