December 2009

CHAPS NEWS
CITIZENS FOR HISTORIC AND PRESERVATION SERVICES
Communicating and Recording News about Local Preservation Efforts in Butler County
365 South B St., Hamilton, OH 45013-3365 513-863-1716
Vol. „09 Issue #5
www.butlerchaps.org
ISSN No. 383367-214
December, 2009
Middletown Theater Included in Demolition Project
A Central Avenue landmark since its construction in 1929,
the historic Studio Theater is set for demolition by the City of
Middletown. The city has plans to demolish nearly a half block
of downtown, including the Studio.
The Studio opened in 1929 as the Strand Theater. When it
closed in 1959, downtown still had two other theaters, the Colonial on Main and the Paramount on Broad. The Paramount
closed in 1963 and was demolished for the construction of the
City Center Mall parking garage. The Colonial was located in
the Sorg Opera House, making the Studio the last theater downtown originally constructed for motion pictures.
In 1964, the Strand reopened as the Studio Theater by Associated Theaters of Cincinnati. At that
time, the interior underwent extensive renovations and the marquee was modernized. The Studio operated
until 1984 and has been inconsistently occupied since.
The destruction of the Studio Theater will be a significant loss for Downtown Middletown. Not only
will the city lose an important piece of history and potential, but the Central Avenue streetscape will be
marked by another hole. While CHAPS acknowledges the economic limitations of a restoration project by
the city, there does not exist a pressing necessity to demolish the structure at this time. Reclaiming the
theater would offer a wonderful compliment to the city's plans to revitalize through the arts. In other cities
the size of Middletown, theaters have been restored for local theater groups. In Hamilton, the Civic Theater
recently completed the restoration of the Palace Theater by using funds from the Ohio Cultural Facilities
Commission.
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CHAPS
Niles Tool Works Remnant to Fall
In November, the City of Hamilton was awarded a grant from the Clean Ohio Brownfield Revitalization Fund to demolish one of the remaining portions of the Niles Tool Works complex located east of
North Third Street directly adjacent to the city‟s power plant. The city intends to reuse the property for a
carbon-neutral energy generation complex. While locating a new use and financing for restoration may
have not been feasible, the demolition offers an opportunity to consider potential for the reuse of other
former industrial sites in both Hamilton and Middletown. Middletown also secured a grant to demolish
the former Sutphin Wrenn Union Paper Mill, a property dating to the early 1850‟s.
Niles Tool Works moved to Hamilton in 1872 and manufactured an extensive line of machine tools
including lathes, planing machines, drilling machines, slotting machines, boring machines, and gear cutters. The company‟s first plant structure was located on the west side of North Third Street, between the
present day German Village and Black Street. In 1887, Niles extended across Third, erecting the first sections of the property that will be demolished as part of the grant. The firm erected an office building facing Third Street in 1919,
then part of a national
conglomerate known as
Niles-Bement-Pond with
an expansive export
business. Industrialist
George R ent schl er
merged Niles with
Hooven, Owens, Rentscler in 1928 to form the
General Machinery Corporation. A 1960 merger
resulted the relocation of
operations to Pennsylvania in 1961. Champion Paper then acquitted much of the complex
for warehousing.
A portion of the façade on the Niles property set for demolition
Niles offices completed in 1919;
date of demolition unconfirmed
Oldest part of Niles complex west of Third;
the towers have since been removed
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CHAPS
Middletown Approves
New Historic District
Annual Meeting Recap
CHAPS held its 26th Annual Meeting on October 17th. The program focused on the neighborhood
of Lindenwald and longtime resident Dick Schneid
offered a engaging presentation on the community‟s
past and present. CHAPS again presented Preservation Awards to two organizations: Three Valley
Conservation Trust for the protection of Butler
County agricultural land/open space and the West
Chester Township Trustees for the restoration of the
Station Road Schoolhouse. An award was given to
St. Anns Catholic Church, honoring their centennial
anniversary and service to the Lindenwald community. The tour of the Shuler-Benninghofen Woolen
Mill was postponed until summer and will be open
to all CHAPS members.
Riley Nearly Complete
The restoration of a home in the center of Reily
for the Reily Township Historical Society is nearly
complete. The exterior is gleaming with new paint.
CHAPS is pleased to report that Middletown
City Council officially approved the Highlands
Historic District as a local historic district. Located
directly west of the recently-demolished Middletown Regional Hospital, the neighborhood was the
highest point in Middletown when its original plat
was recorded in 1910. During the 1910‟s and 20‟s,
Middletown‟s elite constructed impressive mansions in the neighborhood. Many of the homes
built during this era reflect revival styles of older
American and European styles. The district does
contain a number of homes built after 1950, but
only 8 (12% of total properties) are less than 50
years old, which would disqualify them from being
contributing structures in a National Register nomination.
Residents began meeting two years ago to consider the historic district‟s creation and worked
with the City of Middletown‟s Planning Department to research the history and architecture of the
area. The district is generally bounded by Central
Ave. to the North, Sherman Ave. to the South,
Stanley St. to the West, and Florence St. to the
East. Application for National Register Historic
District status has not been made at this time, but
future areas have been suggested for possible expansion.
On December 6th, homeowners in the Highlands Historic District held their first bi-annual
Holiday Home Tour with great success.
A Highlands Historic District home designed by
George Barkman, a prominent Hamilton architect.
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