Edgerton isn't all that different from Pioneer, Ohio not too far away (well, it's a little better/bigger). Anyway, I wouldn't be doing an Edgerton thread if they were not preparing to close the corpse on the village with demolition of its main landmark--the historic town hall and opera house. Preservation Ohio has recognized the building as one of Ohio's Most Endangered Sites for 2008.

 

From preservationohio.org:

 

Edgerton Village Hall and Park Opera House

Edgerton, Williams County

 

On May 9, 1884, a contract was signed under a joint venture of the Village of Edgerton and St. Joseph Township Trustees to begin construction of the Village Hall and Park Opera House for the lowest bid of $7,998.  The hall has been at the center of community life for well over a century.  The Park Opera House included a stage and three arched balconies of polished oak, and was used for concerts, plays, elections, lectures, commencements, dances, basketball and WWII storage of cots and medical supplies.  The "writings on the wall" behind the ticket booth are autographs of performers and lecturers from the late 1890s through the early 1920s.

 

In 1978, the first floor was remodeled and contains the offices of the utility and tax clerks, the Village Treasurer, the Village Administrator and council chambers.  The police station is also housed on the first floor.  The opera house has been closed for us since the 1950s.

 

Over the last thirty years, neglect has caused deterioration of the opera house.  The roof has needed replacement causing ceiling damage, the bell tower roof blew off in a storm several years ago and has never been replaced, and some exterior bricks have deteriorated from neglect.  The building is still determined, however, to be structurally sound by engineers and architects.

 

In the Fall of 2006, Village Council discussed tearing down the Village Hall, and letters written to the local newspaper helped cause Council to reverse their decision.  In February of 2007, the Council again discussed demolition, and hired a consulting firm to present estimates for a renovated hall with additions and a new building that would necessitate demolition.  On February 4, 2008, Council voted to proceed with demolition by a tie vote of 3 to 3, with the Mayor breaking the tie in favor of demolition.  Since that time, Village officials have said that the "issue is closed" and "...the Village Hall is coming down."

 

Since that vote, there has been an ongoing effort on behalf of many in the community to advocate for preservation.  In a village of just 2,000 people, over 600 signatures have been collected on petitions, and pledges totalling over $20,000 have been received.  A local businessman collected over 60 signatures of local businesses on a statement advocating the adaptive reuse of the building, and stating that that project would influence their "...plans for future expansion in the village."  The statement is signed by two banks, the local hospital, professionals and many local businesses.

 

As of this date, the main page of the Village of Edgerton website proudly displays a picture of the Village Hall.  Even the Village realizes, therefore, that this building is a civic icon that is important to the character, marketing and economic development of its community.  Preservation Ohio supports the work of any and all in Edgerton working in a positive way to secure a future for this irreplaceable part of local history and culture.

 

http://ohiosmostendangered2008.squarespace.com/edgerton-village-hall/

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A shame. The National Register of Historic Places is utterly worthless. I really don't know why it even exists. Cute enough  little town though.

Is the VW Van precious or what??

Wh...er...e?

I like how that one Windmill sign is stenciled.  It has a ma-and-pa feel to it.

 

Another great set, ink!

I'd hate to see that village hall demolished.

 

Folks in farm country often don't have a strong sense of historic value and preservation. They'll inherit the house that great-grandpa built in the 1880s on the family homestead, strip all the decorative features inside and out, replace the tall, graceful two-over-two windows with tiny double-glazed ones, maybe a few with arches if they're feeling extravagant, and run the vinyl siding right up to the edges with j-channel and no trim. A dash of faux brick or stone veneer here and there will add character.

 

Then they'll gut the interior and replace the quarter-sawn oak woodwork with mouldings from Menard's and bury the random-width locally-milled hardwood floors with wall-to-wall deep-pile earth-tone carpet and furnish it with faux colonial stuff and get a full-page write-up in the local paper and maybe even a photo feature in a regional farm publication, about how they honored great-grandpa and brought a family heirloom into the 21st century, inspiring others to follow suit.

 

Welcome to the 1960s.

Mark Twain or HL Mencken would really appreciate that rant.  :clap:

Rob, you are spot on with that narrative. My Uncle Bill had an old farmhouse in the 60s that he remodeled, and it made the local paper.  Knotty pine paneling throughout the first floor, new linoleum over the hardwood (so  much easier to clean), and he boxed in the stairway so my aunt wouldn't have to dust between the balustrades.  Efficiency. Luckily they didn't do anything to the outside of the farm house, so it was a wonderful dark brown shingle monstrosity with white trim and original glass windows.  Oh, and they brought the plumbing indoors--BIG improvement, especially in the winter.

It is a real shame that the town hall is being ripped down.  Ohio looses yet another piece of its history.  Just pray it doesn't become 1. a surface parking lot; 2. an overgrown vacant lot; 3. or the worst--a McDonalds!

 

Wh...er...e?

 

Pretty much as far northwest you can get in Ohio.  it is the last (western) exit on the Turnpike just past Bryan, Ohio.

Severe weather has destroyed the old village hall, dating to the 1880s and several other buildings are damaged.

 

http://www.portclintonnewsherald.com/article/20100624/UPDATES01/100624002

What has happened to the Village Hall makes me sick.  The mayor and town council members should be happy now, their dream of a town without this wonderful historical building has finally been realized.  They fought the purchase and renovation of the building every step of the way, and are still resisting the rescue of historical documents that are waiting to be saved from within the building.  Like I said....the whole situation makes me sick. 

Must be sad for this small town to lose a landmark building in its downtown.  The Toledo Blade article below has a picture and video of the building after the storm.  There was an opera house inside the building.

 

 

http://toledoblade.com/article/20100625/NEWS16/6250352

 

 

 

Oh wow, I hadn't heard about the storm damage.  I know Edgerton very well.  My mother grew up there and my grandparents still live there.  I was just in town less than a month ago.  It will be strange to go there in the future and not see this building anymore.  I can remember as a child my mother taking me to the town's summer festival where they would have some carnival rides, festival food stands, and games set up on the grounds around the town hall.  And considering it's one of the most noteworthy buildings in the town (the most noteworthy probably being the beautiful Catholic church), it will be an unfortunate loss.  I'll have to ask my grandparents about it the next time I see them.

A shame. The National Register of Historic Places is utterly worthless. I really don't know why it even exists. Cute enough  little town though.

 

The National Register determines which properties are eligible for federal rehabilitation tax credits (20% of rehabs), so I would not say it is useless.

Not if the owner wants to demolish it, but in this case that's a moot point.