Each of the city’s National Register neighborhoods has its own personality. Architectural styles, vibrant paint colors and a sense of community combine into charming streetscapes.
“Every historic district is remarkably intact and you can discover stories about wonderful builders, makers and architects,” said Monica Snow, PDI president. “But more importantly you can learn about how thriving they are and what wonderful places they are to live today.”
Each tour can be accessed with a smart phone and most are designed to take a leisurely 90 minutes. An overview and map of the area is provided on the Preservation Dayton website.
Credit: Lisa Powell
Credit: Lisa Powell
Audio recordings provide instructions on where to begin the tour in each neighborhood and detailed and colorful narration for the walk. A written tour – including photos – can also be downloaded and printed out.
The walking tours are filled with details that will delight Dayton history buffs and architecture enthusiasts.
A tour through the Grafton Hill Historic District not only take visitors along a path of English Tudor, Craftsman and Prairie style homes but also to the spot of one of Dayton’s ingenious achievements.
A historical marker on Central Avenue commemorates the site where Col. Edward Deeds and the infamous Barn Gang gathered. Charles Kettering, part of the gang of innovators, developed the electric ignition and self-starter in Deed’s barn revolutionizing the auto industry.
Credit: Lisa Powell
Credit: Lisa Powell
A walk through the Oregon Historic District reveals intricate architectural details in the wrought iron fencing, windows and porches of the homes. In fact, the neighborhood, once comprised of mainly German-speaking immigrants who arrived by canal boat, became the home of many of Dayton’s early prosperous homeowners.
The McPherson Town Historic District was one of Dayton’s first suburbs and is known for high style, Folk Victorian and Queen Anne architecture.
Flood water rose to the second floors of the homes in 1913 and today homeowners still find dried “flood mud” in the walls during renovations.
Preservation Dayton ensured the tours were not just about buildings but also about people.
Visitors to the Wright-Dunbar Village Historic District will learn about Mary Ellington, Dayton attorney Sam Caras and Jerry Sharkey who worked to preserve Dayton’s aviation history and the Wright brothers neighborhood.
“The historic legacy of our architecture is absolutely irreplaceable but the stories about our preservation leaders who advocated for and took risks early on were added in almost all the tours,” Snow said.
Credit: Tom Gilliam
Credit: Tom Gilliam
Preservation Dayton spent nearly two years developing the audio tours with funding from a City of Dayton Mini-grant. The organization plans to add more historic neighborhoods in the future.
Snow said the tours are great for evening walks or weekend stay-at-home getaways.
“Our architecture is so diverse because every neighborhood was created at slightly different times,” Snow said. “You’re not going to be bored because there’s such a nice mix.”
The downloadable walking tours can be found here. More information about Preservation Dayton can be found here.
WALKING TOURS
Dayton View Historic District
Five Oaks Historic Districts
Grafton Hill Historic District
Huffman Historic District
McPherson Town Historic District
Oregon Historic District
South Park Historic District
St. Anne’s Hill Historic District
West Third Street Historic District
Wright-Dunbar Village Historic District
Paul Laurence Dunbar Historic District
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