Downtown
District
Masonic Temple
Grunnel Building
Post Office
Hamilton Building
Thomas Building
Old Library |
The Downtown Historic District is significant for its portrayal of the economic
growth and development of the city, and for its architecture as a showcase
of late 19th and early 20th century commercial styles. Historically, during
the late 19th century, Hagerstown became a leading manufacturing city and
a rail center in Maryland. This resulted in a great population growth and
a commercial boom period that occurred between 1880 and 1920. This economic
boom is reflected in the almost total redevelopment and transformation of
the downtown commercial area during that period. Large hotels catering to
rail and automobile travelers were built and commercial establishments were
either remodeled or newly built to reflect the prosperity. Nearly all of
the buildings are representative of popular commercial styles of the turn
of the century. The favored architectural expression was the Italianate
style consisting of two and three story buildings with prominent bracketed
cornices; elaborate Baroque and Neoclassical forms associated with the Beaux
Arts style; and a very simple early 20th century commercial style featuring
strongly rectilinear forms. Pivotal buildings in the district are the Washington
County Court House and the Hagerstown City Hall which helped to establish
the direction of commercial growth along West Washington and North Potomac
Streets.
Significant historic resources in the district include the Maryland Theatre,
First Hose Fire Company, Colonial Theater, Masonic Temple, Barnwood Books
Building, St. John's Lutheran Church, Kohler Building, Baldwin House,
Routzahn's Department Store Building, Delta Building, the Courthouse,
the Miller House, Kneisley Building, the Old Library, the Roslyn, 119
N. Potomac Street, the Pioneer Hook & Ladder Firehouse, the Knights
of Pythias Castle, the Post Office, Grunnell Building, Wolf Building,
and Thomas Building.
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