Fountain Hotel
The Fountain Hotel is a historic former hotel in downtown St. Marys, Ohio, United States. Built in 1889 in a mixture of the Queen Anne and Victorian architectural styles, the hotel building sits in the 100 block of West Spring Street.[1]
The Fountain Hotel | |
 Front of the hotel | |
   | |
| Location | 100-110 W. Spring St., St. Marys, Ohio |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 40°32′34″N 84°23′20″W |
| Area | 0.3 acres (0.12 ha) |
| Built | 1889 |
| Architectural style | Late Victorian, Queen Anne |
| NRHP reference No. | 97001564[1] |
| Added to NRHP | December 19, 1997 |
Also known as the "Fort Barbee Hotel,"[1] the Fountain Hotel is a brick building that is built on a foundation of sandstone and covered with an asphalt roof.[2] On the first story, the facade is divided into multiple storefronts,[3] but the rest of the hotel has been converted into housing for low-income individuals aged fifty-five or older. Conversion to its present format was carried out by the Muskingum Development Corporation in the 1990s, at a cost of $2 million to $3 million; aid was provided by the Minster State Bank, which offered reduced interest rates to the redevelopers.[4]
Surrounding the Fountain Hotel are several other important community locations, such as the municipal building, the Buckeye Trail route along the Miami and Erie Canal, and a community park. Adjacent to the hotel is a small spring; once tapped to provide water for Fort St. Marys, which once occupied the location of the city's downtown, the spring was later converted into a fountain that became the hotel's namesake.[5]
In 1997, the Fountain Hotel was listed on the National Register of Historic Places.[1] Key to this designation was its place in local history and commerce, as it once played the role of a hotel, specialty store, and restaurant.[2] Two other properties in St. Marys are listed on the Register: the Dr. Issac Elmer Williams House and Office, built in 1903,[1] and the former Holy Rosary Catholic Church, which was destroyed one year before it was placed on the Register.[1][6]
References
- "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. March 13, 2009.
- Fountain Hotel, The, Ohio Historical Society, 2007. Accessed 2010-08-06.
- An Emergency Resolution Authorizing a Loan to the Community Improvement Corporation of the City of St. Marys for Fort Barbee Project Archived 2011-07-19 at the Wayback Machine, St. Marys, 2010. Accessed 2010-08-06.
- Community Reinvestment Act Performance Evaluation: Minster State Bank, Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland, 1997-12-15, 8. Accessed 2010-08-06.
- Pond, Robert J. Follow the Blue Blazes: A Guide to Hiking Ohio's Buckeye Trail. Columbus: Ohio State UP, 2003, 129.
- Shuffelton, Frank B. "Holy Rosary Catholic Church". Auglaize County Historical Society, ed. A History of Auglaize County Ohio. Defiance: Hubbard, 1980, 211-212.
