Maysville Kentucky - Continued

Continuing with our October road trip with more sights and history from Maysville Kentucky.  This city is loaded with historic structure and my camera was at the ready as we wandered...or shopped...through town.

This is the Russell Theater.  Located at 9 East 3rd Street, it was completed by Col. J. Russell Barbour in 1930.  Construction costs totaled $125,000 and the first movie shown was "Whoopee!" starring Eddie Cantor.  The site occupied by the theater was previously home for wholesale grocery warehousing.  The exterior architectural style is Spanish-Moorish Revival.  Constructed as a movie theater, Col. Russell did provide dressing rooms for live performers as well as an orchestra pit.  

In 1935 another company took over the theater.  In 1953, the Russell Theater was the site of the world premier of "The Stars Are Singing", starring Rosemary Clooney.  In the early 1970s another group took over the theater and they operated it until 1983.  For a number of years it served as a restaurant, a used furniture store and a used clothing store before it closed.  After it was abandoned, high winds ripped off a section of the roof.  Since repairs weren't immediate the interior plaster work was extensively damaged.  Restoration is underway, tours are offered and the theater is open for movies on weekends from May through October.

Note: Rosemary Clooney was raised in nearby Augusta Kentucky and her nephew George Clooney grew up there.  A mural of Rosemary Clooney is featured on Maysville's flood wall.

This is a miniature model of what the interior of the Russell Theater looked like originally.  It was what was termed as an 'atmospheric' theater.  Atmospheric theaters were a movie palace design that was popular in the late 1920s.  They were meant to evoke a feeling of a time and place for theater goers, using architectural elements, ornamentation and projectors.  

The Russell auditorium was decorated as a Mediterranean garden with Lombardy poplars and literary busts set in wall niches.  At the end of the movie, a rainbow would appear over the stage.  The renovation continues... To learn more just go to https://www.russelltheatre.org/.

I've included these photos just to contrast Maysville's 2nd Street as it appears now as compared to a photo/postcard from ca. 1900.  I'm basing that early date on that very primitive automobile shown on the postcard.  Note the trolley tracks and the matching electrical power line right above them.  I'm guessing that the street was paved with bricks but its hard to be certain based on the picture.

Part of the Maysville Downtown Historic District, this is the Nelson Building.  It consists of two storefronts sharing a 'party wall', thereby creating 2 major bays.  The upper floors would have once been professional office space or apartments.  The huge Roman arched windows and the belt courses of stone indicate a Richardson-Romanesque influence.

One store front, at 9 West 2nd Street, is occupied by the Sprinkles and Hope Bakery and Deli, which trains and employs people with disabilities.  The bakery/deli offers cupcakes, cookies, breakfast sandwiches, salads and ice cream.  At 11 West 2nd Street, that second storefront, based on recent information on the Internet, one can imbibe at Kenton - "Stores with a Spirit".  They offer books, an art gallery, coffees, liquor and an interesting menu for its guests.

This handsome 3 story structure at 38 West 2nd Street in Maysville began life in 1871 as the Pierce and Wallingford Bank.  I was unable to learn anything about the bank company but I did find this company bank check for sale on eBay. (Asking price - $398.98!) Given the date on the check, (1867), its a fair guess that the bank was operating somewhere else before it opened its doors in Maysville.  The building is now known as the Hay House and it's a gift shop that specializes in greeting cards, gift wrap, ornaments and a variety of gifts for any occasion.  

The Maysville Downtown Historic District is about 4.5 blocks long and 2 to 2.5 blocks wide.  When the National Register for Historic Places application was completed in 1982, the area contained 155 buildings, a cemetery and a sculpture.  62% of the structures were commercial and 28% were residential.  The other 10% of the historic district included 5 churches, 2 theaters, a high school complex, a library, a museum and 5 governmental buildings.  87% of the buildings were built before 1930 and 92% were brick.  The first floor occupancy rate was 98%.

This is the Cox Building.  It's located at 2 East 3rd Street in Maysville.  I borrowed this photo of the building from the Internet as it was so much better than the picture I took... Construction of this Richardson-Romanesque style building began in 1886 and it was completed in 1887.  The tower at the corner, the large dormer-type windows on the 4th floor, the distinctive chimneys, curved windows and that big circular stained glass window, all combine to grab one's attention.  

The building was designed to accommodate 3 large storefronts on the ground floor with appropriate storage space for the stores on the second floor.  Up to 9 tenants could occupy the upscale professional office space on the rest of the second floor.  Originally the Cox Building was a 5 story structure.  The upper 3 stories were explicitly designed for use as a Masonic Temple, specifically for the York Rite "Knights Templar".

In 2010 the roof of the building, as well as the 4th and 5th floors were destroyed by a fire.  The city has worked to restore the structure to its original grandeur...bringing it back to life.  It was rededicated in 2012.  Currently it provides space for special events and offers tours to visitors.  Occupants include the Maysville-Mason County Convention and Visitors Bureau, the Ohio River Valley Artist Guild, the Masonic Lodge, the Downing Music Academy and the Maysville Community and Technical College Culinary Institute with its bakery and cafe.

Perhaps the most unusual building on Market Street is the former IOOF lodge.  Located at 221 Market Street, the building's attention grabbing polychrome Venetian Gothic ornamentation dates back to 1914.  The building appeared to be unoccupied during our visit to Maysville. 

FYI, I.O.O.F stands for the Independent Order of the Odd Fellows.  This fraternal organization promotes friendship, love and truth as guidelines for daily lives and they are involved in various activities, functions and charitable events that support their goals.

Note: See the person about to enter the building at the left of the old I.O.O.F. structure.  That spelled 'trouble' for me...

Laurie just had to explore "Elementz", a small boutique gift shop at 225 Market Street featuring 'upscale gifts for you and your family'.  Maysville and Kentucky crafted items are a primary focus with items available for babies, kids, teens, women, men, pets and the home.  Laurie scored with the purchase of 2 Christmas Holiday swags.  The good news for me was that she got them for 30% off the normal price... Elementz can be found on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/elementzonmarket/.

As I was researching other buildings and historical structures in Maysville, I 

came across this blast from my past...sort of...because while I may be 'older', I'm not this old.

As I was researching other buildings and historical structures in Maysville, I 

came across this blast from my past...sort of...because while I may be 'older', I'm not this old.  As I wandered around Maysville, I don't know how I missed this building with its symbolic "The Spirit of Progress" figure at its decorative center peak.  This was retail giant Montgomery Ward's quality symbol and I spent a good deal of my work life with this company.  The building was constructed in 1928 as a Montgomery Ward department store.  It has been renovated and as best as I could determine, it's been serving as a conference center.

These are photos of the Simon Kenton Memorial Bridge.  It spans the Ohio River between Maysville Kentucky and Aberdeen Ohio.  This suspension bridge was built in 1931 to carry US Hwy 62 across the river.  At that time it was the only bridge spanning the Ohio River between Portsmouth and Silver Grove Kentucky, a distance of 110 miles.

The official opening of the bridge was on November 25, 1931.  As was the custom of the time, caravans of auto club members from across the state traveled to the event.  It was declared a holiday in Maysville.  Lights were strung across the bridge and a grandstand was built for the dedication ceremonies.  Several thousand people attended the event.

This is one of the few surviving historic suspension bridges on the Ohio River.  The steel "X" pattern steel towers are a special feature.  The main span of the bridge is 1,060 feet long and the total length of the bridge is 1,991 feet.  Tolls were collected for passage over the bridge until 1945...when there was another celebration.

This is the William H. Harsha Bridge and its located just a couple of miles downriver from the Simon Kenton Memorial Bridge.  This new cable-stayed bridge opened in 2000 and it handles a lot of the traffic that would have used the old bridge.  Noisy truck traffic can now bypass downtown Maysville and less traffic on the old bridge will expand its life expectancy.  Since its opened for traffic, the old bridge has been closed a couple of times with significant repairs and upgrades taking place.

The new Maysville (William H. Harsha) Bridge has a main span of 1,050 feet and a total length of 2,100 feet.  Each of its towers consists of battered reinforced concrete cellular shafts.  The deck of the bridge is 60 feet wide.

With the construction of the flood walls, the old Louisville and Nashville Railway depot was moved about a quarter mile south from its original location and this new depot was constructed in its place.  As the article notes, the old depot was repurposed by the city for offices and the fire department. 

This is the old Chesapeake and Ohio Depot in Maysville Kentucky.  This Georgian-style depot was built ca. 1918.  The first photo was borrowed from the Internet as it shows the front of the depot.  The depot is one of the few buildings near downtown Maysville that doesn't sit behind the floodwall.  Of course, neither do CSX Transportation's double tracks.  

Amtrak refurbished the old depot.  It had closed in 1968 and it was rebuilt in 1971.  The depot is located at the corner of West Front Street and Rosemary Clooney Street.  It now services Amtrak's Cardinal trains 50 and 51 with service on Wednesday, Friday and Sunday.  The depot lacks a station agent or station services but it does have a waiting area that is furnished with traditional wooden benches.  In 2023, the depot served 2,111 travelers.

Just click on any of the photos to enlarge them...

Thanks for stopping by for a visit!

Take Care, Big Daddy Dave