Submitted by scott on Wed, 02/04/2015 - 11:40
Old Townhall
Union Street and inside the Opera House at City Hall
Opera House
City Hall Then and Now

Original Town Hall and Opera House burned down February 1934 

The old city hall opened in 1882. Its clock tower rose to a height of 92ft. The first floor housed administrative offices, the police department, the jail, and the fire department. A 1,050 seat auditorium known as the Opera House graced the second floor. It was the city's social center for graduations and theatrical productions. Here, also, John Philip Sousa led his band in "Stars and Stripes Forever." Other celebrities who appeared here included Mark Twain, William McKinley, temperance advocate Carrie Nation, statesman William Jennings Bryan, Hollywood director Vincente Minnelli, Ben Hur author General Lew Wallace, and abolistionist Henry Ward Beecher. On a frigid winter night, February 24, 1934, the structure was destroyed by fire. Exactly three years later, on February 24, 1937, the current City Hall was dedicated and opened after costing $95,000 to build.  http://www.historicalmarkerproject.com/markers/HM8AN_old-city-hall-and-opera-house_Delaware-OH.html 

Image from:http://www.greetingsfromdelawareohio.com/delawarebuildings 

February 10, 1885

This event not recorded in UV web site. Listed http://www.twainquotes.com/SpeechIndex.html

Images Courtesy Delaware County District Library
Images of America
Delaware and Delaware County
by Jeffrey T. Darbee
with the Delaware County Historical Society

The Sesqui - Centennial of Delaware County and City

Delaware County Then and Now, an informal history
by Ray S. Buckingham, 1976

Marker Category
Venue
Geolocation

40.29841, -83.067427

Geofield

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