Two Cincinnati buildings were designated as local historic landmarks following a City Council vote last Wednesday.

The Farmer's Hotel at in Northside and the Masonic Temple Price Hill Lodge No. 524 at in East Price Hill now will be protected from insensitive alterations or demolition unless approved by the Historic Conservation Board.

Built in 1859 by Mexican War veteran Christopher Keller, the Farmer's Hotel was an important stop along the Colerain Pike for farmers bringing their livestock to market at one of Cincinnati's many slaughterhouses and is the last hotel link to the City's famous pork-packing history. The hotel remained in operation until 1914.

As one of the few antebellum structures remaining in Northside, the three-story Italianate boasts a 2,500-square-foot third floor ballroom with a 40-foot wide roof span that's unsupported by pillars.

Under the same ownership for 45 years, the City condemned the property in April 2012 and declared it a public nuisance in December 2012. In January, the Cincinnati Northside Community Urban Redevelopment Corporation, with the assistance of the Cincinnati Preservation Association and the Facebook group, nominated it for historic designation.

Now, the building will be boarded up and stabilized until redevelopment can take place.


Masonic Lodge

Built in 1912 and designed by Samuel Hannaford, Price Hill Masonic Lodge No. 524 served the largest fraternal organization in the neighborhood for 77 years.

The brotherhood consisted of distinguished businessmen, civic leaders, industrialists, physicians, entrepreneurs, and men from other walks of life who met weekly to socialize and to plan activities to help improve community quality of life.

Regarded as one of the most prominent historic public buildings in the neighborhood, the three-story Neoclassical Revival structure has fine brick detailing and includes Masonic emblems and monumental arches.

This building also was threatened with demolition, having been condemned in February 2011 and declared a public nuisance in August 2011.

The Price Hill Historical Society and Museum, with support from the East Price Hill Improvement Association and the Cincinnati Preservation Association, prepared its nomination.

Photos provided

Previous reading on BC:
Planning Commission Friday: Pogue's Garage, Hyatt, Northside redevelopment (6/6/13)