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Columbus Public Health

Description:

Construction began on this site in 1869 for the Ohio Institution for the Education of the Blind, and when completed in 1874, it became home to the Ohio State School for the Blind. Located originally in downtown Columbus, the Institution for the Education of the Blind was the first publicly... Read more

Construction began on this site in 1869 for the Ohio Institution for the Education of the Blind, and when completed in 1874, it became home to the Ohio State School for the Blind.
Located originally in downtown Columbus, the Institution for the Education of the Blind was the first publicly supported school for the blind in the United States. Educating any blind child residing in Ohio, the school’s first building was constructed in 1839 with a maximum capacity of 60 students. Upon moving to this location in 1874, more than 300 students could attend the school. Between 1839 and 1901, more than 2,000 students were enrolled.
The Second Empire style building is now home to Columbus Public Health. The original building footprint was in the shape of the letter E, and in the renovation for the city’s health department, many architectural features were uncovered and preserved such as large red fire doors flanking many doorways even though they are no longer used for fire protection. To meet the needs for client services, new clinics and offices also were built in between the legs of the E and Columbus Public Health now serves more than 1,000 people per day with more than 40 programs.
The large bank of windows you can see above the front porch is now part of the Health Commissioner’s Offices but originally was the School Superintendent’s suite. On each side of the main building are two of the school’s former dormitories, with the boys’ dorm on your left and the girls’ dorm on your right. The boys’ dorm is now used as offices and the girls’ dorm, which was most recently used as a jail by former occupant the Ohio State Highway Patrol, is slated for renovation.
The building, which is on the Old National Road, was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1973.

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Columbus Public Health
Categories
Architecture
Address:

240 Parsons Ave, Columbus, OH 43205, USA
Columbus, Ohio 43205
Franklin County

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