The Lion Block, at 216 West Main in Ness City, Kansas in Ness County, Kansas, was built in 1887 and includes, in its parapet wall, a lion carved by stonemason Henry Tilley, for which the building is named.[2] It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2008.[1]

Lion Block
Lion Block in 2016
Lion Block is located in Kansas
Lion Block
Location216 West Main, Ness City, Kansas
Coordinates38°27′15″N 99°54′26″W / 38.454133°N 99.907258°W / 38.454133; -99.907258
Arealess than one acre
Built1887
Built byHenry Tilley
Architectural styleItalianate
NRHP reference No.08000986[1]
Added to NRHPOctober 16, 2008
The lion, above "1887", somewhat deteriorated

It is a two-story two-part commercial building. The building shared a party wall, its west wall, with adjacent building which was not nominated for NRHP listing,[2] and which was demolished some time after 2008 and before 2016.[note 1] The two buildings faced south onto the courthouse square which holds the Ness County Courthouse. The front of the Lion Block includes two storefronts with iron framing manufactured by the 1886-founded Capital Iron Works company of Topeka, Kansas.[2]

It is Victorian in style with elements of Italianate, such as in its round-topped windows. [2] It was "nominated to the National Register for its architectural significance as a highly decorative and unique Italianate-style commercial building."[3]

Among other functions, it served as a meeting house for the local Oddfellows group.[4]

The McFarland Block, the adjacent building, survived in 2008.[4]

Notes

edit
  1. ^ Photos from 2016 show the Lion Block standing alone; 2021 Google satellite imagery shows the same.

References

edit
  1. ^ a b "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. November 2, 2013.
  2. ^ a b c d Mary A. Bain (May 20, 2008). "National Register of Historic Places Registration: Lion Block / 135-3960-0001". National Park Service. Retrieved February 25, 2022. With accompanying 12 photos from 2008
  3. ^ "KHS National and State Registers of Historic Places: Ness County". Retrieved March 18, 2022.
  4. ^ a b "Kansas Historic Resources Inventory: Lion Block". Kansas State Historic Society. Retrieved March 18, 2022.
edit