The Dingley Building, formerly the Oak Street School, is a historic municipal building at 36 Oak Street in

Lewiston, Maine Lewiston (; ; officially the City of Lewiston, Maine) is the second largest city in Maine and the most central city in Androscoggin County. The city lies halfway between Augusta, the state's capital, and Portland, the state's most populous cit ...

. Built in 1890, it is a distinctive local example of

Richardsonian Romanesque Richardsonian Romanesque is a style of Romanesque Revival architecture named after the American architect Henry Hobson Richardson (1838–1886). The revival style incorporates 11th and 12th century southern French, Spanish, and Italian Romanesq ...

architecture, designed by local architect

George M. Coombs George M. Coombs (November 27, 1851 – March 27, 1909) was an American architect in practice in Lewiston, Maine from 1874 to 1909. Life and career George Millard Coombs was born November 27, 1851, in Brunswick, Maine to John Matthews Coomb ...

. It was added to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artist ...

in 1976. It now houses the Lewiston school system's administrative offices.

Description and history

The Dingley Building stands near the eastern edge of Lewiston's commercial downtown area, on a lot bounded by Middle, Oak, and Bates Streets. It is a two-story masonry structure, built of red brick with stone trim. It is covered by a tall hip roof, and is set on a raised basement, from which it is separated by a stone beltcourse. The main entrance is recessed in a large round-arch opening, which shelters the stairs providing access. The entrance is set in a projecting gabled section, from which a turret rises at the left corner, topped by an open

belvedere Belvedere (from Italian, meaning "beautiful sight") may refer to: Places Australia *Belvedere, Queensland, a locality in the Cassowary Coast Region Africa * Belvedere (Casablanca), a neighborhood in Casablanca, Morocco *Belvedere, Harare, Zi ...

and a convex circular roof. Windows in the projecting section above the entrance are set in round-arch openings, in a group of four on the second level, and in a Palladian-style group of three in the gable. The school building was designed by architect

and was built in 1890.Dingley Building, Oak Street School, Lewiston
Maine Memory Network. The name was changed to the Dingley Building in 1899 in honor of

Nelson Dingley, Jr. Nelson Dingley Jr. (February 15, 1832 – January 13, 1899) was a journalist and politician from the U.S. state of Maine. Dingley was born in Durham, Maine and attended the common schools at Unity, Maine and Waterville College (now Colby C ...

, a former

governor of Maine The governor of Maine is the head of government of the U.S. state of Maine. Before Maine was admitted to the Union in 1820, Maine was part of Massachusetts and the governor of Massachusetts was chief executive. The current governor of Maine ...

and longtime congressman from Maine's second district. It was later used as an

elementary school A primary school (in Ireland, the United Kingdom, Australia, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, and South Africa), junior school (in Australia), elementary school or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary ed ...

, then the headquarters for the Lewiston Board of Education. It remains the central office for the school district today. The Lewiston Historical Commission also meets in the building. A lightning bolt struck the Dingley Building in June 2008, causing no injuries, but resulting in moderate damage to the wooden tower as well as utilities.Max Mogensen
Lightning strikes Dingley building
''Lewiston-Auburn Sun Journal'', July 1, 2008.

References

{{National Register of Historic Places School buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in Maine Schools in Lewiston–Auburn, Maine School buildings completed in 1890 National Register of Historic Places in Lewiston, Maine 1890 establishments in Maine Richardsonian Romanesque architecture in Maine Educational buildings in Lewiston, Maine

Description and history

See also

References