Fire Blocks
At the corner of N. Jefferson Street and E. Third Street, you will find yourself in Dayton, Ohio’s Fire Blocks Historic District.

Several large historic buildings line both sides of Third Street as it extends from Jefferson Street up to N. St. Clair Street, the distance of one long city block.

These buildings that make up the tiny Fire Blocks Historic District not only survived  the many disastrous fires that ravaged Dayton, but also the wrecking ball that later wiped out many of its surrounding historic neighbourhoods.

Huffman Block
The first building on the left is the Huffman Block, taking up 111-129 E. Third Street.

The upper levels contain more than 70 apartments, and the lower level, like the other buildings, lease offices and storefront space to retailers and restaurants.

Within the Huffman Block is Don’s Pawn Shop at 107 and the Funk Music Hall of Fame & Exhibition Center at 113 E. Third Street.

The historic David Building at 115 E. Third Street is currently home to Salt Block Biscuit Co.

Now & Zen DIY Studio at 121 E. Third Street is the place for plant and art therapy, classes, and community events.

Two Social, Jolility, and Tony & Pete’s fill the remaining store fronts.

Tony & Pete’s has a limited selection of wine, ‘fridge and pantry staples, snacks, and homemade small bites.

It is surely a gift to the people living downtown that do not want to deal with traffic just to get a loaf of bread or something to eat during rush hour.

Their fresh baked cookies are unbelievable.

Next to the Huffman Block building is Skeleton Dust Records at 133 E. Third Street.

Elks Building
On the right side of the street, across from the Huffman Block, is the Elks Building at 100 E. Third Street.

The Elks building contains about two dozen apartments and an upscale taco & tequila bar called El Sueño.

Dickey Building
Next to the Elks Building is the Dickey Building at 124 E. Third Street.

I was not able to glean much about this one, other than it is currently undergoing some remodeling.

I look forward to finding out what goes inside.

Kimmel Building
At 140 E. Third Street is the Kimmel Building, which does not seem inhabited by any commercial business at the time.

At the end of the block is Third Perk Coffeehouse & Wine Bar.

Turn right onto St. Clair Street and you will see a cluster of businesses including Vidia’s Closet, Twist Cupcakery, EmBark Dog Supply, and the Onyx & Ash Salon.

As you make another right onto E. Fourth Street, this corner of St. Clair & Fourth is known as Merchant Row.

Additional shops include White Anvil Tattoo and Grace Lane Boutique, but the street is a popular spot for pop-up markets and fairs.

Back where you started, near the corner of Jefferson Street & Third, be sure to visit the Century Bar at 18 S. Jefferson Street.

East of St. Clair Street is Cooper Park and the Dayton Public Library Main Branch.

A few streets down from that, heading east, is Warped Wing Brewing Company.

The building Warped Wing is in used to be home to a goth club that my friends and I frequented in the early 2000s.

Back then it was scary, like I have this mental image of a German Expressionist dungeon combined with Steampunk effects; surrounded by dumpster fires and industrial smokestacks in the background, and dudes with knives standing around every corner.

I know it was not actually that bad, that is just the lasting impression of it, a solid twenty years later.

Now the building is painted bright red, the parking lot has been patched up nicely, and it is surrounded by cute little apartments and studios.

Mudlick Tap House also used to host a goth club. It is weird going back to this part of town decades later and thinking, wait a minute, I used to do a lot of weird shit in that building in the EARLY 21ST CENTURY.

I digress.

Mudlick is an homage to the Rohrer family distillers in Germantown.

Other awesome places just outside of the Fire Blocks District include White Lotus, The Dayton International Peace Museum, and the Historic Lowe Brothers Paint shop.

In this part of town all the little historic districts and neighbourhoods overlap, like the historic Second Avenue District, Webster Station, the Theatre District, and the Oregon District.

Don’t be afraid to wander across boundaries.

Levitt Pavilion Dayton is an amphitheater near the southwest edge of the Fire Blocks Historic District.

The Dayton Arcade is a historic show-stopping building that is also undergoing an extreme makeover.

Future Developments
The name “Fire Blocks” is becoming increasingly synonymous with the mega million dollar redevelopment project by the Ellway Group that converts old historic buildings into new modern luxury high rises and restaurants.

You can follow the Fire Blocks Instagram to keep up with all the progress.

The Price Stores building (52 S. Jefferson) will soon become a boutique hotel and the old DP&L building will be turned into AirBnB rentals with rooftop green spaces.

Nearby, the emerging Water Street District has opened almost 400 new apartments and townhomes, under various developers.

Ellway Group also owns the buildings leased to Century Bar and Price Stores, as well as two buildings near the Cannery Lofts in Webster Station.

Webster Station
Like the Water Street District, Webster Station is a historic district that is being converted into a “new and upcoming” neighbourhood near Dayton’s waterfront.

This is likely to change as advancements are made, but my understanding is that it is directly north of the Fire Blocks District, bound by Keowee Street to the east and St. Clair Street to the west.

From the Fire Blocks District, it extends up north to the Great Miami/Mad Rivers.

Both Delco Lofts and the Cannery dominate the area with new urban living units and breweries.

I am all for historic preservation and revitalization, but some of these developers’ mission for residents to live/work/play all in the same block so they never have to leave gives me the willies.

To each their own, I am just glad these beautiful buildings are being preserved!

The Dayton Dragons‘ home field, Fifth Third Field, is also part of Webster Station.

A few more places I want to mention in this area are the Canal Street Arcade & Deli, Little Fish Brewing Co., and Bar Granada.

The RiverScape MetroPark is right down the street from Bar Granada, and is one of the most lovely places in Dayton.

Fire Blocks Historic District is anticipated to seamlessly connect Dayton’s downtown central business district to its neighbouring communities, after demolition and other factors have left open gaps between them for years.

The Fire Blocks District Facebook page is a lot more interesting than the other two links I posted.

The focus is more on the people and fun businesses on the block instead of leasing and developing.

Speaking of fire, the Dayton Firefighters Local 136 station on Warren Street commissioned local artist Tiffany Clark to create a comic-book style mural dedicated to firefighters and catastrophic fire events of Dayton history.

The mural itself is on Buckeye Street, where it extends between Main Street and Warren Street.

This is one blog I probably should have waited to write, until the area is finished being developed and ready for a close-up, but hell I get nosy sometimes.

I am excited to return on a later date and update this with more specifics. What did I miss? What is new in the last few months? Drop me a line!

In the area for a while? Follow me to some of Dayton’s other neighbourhoods like Historic St. Anne’s Hill, Historic South Park, the Historic Huffman District, and the Historic Oregon District (in progress).

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