herr2ck: Enter Sandman

February 2026.

One of Columbus’s few remaining Victorian-era institutional buildings is Columbus Public Health, formerly the Ohio Asylum for the Blind. It was constructed when the Near East Side was still largely farmland and streets like Bryden Road were only beginning to be built. Today, the formerly pastoral campus is hemmed in by houses on all sides, along with the I-71 trench dividing OTE from downtown.

Columbus Public Health is located at 240 Parsons Avenue in the Olde Towne East neighborhood of Columbus, Ohio. It is bordered by Bryden Alley to the north, Main Street to the south, Allen Avenue to the east, and Parsons Avenue and I-71 to the west. At one time, it was considered part of the opulent East Town Street Historic District nearby, although it has since been separated from it by I-71.

History

Nathan B. Kelley’s 1839 design for the school. (WOSU)

Ohio has the distinction of opening the first state-operated school for the blind in the United States, as at the time it was rather progressive in building facilities for children with various disabilities. After Dr. William Awl and Dr. Daniel Drake recommended that the state of Ohio open a school for the blind in 1835, the state legislature approved $15,000 for a building and $10,000 for books in April 1837. The first classes at the Ohio Institution for the Education of the Blind began in July 1837, consisting of five students and one teacher, located inside the old First Presbyterian Church building in downtown Columbus. In the meantime, the state constructed a purpose-built Greek Revival building by architect Nathan B. Kelley (architect of the Ohio Statehouse) on the current site for the school, which was completed in 1839.

Evidently, the new blind school was successful, as the 1838 school rapidly became overcrowded, with 150 students in 1866 and 144 in 1868. In 1869, the legislature authorized the construction of a larger building at a cost of $318,000. It was part of a larger building boom in Ohio orchestrated by governor Rutherford B. Hayes in the 1870s. Other institutions built in Columbus with a similar function around that time include the Ohio State School for the Deaf, Columbus State Hospital, and the Columbus Developmental Center, all buildings that I’ve written about before.

Engraving of the completed building. (Columbus Metropolitan Library)

The building that Columbus Public Health now occupies was built by architect William Tinsley. Its construction began on May 6, 1869, and due to a shortage of workers at the time, the building was not completed until May 21, 1874. With a sandstone exterior, writer Henry Howe characterized the Second Empire design as “fireproof…arranged with the strictest regard for the health, conveniences, and happiness of the inmates.” I think “happiness” and “inmates” in the same sentence is a bit of an oxymoron, but different medical terminology was used 150 years ago. As built, it was meant to house 250 students and 65 staffers.

1899 photo of the building from Columbus Illustrated. Note the many missing architectural details. (Wikimedia)

As it originally appeared, the school building had several distinguishing architectural features. It used a branching plan not dissimilar from the Kirkbride asylum designs popular at the time, although this building housed blind people instead of the mentally ill. The central mass, where the entrance is, once had a tall cupola that rose even higher than the already lofty roof. Additionally, the north and south wings had pointed spires at their corners.

Snippet of the 1901 Sanborn map showing the “Administration Building.” (Library of Congress)

According to the various Sanborn maps that depict the school, more exact details on its layout and function can be determined. The 1887 and 1891 maps do not extend far enough east to show it, so its first appearance was in 1901. As of that year, the north wing was labeled as the male ward, while the south was the female ward. The male ward had a broom factory, cane seat factory, and carpenter’s shop on the first floor, which was not the case with the female ward. Behind the central mass stood a two-story buttressed structure used as a dining room and chapel, with a kitchen wing and then a laundry and machine shop extending further eastward from it. Finally, a coal house was set back from the school and attached to it with a small frame passageway. Along with the standing garage, there were two since-demolished outbuildings--a greenhouse and a brick water tower.

1910 postcard of the building. The brick tower at right housed a steel water tank and was demolished prior to 1961, most likely when the new dorms were built. (HMDB)

Early 20th century changes to the school included its renaming to its current moniker, the Ohio State School for the Blind. Shortly thereafter, the Ohio Department of Education took over control of the school. Major additions took place between 1901 and 1921, namely two gymnasiums built in the voids left between the north, south, and central wings, an expansion of the laundry room, and new greenhouses.

The campus was further expanded in 1935 with the Jacobethan Revival North and South Dormitories, which were designed by state architect John Schooley Sr. Prior to their construction, blind students lived inside the school building, which lacked fire escapes. The North Dormitory was built for boys, while the South Dormitory held girls.

The exterior from across I-71 in 1973. (NRHP listing)

The Ohio State School for the Blind left its 1874 home in 1953, and a new school was completed on the far north side of Columbus right next to the new deaf school. I actually dealt with the blueprints for the school (dated 1950) in the Knowlton Archives, and it was a Modern design by Outcalt Guenther & Associates. After the school’s departure, the Ohio Department of Highway Safety began to use the building as its headquarters. It was likely around this time that the roof’s decorative elements were removed and altered. According to the 1921-1961 map, the building was left vacant above the second floor.

The former blind school received its historic designation in the 1970s, as it was individually listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1973 and as a contributing property in the large Near East Side District in 1978. In 2001, it received a major renovation and addition in the rear, at which point Columbus Public Health began to use the building. However, the South Dormitory has been unoccupied since that time and remains in highly deteriorated condition, and it was listed on Columbus Landmarks’ Most Endangered Buildings list in 2022. City Council unanimously revoked funding for its demolition in 2021, and preservation architects Schooley Caldwell were hired for an assessment of the building. It remained standing as of my visit.

Photos

I approached the building from Bryden Road to the north. After traversing a gravel lot where houses once stood, the sandstone walls of this megalithic structure rose high above the surrounding context:

The brick building at left is the North Dormitory, we’ll get to that later.

The context of the building has definitely changed--the winding, bucolic dirt paths in historic photos have been replaced with a giant driveway for access to the front:

I met some nurses on their lunch break as I walked around the building and explained what I was up to, but in my usual “shoot first and research later” haze, I made a comment about this being an “old insane asylum or something.” Oops.

It is pretty sprawling in size too, in large part due to its shallow plan. The entire Parsons Avenue end would take up an entire city block on its own.

The northern and southern wings have been denuded of their mansard roofs entirely, as well as the decorative dormers. Luckily, this is the only part of the building where that is the case.

Even from far away with the widest my lens could go, it just wasn’t possible to get a view of the entire facade. At least 90% of it is visible here:

The complex, stepped massing is best visible here. Each portion of the building steps forward or recedes both vertically and horizontally here, creating a very lively facade.

Nice view of downtown and the Discovery District from here, though:

Believe it or not, I took this next picture from across I-71 on the same day. It somehow went from perfectly clear and sunny to gray and cloudy. I must have been visiting East Town Street at that time.

The central portion of the building is the tallest, standing six stories high counting the mansard roof level (which is typically occupiable):

This porch and bay window are not original to the building, it was built with a wooden porch design and a five-sided bay window. There was also a second bay window on the third floor that has been removed. I am not sure when it was built, but the doubled columns and rounded pediment indicated Beaux-Arts or Renaissance Revival influence, so I would date it to the early 20th century.

The columns in particular also have unusual octagonal shafts with alternating bands of smooth and rough stonework. The craftsmanship required to achieve this also lends credence to my theory of an early 20th-century alteration.

I clocked this pediment as having the state seal of Ohio based on the four seals of Thompson Library.

The original openings remain and I think the arched windows have their original wooden sashes, but the front door is definitely modern:

The bay window has similar doubled pilasters:

Some of the Second Empire elements visible on the section of the facade above include the arched windows, metal cornice, mansard roof, dormers, and ornamental roof cresting. These are all original to the building, and it is remarkable that they were not removed during alterations:

A set of three rectangular windows, which line the first four floors:

This dormer has been crudely chopped off at the top, but the curvy parapet and one of the original pinnacles are still intact:

The contrast between the smooth, finished stone versus the rusticated masonry that makes up much of the facade is pretty interesting too. Also note that the original wooden window remains intact.

Metal cornice:

This kind of corbelled design is super common on other Second Empire and Italianate buildings, and they tend to age better than stone examples. The corners have larger corbels, which extend downward onto the smooth quoins that line the edges of each wall:

The mansard roof has had its shingles replaced (likely slate originally, but now asphalt), although the dormer retains its original wooden-sash window and surrounding metal trim:

If this cast-iron cresting at the top of the roof is original (based on the historic photos, it’s likely), then it is a very remarkable survival. This was one of the most common features to go on the various modernization schemes that 150-year-old buildings often face.

The two bays at either end of this entrance module are one story shorter. They have a less elaborate cornice design but retain the ornamental metal coping at the top of the mansard roof:

Another view at an angle:

Angled view of the southern wing extending outward from the entrance block:

The “connectors,” which are one story shorter than the other modules, have a unique dormer design with a pair of arched windows:

What a fine Second Empire building. I was really enjoying myself with tons of macro pictures of all the ornamental details.

I liked this moment where a smaller vaulted window is nested inside a larger blind arch:

What a lovely and visually rhythmic building. Aside from Columbus State Hospital, my favorite of these institutional designs, I find that the others lacked this sense of liveliness to the facade in such a cohesive manner. Each part is distinguished individually, yet they inevitably remain a component of a larger whole.

It was also tough to get an appropriate picture from further away due to the gnarled trees obscuring the facade with their twisty branches.

We’ve reached the south end and the abandoned South Dormitory, but I’ll leave that until last and focus on the main school building for now. The southwest end has the same mansard-less situation going on:

The facade recedes a bit in the middle, but this area is much shorter and more readily symmetrical.

Several different and lovely finishes of stone here--historic architecture like this has a fine quality of materials that cannot be matched today.

Being sandwiched between the dormitory walls and the giant mass of the school began to make the latter’s scale even more imposing. Although the dorms do not replicate the Second Empire style, they respect the original symmetry and serve as foils to the school.

One of the side doors, which has an unusual arched window above with a concentric course of smooth stone:

There was a bit of ivy back here, but nothing crazy like you’ll soon see on the South Dormitory.

Today the rear of the building has a giant parking deck there, which is where I got the next several photos from. The glassy portion is from the 2001 renovation and addition.

The masonry is actually pretty close to the original, but much of the addition is glass, undoubtedly so as not to compete with the historic school:

I think the green works pretty well, though.

This portion was used as a factory, but it has a much less intricate expression than the rest of the building. I think it is a later addition to the building judging by its interruption of the symmetry and the simpler hipped roof. If that is the case, it was built before 1901:

The eastern end of the deck has a carriage house, which retains its original cupola but has lost the doors and dormers:

Southeast end, with the arcade of the 1935 South Dormitory:

That parking deck really is horrid.

I think the cast-iron fence here is original, but the corner pier might date to when the dormitories were built:

Let’s pivot to the dorms now. Here is the North Dormitory:

North facade of the dormitory, which has a cross gable and Gothic Revival ornamental elements:

The South Dormitory is identical to the north but has been abandoned since about 2000. It doesn’t look too bad on this side, but just wait…

South facade from Main Street:

Nicely composed and lit view of the western end, which achieves that lovely collegiate sense of character with the ivy creeping about its brick facade:

The brick bond (it uses an odd, uneven system with some courses alternating the orientation) and their polychromy adds some nice material character to the exterior as well.