| Washington Street–Monument Circle Historic District | |
| Nrhp Type: | hd |
| Nocat: | yes |
| Location: | Roughly bounded by Delaware, Ohio, Capitol, and W. Maryland Sts., Indianapolis, Indiana |
| Coordinates: | 39.7678°N -86.1581°W |
| Architect: | Rubush & Hunter; Vonnegut & Bohn |
| Architecture: | Mid 19th Century Revival, Late Victorian, Late 19th And Early 20th Century American Movements |
| Added: | September 26, 1997 |
| Refnum: | 97001179 |
Washington Street–Monument Circle Historic District is a national historic district located at Indianapolis, Indiana, United States, covering the first two blocks of East and West Washington and Market streets, the south side of the 100 block of East Ohio Street, Monument Circle, the first block of North and South Meridian Street, the first two blocks of North Pennsylvania Street, the west side of the first two blocks of North Delaware Street, the east side of the first block of North Capitol Avenue, and the first block of North Illinois Street. In total, the district encompasses 40 contributing buildings and 2 contributing structures in the central business district of Indianapolis centered on Monument Circle. It developed between about 1852 and 1946, and includes representative examples of Italianate, Greek Revival, and Art Deco style architecture.
It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1997.
Nineteen of the 40 contributing buildings are individually listed on the National Register of Historic Places:
Other notable buildings within the district include the L. S. Ayres & Co. department store (1905, major additions 1914, 1926, 1946), the Hannaman and Duzan Building (1852), the Odd Fellows Building (1907–1908), Hotel Harrison (1927–1928), the Guaranty Building (1922–1923), Circle Tower (1929–1930), the Consolidated Building (1909), and the Turner Building and Savings Association (1941).[1]
Crispus Attucks High School basketball team
On March 19, 1955, the Crispus Attucks High School basketball team won the IHSAA state championship and became the first all-black school in the nation to win a state title. As was traditional for the IHSAA champions, the Attucks team participated in their parade. Although it wound around Monument Circle, their bus did not stop at the circle as previous parades for white championship teams had. Instead, the parade continued on to Northwestern Park. When the team won their second consecutive championship in 1956, the parade again skipped Monument Circle.[2]
On May 23, 2015, nine members of the 1955 Crispus Attucks High School basketball team served as grand marshals for the 2015 IPL 500 Festival Parade and made their trip through Monument Circle. These members included Oscar Robertson, Lavern Benson, James Enoch, John Gipson, Bill Hampton, Albert Maxey, Willie Merriweather, Shedrick Mitchell and Henry Robertson.[3]
Indiana Pride
In 1984, hundreds of LGBTQ+ Hoosiers gathered at Monument Circle, marking the first large public gathering for Indiana Pride. Previously, Pride Week had been celebrated through brunches at the Essex Hotel House, fundraising for various causes, and food donations for the poor. After several years of private celebrations, LGBTQ+ Hoosiers again gathered at the circle in 1990.[4] In 2021, the Indiana Historical Bureau and Indy Pride installed the "Origins of Indiana Pride - Indiana LGBTQ Pride" historical marker at 40 Monument Circle to commemorate the 1990 "Celebration on the Circle."