Built 1852-53 as auditorium for Natchez Institute, the first free school in Natchez, this building was used as Opera House in 1880s; later used for school again; remodeled in 1921 for use as a city auditorium, called Memorial Hall, and so used until City Auditorium was built in 1940. In 1938 this building was serving as a National Guard armory. The circumstances have not yet been determined or documented, but it appears that part this building became an armory about 1938, for Company B, 155th Infantry, when the building was renovated by the WPA. It is a rare surviving example of a Greek Revival auditorium building. This building was individually listed on the National Register on 20 June 1979, and it was later included as element #400 in the Natchez-on-Top-of-the-Hill Historic District, which was placed on the National Register on 17 September 1979. It was designated a Mississippi Landmark on 9 May 1995. It received an HPF grant of $9,000 in 1990. It is included in "Natchez Walking Guide" (1985) (#44) and "Buildings of Mississippi" (2020) (pp.35-36, ND30). |