Places and Maps
Coming Soon: Dorothy Lane Market & The Little Exchange
Hawthorn Hill
Built
in 1914, Hawthorn Hill was the home of Orville, Milton, and Katharine
Wright. Wilbur and Orville Wright intended for it to be their joint
home, but Wilbur died in 1912, before the home's 1914 completion. The
brothers hired the prominent Dayton architectural firm of Schenck and
Williams to realize their plans.
Originally spanning seventeen acres, one thought is that the Wrights
named the home after the hawthorn trees found on the property. Another
belief is that they named the home for 7 Hawthorn St. in Dayton, their
previous home.
Orville Wright designed many of the mechanical features of the house,
such as the shower, the water storage tank used to collect and recycle
rainwater, and the central vacuum system. The family lived in the home
for thirty-four years and entertained national dignitaries and inventors
such as Henry Ford, Alexander Graham Bell and Thomas Edison.
The NCR Corporation purchased Hawthorn Hill after Orville Wright’s death
in 1948 for $75,000. The company used the property as a guesthouse for
corporate visitors. On rare occasion NCR would open the home to the
general public.
While NCR extensively redecorated the home, Orville’s study remains
intact. Photographs of the interior at the time of Orville’s death are
available through the NCR Collection managed by Dayton History. Home
furnishings are stored at the Kettering-Moraine Museum. Some home
furnishings have returned to Hawthorn Hill.
On August 18, 2006, NCR donated the historic home to the Wright Family
Foundation, an affiliate of The Dayton Foundation, in honor of Orville's
135th birthday and National Aviation Day. The home was designated a
National Historic Landmark in 1991 by the National Park Service.
This property is located at the corner of Park and Harman Avenues.
Runnymede Playhouse
Located a near Dixon Avenue and Runnymede Road, a contemporary home
stands on the former site of the Runnymede Playhouse, a building that
played a unique part in the City of Oakwood’s history. Originally part
of the Talbott family estate, Runnymede Playhouse was first a social and
entertainment center for the Oakwood community. During World War II, the
playhouse was used as a facility for research and refinement of polonium
bomb triggers.
Harry Talbott was one of the founders of the Dayton Metal Products
Company and the Dayton-Wright Airplane Company. A civil engineer, he was
one of Oakwood’s first residents and became Oakwood’s first mayor.
Following his death in 1921, his wife, Katherine Houk Talbott, remained
prominent in Dayton’s social and cultural life. In 1927, she had the
Runnymede Playhouse, a glass-topped structure large enough for 1200
women to play bridge, built on the family’s property in west Oakwood.
The Runnymede Playhouse was used for community functions such as
graduations, dances, and meetings as well as serving as an entertainment
venue for the Talbott family. The complex included indoor tennis and
squash courts as well as a ballroom and stage.
In the 1940s, Dr. Charles Allen Thomas, an engineer who had married into
the Talbott family, assisted the Monsanto Chemical Company in procuring
a lease on Runnymede Playhouse. He promised his mother-in-law, Katherine
Talbott, that he’d return the playhouse in the same condition. The
playhouse was used to conduct research into polonium, an element used in
the production of atomic weapons. Polonium forms part of the bombs’
triggers and is still a part of atomic weapon construction. Known as
Unit IV, the Runnymede Playhouse was one of five facilities around
Dayton involved in nuclear bomb research. Nearly 90 people worked at
Unit IV. Oral histories state that big trucks rolled in and out, and
floodlights and heavy duty power lines were strung around the property.
In 1949, operations moved to Miamisburg, and the following year the
Runnymede Playhouse was demolished. The structure and ground were
transported to Tennessee for safe burial. In 1998, The Ohio EPA working
with the Ohio Department of Health determined that no immediate health
risks are posed by the site.
Maps
1875 Map of Village of Oakwood
Shafor Heights Plat Map (rough boundaries include Patterson Road,
Schantz Avenue, Lonsdale Avenue, and Delanie Avenue)
Sanborn
Maps: These are fire insurance maps available online at OhioLink.
Search for a street name in the City of Oakwood and then select to view
the map that best describes your request.
Sanborn
Maps: These are fire insurance maps available online at OhioLink.
Search for a street name in the City of Oakwood and then select to view
the map that best describes your request.
