Lehr Memorial Building of Ohio Northern University

Henry Solomon Lehr recounts his proposition to the citizens of Ada, in hopes of “raising means to erect a suitable building for a Normal School to be superintended, controlled, and owned by H.S. Lehr.” The citizens of Ada would help to furnish $3,000 for the construction of the Normal School Building, then later refunded by Lehr five years after he commences to use the building. In April 1871, there was a contracted acceptance of building the school for August 1871.

With this approval, Lehr began to build the first building of the Ohio Normal School. Lehr even purchased brick himself for the construction. During the construction of the building, it was finally dedicated, even though it was not fully complete. A public dinner was held during the afternoon for twenty-five cents and a concert in the evening. With the coming of the First Fall Term on August 12, 1871, the building still had yet to be completed. Other small issues accompanied the building, such as a leaking roof, and other repairs. The roof was not fixed by contractors until the Spring Term of 1873. The Normal School Building finally stood as H.S. Lehr’s first original building of the Ohio Normal School’s campus. In 1908, an appeal was made to construct a new building, in place of the old one in need of many repairs. The new building would be dedicated to H.S. Lehr, as a celebration to him while he was still living.

Lehr Memorial Building was projected to be a $100,000 building, with most of the funds that were gathered described as “free love offerings and generous contributions of all friends and students of Dr. Lehr.” In October 1912, a jubilee was held in order to honor H.S. Lehr and donors to the Memorial fund. Demolition of the old Normal School Building began in October of 1913. One piece of the Normal School Building was kept, however.

In May 1914, the cornerstone of Lehr Memorial was placed. This cornerstone was originally part of the steps to the Normal School Building. Now, the new building was not only in better condition than the previous building but allowed the University to have some permanence in the village of Ada. The principal speaker of the ceremony, Ohio Governor Frank Willis, made a key statement that describes the importance of H.S. Lehr’s journey to erect a stable institution of higher learning from rock bottom. He said, “the stepping stone of the old has become the cornerstone of the new.”

Greer, Louis A.. "The Lehr Memorial: A Great Jubilee Week in Ada in Honor of the Founder." The Ada Record (Ada) October 16th 1912.

Lehr, Henry Solomon. Edited by Kelly A. Wacker. History of the O.N.U. Part 1. 1994.

Lehr Memorial, Campus Buildings. Accessed November 7th 2020. https://library.onu.edu/c.php?g=357885&p=2417319.

"Let Us Built It While He Lives." University Herald (Ada) January 10th 1908.

Normal School Building, Campus Buildings. Accessed November 7th 2020. https://library.onu.edu/c.php?g=357885&p=2414366.