Location Topeka, Kansas NRHP Reference # 75000724 Area 4,047 m² | Built 1914 Opened 1914 Added to NRHP 17 July 1975 | |
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Address 120 SW 10th Ave, Topeka, KS 66612, USA Architectural styles Renaissance architecture, Renaissance Revival architecture Similar Kansas State Capitol, Topeka Zoo, Kansas Museum of History, Brown v Board of Educatio, Old Prairie Town at Ward‑Me | ||
Memorial Building, also known as G.A.R. Memorial Hall, is a historic Grand Army of the Republic hall located at 120 West 10th Avenue, in Topeka, Kansas, United States. On July 17, 1975, the building was added to the National Register of Historic Places.
History
The construction of Memorial Hall was financed by war claims paid to the State of Kansas by the federal government; one for $97,466.02 for equipping and putting soldiers in the field during the American Civil War, and the other for $425,065.43 for repelling invasions of Confederate soldiers and dealing with American Indian Wars.
In 1909, a legislative money appropriation act was passed. A commission selected the site, acquired the land title, and supervised construction of Memorial Hall. On September 27, 1911, President William Howard Taft laid the ceremonial cornerstone. The building was completed in 1914 and dedicated before 25,000 people on May 27 of that same year.
Since 2000, Memorial Hall has served as headquarters for the Kansas Attorney General and Kansas Secretary of State.