Page 58 - A Flood of Memories

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Dayton: St. Clair and
Third streets, looking west
Above: Ruptured gas lines set off res around the downtown during the ood. One of the hardest hit areas was Third Street at St. Clair. Fire ravaged both sides of Third Street, forcing people trapped in the buildings to hastily ee across roofs and over alleys from window to window. Fire crews were incapable of reaching the ames through 10 feet of rushing water. Looking west on Third Street, the burned-out buildings resembled a war zone after the oodwater receded.
Below: The landscape has changed but the Dayton Metro Library – on the northeast corner of this intersection but out of view – keeps this corner popular. The two-block area between Jefferson and St. Clair streets and between Fourth and Second streets was placed on the National Register of
Historic Places as the Fire Blocks Historic District. The Fire Blocks today hosts retail, of ce, entertainment and residential buildings. It holds great potential for additional small businesses and real estate investment. Downtown Dayton has become a hotbed for housing with a 97 percent occupancy rate.