Hershey Community Center Building

The Hershey Community Center Building is an historic building which is located in Hershey, Dauphin County, Pennsylvania.

Hershey Community Center Building
Hershey Community Center Building, November 2011
Hershey Community Center Building is located in Pennsylvania
Hershey Community Center Building
Hershey Community Center Building is located in the United States
Hershey Community Center Building
Location2 Chocolate Ave., Hershey, Pennsylvania
Coordinates40°17′7″N 76°38′56″W / 40.28528°N 76.64889°W / 40.28528; -76.64889
Area2.6 acres (1.1 ha)
Built1932-1933
ArchitectPaul Philippe Cret
Architectural styleMission/Spanish Revival
NRHP reference No.80003483[1]
Added to NRHPOctober 15, 1980

It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1980.[1]

History and architectural features edit

Designed by architect Paul Philippe Cret (1876-1945), under a general plan by Milton S. Hershey (1857-1945), the Hershey Community Center Building was erected between 1932 and 1933. Plans for a community theater and center were originally drawn-up by C. Emlen Urban in 1915.[2]

The Hershey Community Center Building is a five-story building, encompassing 190,699 square feet. It is shaped like a distended "E," with an open court in the front center and sun porches on three sides.[2]

The building is faced in Indiana limestone, and houses a large theater, the Hershey Theatre, which is 51,525 square feet (4,787 m2), and small theater, which is 5,535 square feet (514 m2), along with a variety of recreational facilities including a gymnasium, swimming pool, game rooms, locker rooms, and showers.[2]

The building also houses a library, which is 6,640 square feet (617 m2) and dormitory space, which is 15,970 square feet (1,484 m2).[2]

It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1980.[1]

References edit

  1. ^ a b c "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
  2. ^ a b c d "National Historic Landmarks & National Register of Historic Places in Pennsylvania" (Searchable database). CRGIS: Cultural Resources Geographic Information System. Note: This includes R.D. Foster (March 1980). "National Register of Historic Places Inventory Nomination Form: Hershey Community Center Building" (PDF). Retrieved 2011-11-12.