Camayo Arcade facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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Camayo Arcade
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U.S. Historic district
Contributing property |
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The Camayo Arcade prior to renovations
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 Location in Kentucky
Location in the United States
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| Location | 1530 Winchester Avenue, Ashland, Kentucky |
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| Built | 1925-26 |
| Part of | Ashland Commercial Historic District |
| Added to NRHP | July 8, 1994 |
The Camayo Arcade is a cool old shopping building in downtown Ashland, Kentucky. It's on Winchester Avenue. It opened in July 1926. This building was actually the first indoor shopping mall ever built in Kentucky! The Camayo Arcade is part of the Ashland Commercial Historic District, which is a special area with many important old buildings.
What's the Story of the Camayo Arcade?
Building the Camayo Arcade started on September 22, 1925. A builder named C. Harrison Smith from Huntington, West Virginia got the job. They first had to tear down the Josselson Brothers Furniture Store. This happened the week after the contract was signed.
Even before it was built, 60% of the shops on the second and third floors were already rented out! The shop fronts were made from beautiful rosetta marble. Each store inside was about 17.5 feet deep. They could be 15, 30, or 45 feet wide.
Workers started putting in the electrical lights in June 1925. A company from Chicago called Beardslee Chandelier Manufacturing Company did this work. The arcade officially opened in July 1926. It was managed by John C. C. Mayo, Jr. and Alexander Cameron.
Fun and Games in the Basement
On October 9, 1926, a special place opened in the basement. It was called the Camayo Arcade Recreation Center. This center was really big, about 15,000 square feet! It had lots of fun things to do. You could play billiards (pool) or go bowling.
Once everything was finished, the Camayo Arcade had a huge amount of space. It had 68,190 square feet of floor space in total!
New Look for an Old Building
In 2012, the Camayo Arcade got a big makeover. A person named Perry Madden bought the building. He made sure it was fixed up and looked great again.
