History of the Dayton Oregon District

DAYTON — According to the Oregon Historic District website, the area traces its roots to 1815, when the first lots were laid out by Daniel C. Cooper. The first plat was recorded in 1829, composed of 27 building lots that sold for a grand total of $2,200.

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After the opening of the Miami Canal, the Oregon District was largely settled by ethnically German people, who built several area churches. This area includes the Tecumseh Street plat of 1839, where the earliest houses of the district stand - the most complete group of early Dayton buildings in the city.

The origin of the name "Oregon" is uncertain, though appears in early newspapers starting in 1845, where it appears in an ad that refers to "building lots on that part of the city known as Oregon."

In the second half of the 19th century the district prospered, and commercial and residential development left behind mansions amid the plainer homes.

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However, the Great Flood of 1913 started an era of decline for the Oregon District. The flood covered the area in 10 feet of water, and afterward many residents began moving to higher ground. World War I and II continued this decline, and by the 1960s the city considered a proposal to save 125 of the buildings and demolishing the rest.

That proposal failed due to lack of funding, but led to the creation of the Burns-Jackson Historic District to preserve the area, a name which was later changed to the Oregon Historic District.

Today, the Oregon District is home to a wide range of businesses, from arts and entertainment to retail stores, bars and restaurants.

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Ned Peppers, which has been near the center of the mass shooting in Dayton early this morning, was a bar previously known as T.B. Hopkins, but was bought in 1994 by James "Jim" Schaefer, who died in late April 2019. Schaefer renamed the bar to Ned Peppers, and connected it to neighboring bar The Hole in the Wall, which he also owned.