Octagon Building
National Register of Historic Places

Octagon Building

Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz County, California
Listed
March 23, 1971
Type
Building
Period
Industrial
Ref No.
71000193

About this property

Known informally as the Octagon Building, the redbrick octagonal building at 118 Cooper Street (at the corner of Front Street) in Santa Cruz, California was built in 1882, adjacent to the first (1866) County Court House, to serve as the County Hall of Records. In 1894, a major fire destroyed most of the nearby buildings, including the adjacent courthouse, but the brick Octagon survived. In 1968, the records were moved to a new County Government Center. Many historic brick buildings at the nearby Pacific Garden Mall were damaged during the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake, but again the Octagon survived. On March 24, 1971, it was added to the National Register of Historic Places. Still owned by Santa Cruz County and administered by Santa Cruz Museum of Art and History (MAH), for a number of years the Octagon was used as the Museum Store. When an expansion of the museum was completed in 1993, the store was moved into the new entry atrium of the museum. The Octagon was then leased for a few years for use as a coffeehouse. At the end of 2024, the building is used by two food vendors as an extension of the adjacent Abbot Square Marketplace.

Location

Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz County, California
36.97477, -122.02566

Categories

ARCHITECTURE
National Register nomination ›
Sources

Property data from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).

Description adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

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The Land
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Geology
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The Civil War
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The Soldiers
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Native Heritage
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Settlement
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The Community
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Notable People
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Historical Maps
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Finds & Access
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Literature
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Nearby Historic Sites

Bank of Santa Cruz County
Industrial
0 mi
Veterans Memorial Building
Industrial
0.1 mi
US Post Office-Santa Cruz Main
Industrial
0.2 mi
Hotel Metropole
Civil War
0.2 mi
Neary-Rodriguez Adobe
Early Republic
0.3 mi

Questions about this property

When was Octagon Building listed on the National Register?

Octagon Building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on March 23, 1971.

What type of historic resource is Octagon Building?

Octagon Building is classified as a building in the National Register of Historic Places.

What is the period of significance for Octagon Building?

The period of significance for Octagon Building is recorded as the industrial era.

Can I research the history near Octagon Building?

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