Louisville War Memorial Auditorium
National Register of Historic Places

Louisville War Memorial Auditorium

Louisville, Jefferson County, Kentucky
Listed
December 27, 1977
Type
Building
Period
Pre Contact
Ref No.
77000625

About this property

Memorial Auditorium is a Greek Revival concert venue located at 970 South Fourth Street in Louisville, Kentucky, United States. Designed by Carrère and Hastings, it was dedicated on Memorial Day, May 30, 1929, as a memorial to the people of Louisville who served in World War I. In 1954, the ceiling was lowered and the side balconies were closed off reducing the seating capacity from 2,349 to 1,742 to improve the acoustics. Memorial Auditorium is home to the world's largest Pilcher organ and the largest operating pipe organ in the region. The instrument is sometimes referred as an orchestral pipe organ, as it includes sounds such as a French Horn, Tuba, a Cor Anglais which you often see in a symphonic orchestra. The organ contains a Tibia, which would be recognized as a large flute, which are usually found in Theater Organs. This historic four-manual instrument with 5,288 pipes has been in operation since opening. The acoustic renovation all but completely closed off the pipe chambers from the renovated hall. It has been designated a landmark by the Louisville Metro Landmarks Commission and is on the National Register of Historic Places. Although it is now used mainly by organizations for recitals, graduations, etc., it hosted many rock concerts in the 1960s and 1970s, including The Rolling Stones, Chicago, Bruce Springsteen, and Kiss.

Location

970 S. 4th St.
Louisville, Jefferson County, Kentucky
38.23931, -85.76006

Categories

ARCHITECTURESOCIAL HISTORY
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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Nearby Historic Sites

Cornwall and Brown Houses
Industrial
0.1 mi
Bayly-Schroering House
Industrial
0.1 mi
Central Colored School
Industrial
0.1 mi
Porter-Todd House
Pre Contact
0.2 mi
Fourth Avenue Methodist Episcopal Church
Civil War
0.2 mi

Nearby Battles

Morgan's Raid into Indiana
1863Civil War
3.7 mi

Questions about this property

When was Louisville War Memorial Auditorium listed on the National Register?

Louisville War Memorial Auditorium was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on December 27, 1977.

What type of historic resource is Louisville War Memorial Auditorium?

Louisville War Memorial Auditorium is classified as a building in the National Register of Historic Places.

What is the period of significance for Louisville War Memorial Auditorium?

The period of significance for Louisville War Memorial Auditorium is recorded as the pre_contact era, specifically around 970.

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