St. Clair, Pennsylvania, USA

Defining Main Street: The Church. There are usually no shortage of churches on Main Street, and the state's downtowns usually exhibit some of the richest combinations of denominations anywhere in the world. Why? Read a biography of William Penn. [2017]

Danville, Illinois, USA

Defining Main Street: The Fire Station. When we fall in love with a main street archtype and love services it performs, it is hard to cast it on the dumpheap of history. Fire houses, for instance, are often converted to other uses, turned into museums, or simply preserved for their exterior delights. [2015]

Bath Center, Ohio, USA

Defining Main Street: The Public School. What set the stage for public schools in the United States? The Old Deluder Satan Act of 1647. It mandated community schooling in Massachusetts so that everyone would grow up being able to read the Bible for themselves. A few Main Street schools like this survive, but most have suburbanized. [1995]

Eyota, Minnesota, USA

Defining Main Street: The City Hall. If a place is incorporated under the laws of the state, it must have a municipal building. In the case of cities, these administrative headquarters are probably called city halls. In the past, their architecture was almost always meant to command respect. What to you think of the Eyota city hall's public face? [2019]

Dillon, Montana, USA

Defining Main Street: The Bookstore. There was a time when only big cities had bookstores. Then, shopping malls multiplied their numbers. And then, big-box stores shot onto the scene, and some of them were devoted to books. Recently, Amazon deliveries and digital purchases have come to dominate. Meanwhile, the Main Street book store chugs along. [2020]

Ritzville, Washington, USA

Defining Main Street: The Public Library. Although the public library had been well established in American life by the 1880s, philanthropist Andrew Carnegie added jet fuel to the building trends. If a local community would support a public library, he would built it. Yes, architectural standards were in force. [2019]

Covina, California, USA

Defining Main Street: The Jewelry Store. Locally owned and operated jewelry stores seem to survive longer on Main Street than most other operations. Often they have a clock outside. If that box of chocolates didn't quite do the trick yesterday, maybe you should have tried the jewelry store. [2015]