Status: Preserved
Address: 245 Madison Avenue, Memphis
Built: 1909
Architectural Style: Beaux Arts
Original Function/Purpose: Hotel
History: Designed by John Gaisford (architect of Lenox School and the Falls Building), the Leslie M. Stratton YMCA was dedicated on October 17, 1909, with President William Howard Taft and governors of twenty-seven states in attendance, including Tennessee’s Malcolm Peterson. When President Taft and party arrived by riverboat, they were paraded through downtown to the building using the newly paved Madison Avenue, completed specifically for this journey. Also noteworthy is the fact that, during his presidential run, candidate Barack Obama stopped by for a game of basketball after a debate in Oxford, Mississippi.
City Council District: 6
Super District: 8
County Commission District: 8