Discover 10 hidden attractions, cool sights, and unusual things to do in Athens (United States). Don't miss out on these must-see attractions: Athena Cinema, Kennedy Museum of Art, and Ohio University. Also, be sure to include Athens Governmental Buildings in your itinerary.
Below, you can find the list of the most amazing places you should visit in Athens (Ohio).
Table of Contents
Athena Cinema
Movie theater in Athens, Ohio. The Athena Cinema is an movie theater in Athens, Ohio that has been continuously operating since 1915. Originally called Majestic Theatre, the name was eventually changed to Schine's Athena before its current incarnation, The Athena Cinema. Today, it is owned by Ohio University.[1]
Address: 20 S Court St, 45701-1570 Athens
Kennedy Museum of Art
Top attraction, Specialty museum, Art museum, Museum
Address: 100 Ridges Cir, 45701-6812 Athens
Ohio University
University in Athens County, Ohio. Ohio University is a public research university in Athens, Ohio. The first university chartered by an Act of Congress and the first to be chartered in Ohio, it was chartered in 1787 by the Congress of the Confederation and subsequently approved for the territory in 1802 and state in 1804, opening for students in 1809. Ohio University is the oldest university in Ohio, the tenth oldest public university in the United States and the 32nd oldest among public and private universities. As of fall 2020, the university's total enrollment at Athens was slightly more than 18,000, while the all-campus enrollment was just over 28,000.
Ohio University offers more than 250 areas of undergraduate study as well as master's and doctoral degrees. Undergraduate admissions are selective with further admission requirements for its journalism and other select schools. The Heritage College of Osteopathic Medicine maintains separate select admissions criteria and is the most selective college at the university. The university is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission and classified among "R1: Doctoral Universities – Very high research activity". Since 2008, 16 students have won the Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship, 32 students have won the NSF-GRFP and 94 students have become Fulbright Program U.S. grantees and one Alumnus has shared the Nobel Prize.
Ohio's athletic teams are called the Bobcats and compete in the US top collegiate levels, National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the Division I level as charter members of the Mid-American Conference. Ohio football has participated in 13 bowl games through the 2019 season, and in 2021, the team broke the NCAA All time Div 1 record in a 99-yard QB Touchdown run in a game against MAC foe, Buffalo. The men's basketball team has made 14 appearances in the NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship, with their most recent appearance coming in 2021.[2]
Address: 30 Park Pl, 45701 Athens
Athens Governmental Buildings
Building in Athens, Ohio. The Athens Governmental Buildings are a complex of buildings in central Athens, Ohio, United States. Among these buildings are the Athens County Courthouse, the Athens City Hall, and the former post office, now Haning Hall of Ohio University. The current post office is a much more recent building away from the town center, on East Stimson Avenue. Together, they were added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1979.
The oldest of the buildings included, the Silas Bingham House, also known as the old log courthouse, was built in 1804. The Athens County Courthouse was built during 1877–80. The Athens City Hall, built in the 1800s, was one of few city halls that old in southern Ohio which were still in use in 1999. Haning Hall is a former post office.[3]
Manasseh Cutler Hall
Building in Athens, Ohio. Manasseh Cutler Hall is the oldest academic building at Ohio University and the oldest in the original Northwest Territory of the United States. It is located at the center of the Ohio University campus in Athens, Ohio. A National Historic Landmark, it continues to house school offices. It was named for Manasseh Cutler, a New England physician, botanist, and minister who wrote the University's charter in 1804.[4]
Athens County Public Libraries
Public library in Athens, Ohio. The Athens County Public Libraries are a consortium of seven public libraries located in Athens County, Ohio. The library system was originally known as the Nelsonville Public Library. The original facility in Nelsonville was created in 1935 as an outgrowth of the Nelsonville school system.
The library system has an inventory of about 300,000 items. In recent years, it has provided computers with Internet connections at its libraries, and this service has been shown to be very popular.
Recently, the library system has begun a landscaping program at its libraries to introduce a wider variety of plantings, especially including native trees and shrubs.[5]
Address: 30 Home St, 45701 Athens
Beasley Building
Historical landmark in Athens, Ohio. The Beasley Building is a historic commercial building in downtown Athens, Ohio, United States. Constructed at the turn of the 20th century, this industrial building has been named a historic site.
Built of brick with elements of iron, the Beasley Building is a three-story structure with a five-bay facade. Each bay features paired Romanesque Revival windows above a beltcourse with cornice, while an entablature of geometric shapes surrounds the building near its roofline. Upon its construction, the building was intended to convey a sense of architectural balance, contrasting the two-story height of the main windows with the beltcourse and frieze, as well as a sense of pure massiveness.
Situated in downtown Athens, the Beasley Building lies within an area that has served as Athens' commercial center since the community's founding. Substantial industry in the area began in 1840 when the Hocking Canal was constructed through the area, and the coming of the Scioto and Hocking Valley Railroad in 1855 expanded its commercial importance. Charles Higgins, a local miller, was one of the partners in the firm of Eldridge and Higgins, which bought the building's site in 1904 and began construction, although it was then purchased by Frank Beasley, a prominent miller from nearby Amesville. His firm eventually turned the Beasley Building into the region's largest gristmill powered by electricity, although it eventually closed and was converted for grocery purposes.
Late in 1982, the Beasley Building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places, qualifying both because of its architecture and its place in the area's history. One year later, the building was awarded approximately $1.1 million in federal rehabilitation tax credits.[6]
John Calhoun Baker University Center
Event venue in Athens, Ohio. The John Calhoun Baker University Center, located near the center of Ohio University's main campus in Athens, Ohio, is a building that serves the Ohio University student body.
Named for Ohio University’s 14th President, John Calhoun Baker, the Center opened in January 2007. It replaced the original Baker University Center which was located on the northwest corner of E. Union St. and College St. (across from the College Green). The building provides facilities, programs, services and amenities that serve the University community, the Athens, Ohio community and visitors. It is operated by the Ohio University Division of Student Affairs.[7]
Sheltering Arms Hospital
Historical landmark in Athens, Ohio. The Sheltering Arms Hospital, located in Athens, Ohio, started as a two-room home-based maternity ward in 1921 and grew into a medical and surgical facility as the original facility was expanded. In operation at 19 Clarke Street from 1921 until 1970, Sheltering Arms moved into a new facility in 1970 named the Charles G. O’Bleness Memorial Hospital, and was renamed the OhioHealth O’Bleness Hospital when it became part of OhioHealth in 2014.[8]
Athens Downtown Historic District
Historical place in Athens, Ohio. Athens Downtown Historic District is a registered historic district in Athens, Ohio, listed in the National Register on September 30, 1982. It contains 88 contributing buildings, made from an assortment of materials.
The architecture is in the style of Late Victorian with periods of significance from 1900–1924, 1875–1899, and 1850–1874. The downtown district is currently being used for Commerce / Trade, Domestic, Education, and Government.
The district has a number of contiguous contributing buildings, many with brick facades, bracketed cornices, and decorative arched stone lintels.[9]