Dayton's New Municipal Building Open House 1965

In 1965, Dayton's new Municipal building was located on West 1st Ave. Prior to this new facility, the offices of City Hall were in the old Fire Hall building which was located on Main Street directly behind this new Municipal building. (Photo Courtesy of Glass Family)

On Saturday afternoon February 6, 1965, the City of Dayton held open house for it’s new Municipal Building located on 1^st Ave. Visitors received door prizes and free refreshments. The Rhea Central High School band also performed for the visitors. Bob Brandy with his horse “Rebel” were present along with the guest speaker Frank E. Smith, a member of the T.V.A. Board of Directors.

The open house began at 9am with the ribbon cutting by the city commission and special guests. The official dedication was at 2pm. This was a joint celebration of the 30^th anniversary of Dayton’s service with T.V.A. electrical power beginning on February 1, 1935, and the dedication of the new municipal building constructed through a $140,000 bond issue of the city electrical department.

Dayton’s electrical usage in 1965 had grown over the previous 30 years to were the city now was using more power each year than the entire TVA system sold the year that Dayton began using their services in 1935. Dayton’s newest industry, Dayton Products, Inc. a division of El Kay Mfg. Co., was expected to consume more power than the entire city of Dayton in 1965.

The photo above is a current day view (2021) of the City of Dayton Municipal Building. Over the years renovations and additions have change the appearance of the building. (Photo by Dean Wilson)