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Block Smith Gym Sold To Preservation, NC
Old LHS gymnasium primed for adaptive residential re-use
Editor
The Block Smith Gym is behind what is today the Lincoln County Campus of Gaston College. For decades, it served Lincolnton High and Junior High schools. (Photos Courtesy Preservation NC)
LINCOLNTON––It’s a case of new life for an old gym.
According to Denver-based real estate agent Anna Wiseman, the 70-year-old Charles “Block” Smith Gymnasium was recently sold for $50,000 to noted historic group Preservation, NC. Situated on about an acre and a third of land at 130 E. Rhodes St. in the downtown Lincolnton suburbs, just off Aspen Street and behind the present location of the Lincolnton Campus of Gaston College, the 12,608-square-foot gym spent decades serving the students of the old Lincolnton High and, after 1976, Lincolnton Junior High schools.
“My buyers have just closed on this property and are eager to begin its renovation and preservation,” Wiseman told The Herald this week, explaining that the gym is set for residential renovation.
For 12 years (1925-37), the gym’s namesake was a beloved teacher and coach at Lincolnton High. Located just inside the entrance and placed there in 1954, a plaque memorializing Smith (1901-44) hails him for his efforts as a counsellor, a leader and a true sportsman.
“The new owners plan to transform this residentially-zoned building, while preserving its unique architectural elements,” Wiseman informed. “We’ve partnered with Jack Thomson from Preservation North Carolina to ensure we honor its past during the renovation. However, we need your help! We’re looking to fill this space with memorabilia and photographs from its prime days. If you have any items or memories to share, please reach out to me.”
Wiseman continued that these recent efforts have generated much local interest.
“My ’phone has been blowing up over the gym!” she enthused. “The buyers are excited about the project. And I’m very excited to see what they do with it!”
Got any items you’d like to see displayed in the renovated Smith Gym? Call Wiseman at (704) 473-1450; see the Website at www.housesbyanna.com; or e-mail her at anna@housesbyanna.com.
The plaque memorializes the late coach, Block Smith, gone 80 years now.
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