Centerville combines historic architecture and theater with museums by appointment and outdoor recreation. This gives you a range of options for your stay: a historic architectural district, theater programs for young people and families, three museums, and walking trails and disc golf. If local history is your focus, you can find it both in the district’s preservation goals and in the exhibits and theater building. Outdoors, walking trails and the Storybook Trail offer different experiences.
Historic Architecture and Theater
Centerville’s Architectural Preservation District was established by city ordinance in 1972 to preserve historic buildings and the surrounding architecture. The preservation goal therefore encompasses not only individual buildings but also their architectural context. Those interested in local history can view the district as a combination of buildings and the built environment around them.
The Town Hall Theatre is located in the historic Washington Township Hall at 27 N. Main Street in downtown Centerville. The historic stage offers high-quality theater programs for young people and their families throughout the year. The productions are aimed at young audiences and are performed by young people and adults. The theater also offers acting classes and performing arts camps. The offerings thus include both performances and classes or camps.
Museums by Appointment
Centerville-Washington History operates three museums in the city, which are open to the public by prior appointment. If you plan a museum visit, be sure to make arrangements in advance. The Walton House Museum features year-round exhibits of local history artifacts and relics dating from the 1800s through the 1930s.
The Schoolhouse Museum is a replica of a one-room schoolhouse, with desks, artifacts, and photographs of nine historic one-room schools. The two museums have different focuses: the Walton House features exhibits spanning a broad period of local history, while the Schoolhouse centers on a specific type of school.
The cultural offerings also differ in form: the Preservation District focuses on buildings and their surroundings, the Town Hall Theatre on performances and theater classes, and the museums on local history through exhibits and a schoolhouse replica. You can choose among architecture, stage programs, and museum topics rather than treating these offerings as alike.
Walking Trails and Storybook Trail
Leonard E. Stubbs Memorial Park has walking trails and a disc golf course. This gives you a choice between walking and disc golf as different recreational activities.
The Storybook Trail runs along an ADA-accessible path next to a large pond behind the amphitheater. It includes a 630-foot section of paved path designed as an interactive reading experience. Weather-resistant signs display pages from a children’s picture book and invite families to read from page to page. The offerings have different focuses: Stubbs Park has walking trails and disc golf, while the Storybook Trail combines a path with reading a picture book one page at a time.
Discover more destinations: Miamisburg, Dayton, Englewood, Germantown, Brookville, Moraine, Huber Heights, Vandalia
For the main travel overview: Montgomery.
