The Lagonda Building is located within the core block area of downtown Springfield, Ohio, on the northwest corner of the intersection of Spring and High Streets. It is one of three properties at that intersection listed on the National Registry of Historic Places, and each represents an important thread in the fabric of American culture. Saint Raphael Church and the Warder Literacy Center represent religion and education, and The Lagonda Building reflects our community's late-19th-century attempt to positively influence social order. Construction was sponsored by a group of influential private citizens, and The Lagonda Club was established with the completion of the Lagonda Building in 1894. The club served as a gathering place for men of affairs to discuss issues of the day and resolve civic concerns.
The word Lagonda is a Shawnee Indian term meaning buck's horn and was used to refer to what is now Buck Creek long before Springfield's founding. The Shawnee chose Lagonda because the meandering path the creek follows resembles a buck’s antler. We could find no explanation for the name change, but due to the recreational and commercial importance of Buck/Lagonda Creek, both Buck and Lagonda have been used to imply significance for more than a century. Most recently with the creation of Buck Creek State Park and Clarence Brown Reservoir (Lagonda Lake), both have gained regional prominence. Other instances of Lagonda used in titles include a hotel, an avenue, a manufacturing concern, an athletic field, a school, a park, an automobile, and an automobile enthusiast club.
During early organization for our Lagonda Challenge Project we were excited to learn we are not the only ones planning to revive the power of Lagonda in 2010. Aston Martin has announced they will manufacture a sports version of the Lagonda automobile and offer it as a part of their product line this year. We were even more excited to learn the Lagonda automobile was invented and first manufactured by a Springfield, Ohio, native. According to News-Sun staff writer Tom Stafford, Wilbur Gunn was born in Troy, Ohio, in 1860, but lived his early and young adult years in Springfield with his parents at what is now a house at 556 South Limestone Street.
Gunn conceived, manufactured, and raced the Lagonda automobile to fame in England in the early 1900's. After his death in the 1920's his company continued to produce the Lagonda until the '40's when Aston Martin acquired the name and all attendant privileges. The rest of the Lagonda automobile story is boilerplate until 2010. If the story and the photographs are accurate Wilbur will be spinning with joy at the fruits of Aston Martin's labor this year.
We would be speculating to say Aston Martin's purpose for launching their Lagonda project is the same as ours, but we suspect it is. Our general purpose is to create a product that will serve the public in a self-sustaining manner and grow market share and appreciation with every passing year. Our specific intent is to help preserve the Lagonda Building by reviving The Lagonda Club as Club Lagonda and operate it as a youth and events-oriented community club. We also plan to complement community service organizations by offering our facility to them for special events that augment their purposes.