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Like the Portland City Hall, the City Hall #5 in Salem had its construction delayed by the Depression that slowed the US economy between 1893-1895. Architect Walter D. Pugh originally produced a design for a 156-foot bell tower; to economize, the campanile was shortened 20 feet. The initial cost estimate for the building was $30,000, although, due to debt servicing costs, the ultimate amount totaled $138,350, paid off c. 1915. Hutchins and Southwick served as the building contractors working with Pugh. Salem City Hall #5 operated from 1895-1972. Because it had become decrepit by the the 1960s, Salem voters had two bond issues, one in 1963 the other in 1968, to provide funds to replace the building. The first vote failed, but the second succeeded, and the old landmark disappeared four years later.

The City of Salem, OR, had four previous locations where administrative and judicial offices existed. The first was in the Rector Building (1851). For a time, around 1855, the Rector Building provided space for both the City of Salem and the OR State Capitol. City officials then used a succession of office spaces; the Patton Building (1869) was used for a time, and, subsequently, the City of Salem Recorder's Office accommodated the bulk of city government, and, finally, city hall operations went on in a temporary building on Liberty Street during the construction of this building between 1893-1895. The land on which the City Hall #5 stood, had previously been occupied by a boarding house owned by Napoleon Davis. The building enabled the city to consolidate city administrative offices in one building formerly dispersed in separate accommodations. Historian Sue Bell wrote of the city hall's early layout: "On the basement level were the recorder's and the Marshal's offices, the jail with 36 cells, Police Court in the southeast tower, and the Fire Department and stabling for the horses were in the lower level. On the second floor, reached by a flight of stairs on the east, were the City Treasurer's, City Attorney's, and Chief Fire Department Engineer's offices, while directly above the Fire Department were eight bedrooms, a sitting room, and bath for the firemen. Also on this floor was located the 32 x 45-foot Council chamber. The upper story contained an auditorium with seating for 1,000 and a 24 x 38-foot stage on the west end. This third-floor gathering place became a social center for Salem up to 1912." (See Sue Bell, "Salem's Old City Hall,"Accessed 01/12/2014.)

Demolished; the Salem City Hall #5 was destroyed on 09/02/1972.

PCAD id: 18982