Marion's Ghost Block

Marion's Ghost Block. Historic Marion, Iowa. , Marion's "Ghost Block," on the south side of 7th Avenue beginning at 11th Street going east, has been a major retail and industrial area since the birth of our town. Throughout the years, the block has been home to the original Baptist Church, a fire department (the Marion Hook and Ladder Company), the C.M. and St. Paul Depot, and multiple groceries, tailors, drugstores and offices. , In 1924, a major fire ripped through the businesses on 11th Street between 6th and 7th Avenue. A defective chimney led to more than $50,000 in damage and the need to rebuild. By April of 1925, businesses had already rebuilt and were moving back into the area. , The businesses on the Ghost Block were major beneficiaries of the railroad industry in Marion. With the C.M. and St. Paul Depot on the south end of the block and the roundhouse just a few blocks to the east, businesses sprouted up to support the many railroad workers and travelers. , In the 1970s and 1980s, retail began to fall on hard times. The decision was made at that time to raze the "Ghost Block" and build the strip mall that currently sits next to City Square Park. In 1988, the buildings, including the old depot, were torn down and the Marion Square Plaza was built.