U.S. Naval Air Station, YMCA Building, West Avenue, Pensacola, Escambia County, FL

Significance: Constructed in 1918 as the Young Men's Christian Association (YMCA), Building No. 322 played a supportive role serving the recreational, social, and spiritual needs of service personnel during World War I and the early years of aviation training at Naval Air Station (NAS) Pensacola. No original architecture plans are on file at the station, and the architect and contractor are not known. The one-story, rectangular, wood-frame building features a side-gabled roof and lacks any distinctive or noteworthy architectural ornamentation. Modifications over time to the original structure included the removal of the west wing, probably during the 1930s. In the early 1920s, the building had been converted to use as the station library, a function the building maintained until 1939. During World War II, Building No. 322 was re-purposed as the Catholic chapel. Modifications to the building in this capacity included the addition of a steeple and porch alterations. Converted in the early 1960s to the Pen-Air Credit Union, the building sustained major exterior modifications, including removal of the steeple and elimination of the multiple roof dormers. By the late 1970s the interior of the building was again modified to create administrative offices supporting the nearby brig. The building continued in its brig administrative office capacity until at least the mid-1990s. By 2003, the building's use had shifted to the OCS Uniform Store. Despite several significant modifications to its exterior, Building No. 322 remains compatible in scale and materials to its original design. Building No. 322 is located in the southeastern section of NAS Pensacola, within the boundaries of the Pensacola Naval Air Station Historic District, which is listed in the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP). The National Park Service designated this district as a National Historic Landmark (NHL) in 1976. Neither nomination clearly defines the district's period of significance; however, Building No. 322 is not identified as an historic resource within the district.
Survey number: HABS FL-493
Building/structure dates: 1918 Initial Construction
Building/structure dates: 1920 Subsequent Work
Building/structure dates: 1939 Subsequent Work
Building/structure dates: 1960 Subsequent Work
National Register of Historic Places NRIS Number: 76000595