Built between 1902 and 1904, it was conceived by Eugene J. Barney of the Barney & Smith Car Company and consists of nine interconnecting buildings topped by a glass-domed rotunda, 70 feet (21 m) high and 90 feet (27 m) in diameter (detailing around the dome includes oak leaves and acorns, grain, rams' heads, wild turkeys, and cornucopia), below which two balconied upper floors circle the central enclave.

Through each building runs spacious arcades, richly constructed of marble and mosaic tile, converging into the Arcade Market House, which, with its magnificent glass dome and beautifully decorated galleries surrounding and overlooking the Market House, is unlike any building in this country; artistic in conception and perfect in execution."

Following Progressive Era's focuses on public health, the Dayton Arcade was constructed to be a clean and safe hub for food distribution.

[2] Originally, the main spaces were used for a major food market, with retail stores, offices, and apartments on the upper floors.

Through the first four decades of the twentieth century, this super supermarket and retail center was one of Downtown Dayton's prime attractions and destinations, offering the unusual in fruit and vegetables, seafood, baked goods, food specialties, meats and meat specialties, fresh-cut flowers, and assorted luxury items available in or out of season.

The 1930s brought the Great Depression, and though the Arcade remained a fixture of the downtown commercial district, it still suffered as the city was hit hard economically.

[4] Dayton's industrial sector improved significantly during WWII and afterward, which directly correlated with the Arcade regaining strength.

[6] This, along with the white population of Dayton moving to the suburbs in droves, saw the Arcade lose its major customer bases and soon fell into decline by the 1970s.

Given the general decline of retail activity and volume within the central business district, financial success gradually eluded Arcade Square, and it was closed to the public in 1990.

The sheriff's sale occurred on March 12, 2009, and the building was purchased by Dayton Arcade, LLC, for the minimum bid of $615,106.02.

[8] In June 2015, Sandvick Architects and Jera Construction, Inc. announced that the Arcade was still structurally sound and made some initial redevelopment suggestions.

[9] In a 3-part series of videos the Urban Design Coordinator for the City of Dayton, discussed the steps being taken in Fall of 2015 toward bringing the Arcade back into productive use.

The Dayton City Commission passed legislation in September 2015 for a $700,000 "Dry and Stable" initiative to be done on the Dayton Arcade to complete gutter cleaning and maintenance, securing any broken or missing glass frames, and fixing the mortar on some of the buildings where rain damage has eroded the mortar away.

The funds used to secure the building through this "Dry and Stable" initiative were placed as a lien on the Arcade and will be repaid to the city by future developers.

An article by Lewis Wallace at WYSO stated that "The [Miller-Valentine Group] hasn’t necessarily agreed to pursue that larger project, but these first steps are a glimmer of hope after a long time in limbo.

[15] A mini-docuseries aired on local WPTD PBS/Think TV entitled The Dayton Arcade: Waking the Giant, released in the fall of 2020, chronicles the history and redevelopment timelines to the 2021 reopening.

A grand opening virtual tour hearing the vision of community leaders and developer Cross Street Partners took place on Thursday, March 4.

[19] Startup Grounds, The Hub Powered by PNC’s new bistro featuring food from local underrepresented, minority-owned, and women-owned vendors, opened Sept. 16 2021 at the Dayton Arcade.

The group occupies 2,000 square feet of space on the second floor of the Arcade, with office windows looking out onto Ludlow Street and near the rotunda inside.