The building is best-known today as the headquarters of Franklin County Public Health.

The building was built from 1905 to 1906 by local architect Frank Packard.

[1] The building features a 4,200-seat auditorium, which was the second largest in the United States behind Madison Square Gardens when it was completed.

[4] The historical society also created the museum COSI (the Center of Science and Industry).

COSI operated out of Memorial Hall from 1964 to 1999 before it relocated to its current space in Franklinton.