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Tour of Homes 2001
921 21st Street Howard and Florence Neilsen House Straightforward in design, this two-story home is a simplified Queen Anne, a style popular from about 1880 to the first years of the 20th century. The front gable of this structure almost obscures the central hipped roof. Three styles of shingles ornament the attic level of the gable-clapboard at the top, fish scale in the middle, and plain shingles at the porch line. The bay on the south side is a typical Queen Anne detail. The full-width front porch, added in the 1920's or 1930's, is based on the Craftsman style, indicated by details such as the grouped columns and variegated textured brick piers. Anastasia Murphy, a prominent resident of the area, had the house built in 1895 as a rental property. The eminent Midwestern architect George P. Studuhar and his family lived here from 1895 through 1898 while George constructed his elaborate home atop the bluff. In 1929 Howard P. Neilsen and his bride, Florence, bought the home, which remained in the Neilsen family until the current owners purchased it in 1994 as a fixer-upper. The current owners constructed and restored the front steps and railings in 1995. The Great Unveiling in 1996 revealed the original clapboard siding, which was then painted in a five-color scheme. Adhering to their "one room a year plan," the front parlor, entry hall, dining room, and sitting room were restored between 1995 and 2000, Layers of wallpaper, mirrors, and foam-tiled ceilings were moved. Plaster was patched, oak and fir staircase was stripped, and the wood trim was varnished. The owners were able to salvage an oak window bench in the dining room from another Rock Island house and retrofitted it into the three-sided bay. Remaining true to the Arts and Crafts style, the owners have decorated the rooms with early 20th century styles - Arts and Crafts, Art Nouveau, and Art Deco - blended them with historic paint colors and stencil designs to create a light and open decor.
817 23rd Street Frank P. Welch House A steep, irregular roof, an overhanging front gable with lower crossed gables on the north and south sides, a cutaway bay on the south side, and an attached tower identify this house as a Free Classic Queen Anne (a Queen Anne with Colonial Revival details). Elements of the Shingle style are also present. These features create an exuberant appearance. Ornamentation and fenestration (arrangement of windows and doors) present a variety of shapes. On the north side, an intriguing oval-shaped window is set close to the attic floor at a 45 degree angle. This window is known vernacularly as a witch's window, perhaps because a witch with a broomstick and conical hat could not enter the house at that angle.The landmark home was built circa 1897 for Frank P. Welch, president of Illinois Oil Company. Welch's widow, Grace, lived in the house until her death in 1990. She occupied one of the five apartments into which the house was divided around 1940. Wrought-iron fencing, manufactured by Illinois Oil metal works, surrounds the home and yard. In restoring the property, the current owners removed the retaining wall where the fence originally rested, refurbished the fence, and terraced the slope to the sidewalk. A church once stood on the land south of the house. The church property was later a formal garden with a circular fountain. Today it is romping space for boys and dogs. Stained and leaded glass windows can be seen as you enter the home from the rebuilt front porch. The first floor contains four rooms - a front parlor, family parlor, dining room, and kitchen. The south addition to the family parlor, which runs from basement to attic, was added during the 1920's. Three bedrooms, two baths, and a maid's room make up the second floor. An enclosed walkway connects the second floor to a sleeping porch over the carriage house. Windows can be seen on all four sides of the porch, a design feature that in the days before air-conditioning permitted a breeze from any direction to cool sleepers.
1045 23rd Street John and Edna Scheuermann House John G. Scheuermann, a building contractor, and his wife, Edna, built this home in 1907. Located partway up the bluff and bordered on two sides by the former Hauberg Estate, the house is an example of the Foursquare architectural style. The facade is three-ranked with a centered entrance. The house has a hipped roof and three hipped dormers. The front dormer has three windows; those on the sides each have two. Dripcourses are found between the first and second stories and at the bottom of the clapboard siding. The full-width porch has Ionic columns, whose capitals are decorated with opposing spiral designs. The balusters and top and bottom rails are square. The house had been abandoned and long neglected when the current owners bought it. After sitting empty for seven years, the roof was so dilapidated that it was possible to see daylight through it from the basement. The interior of the house had sustained major damage. Before and after photos show what the owners accomplished through several years of hard work and dedication.As visitors enter the home, the eye is drawn to the striking staircase that winds to an alcove on the second floor. On the left, large oak columns, miraculously salvaged during restoration, separate the foyer from the front parlor. The oak mantle in the family parlor is original, restored with significant effort. Renovation of the kitchen included removal of a wall to create a comfortable, spacious work area with a convenient center island. The house includes a finished attic and a Jacuzzi on the back porch, evidence that a restored historic home can gracefully accommodate the modern amenities.
811 20th Street Charles H. Newton House The oldest of the houses on the tour this year, this simplified Italianate-style house was built about 1876. Characteristics of the Italianate style, popular from 1840 to 1885, evident in this house are the clean lines, low-pitched roof, widely over hanging eaves and tall narrow windows. Perhaps because the structure was originally a store on the first floor with the owners residence on the second, the fenestration (arrangement of windows and doors) is unusual. The second story of the facade has three arched windows with keystones. The windows on the first story have headers. The number of windows and their detailing differ on each of the other elevations of the original structure. The south side has a single arched window without a keystone. The east side, disregarding the clapboard addition, has two arched windows on the second story and one on the first, none with keystones. The north side also has three windows, all with keystones. A clue that the structure was originally built as a store with a residence above is the west wall of the porch foundation practically abuts the sidewalk.The current owners bought the home in 1997 after much of the restoration had been completed. Eleven-foot ceilings on the ground floor give a feeling of spaciousness despite the relatively small size of the rooms. The owners have created a master retreat on the second floor. Besides the master bedroom and bath, they have added a computer room and a sitting room. The kitchen was a later addition.
816 22nd Street Frederick and Rose Titterington House Built in 1904, this home was designed by Mr. Titterington and John Volk, a prominent local contractor. The current owners are only the fourth homeowners. This home is the only one on this year's tour that has never undergone extensive renovation. The style of the house is Colonial Revival, characterized by a balanced facade, double-hung windows, and the use of stringcourses or decorative cornices. The clean lines and symmetry were a turn-of-the-century response to ornate Victorian styles. The home has a center entrance and a center-hall plan. Over the entrance at the second story is a small balcony. Ionic-style columns, square balusters, and dentril trim highlight both the front and side porches. The clapboard siding, last painted 13 years ago, has a flare at the bottom edge of the second story and another just above the foundation to shed rainwater away from the foundation. The house has always been white. Photographs taken shortly after construction show it looking almost exactly as it does today. Mr. Titterington was interested in comfort in his home. Double-thick exterior walls, with an additional layer of lath and plaster between the inner and outer shells were designed to keep out the cold of winter and the heat of summer. Huge double windows, five feet wide by eight feet high, on the main floor give ample ventilation. Every room in the house has a corner exposure, again promoting ventilation.
2207-2209 7th Avenue Anastasia Murphy House This brick double house, built between 1877 and 1879, and soon to become four loft style condominiums, is an example of Second Empire architectural style. An important style of the American house between 1860 and 1880, Second Empire is the earliest of the Victorian styles. The style is characterized by the mansard roof, named after the 17th century French architect Francois Mansart. The roof has two slopes on all sides with the lower slope steeper than the upper one. Six triangular openings pierce the mansard roof, each protecting a window above the two projecting bays. The designer repeated the triangular form in the roof over the two dormer windows in the center, the two tiny windows in the center of the bays at the roof line, and in the hipped roof deck. The English basement is another unusual feature of the home. Anatasia Murphy, the original owner of the home, was described in her obituary as "one of the best-known women in this community. . . gifted with considerable talent as artist, pianist, and vocalist. . . Many of her huge oil paintings have been preserved in her home." The Murphy half of the home (west side) was occupied by family members until 1984.The property is being developed into four two-story Chicago-style lofts. The lower two-story units are 2250 square feet, and the upper two-story units are 2010 square feet. Each unit will have a two car carriage house, a fireplace, interior exposed brick and wood structural beams, interior balconies, original walnut balustrades, and a rear veranda or patio. The exterior will be a museum quality restoration. Mother's Day Tour of Homes 2002 |
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