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Homes and apartments side-by-side Owners, landlords and renters arm-in-arm Families, empty-nesters and singles neighbor to neighbor
Ninth Street Hill (pictured here at the turn of the century) is urban living at its finest. We are about fun, friendliness and community fiber.
Welcome to Historic Ninth Street Hill A Piece of Lafayette History
corridor. But the houses of Ninth Street Hill remain, stalwart as ever, a testament to a bygone era revitalized for a new way of life. Many of the large houses have been returned to single- family dwellings. Long-time residents live side-by-side along young families with small children, homeowners and renters alike, all reveling in the joys of life in a historic neighborhood. For the past 25 years, the Ninth Street Hill Neighborhood Association has been an active group, charged with involving and energizing homeowners to serve as stewards of the historic homes that have, for more than a century, stood as a hallmark of what the city has to offer. From the bungalows of the 1920s to Victorian-era mansions to ramblers of the 1950s, the neighborhood is a collection of architecture, of history, of people.
It was in the mid-1850s that prominent Lafayette residents began to erect stately homes along South Ninth Street, heading up the hill south of downtown. The grand residences were a statement on gracious living in the Victorian era. By the mid part of the 20th century, the glory of the neighborhood was fading fast; large houses, no longer practical and difficult and expensive to maintain, were being subdivided into duplexes or apartments; houses were lost to fire and, in their stead, were built smaller, more modern homes. The neighborhood stood as an aging relic, a picture of a time gone by. Thus it was that, in the mid-‘80s, a group of neighbors decided to reclaim the neighborhood as it dangled precariously on the precipice of deterioration. In 1986 the Historic Ninth Street Hill Neighborhood Association was formed, focusing on revitalization of this historic piece of Lafayette.
Notable Events A Festooned Fourth In the week before the Independence Day holiday, Ninth Street Hill is a showcase of pride with a nostalgic display of Americana. The houses on the Hill are bedecked in patriotic bunting and display a collection of historic flags, with flags lining the parkway.
A New Beginning The streetcars no longer run from downtown Lafayette; the trains no longer dissect the city, their whistles calling as they pass through the railway
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Awards
Children’s Box Parade Children (and adults) are invited each year, on the Saturday before July 4, to join in an old-fashioned Children’s Box Parade. Children pull, push, or wear their box creations as they parade down the hill toward downtown to cheering onlookers, with the event culminating in a flag raising ceremony led by local dignitaries. Afterward, the community stays for an old-fashioned Fourth of July celebration on the grounds surrounding the Art Museum and the Moses Fowler House, with music, games, crafts, and ice cream.
Holiday Luminaria The houses of Ninth Street Hill are illuminated in the days before Christmas as traditional luminaria — paper bags with lit candles — line the streets at dusk. The candles twinkle in the snow and darkness, a holiday gift to the people of Lafayette.
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SERVAAS Award • given by Historic Landmarks of Indiana for marshaling public support of historic preservation.
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Marquis de Lafayette Award • for neighborhood spirit and beautification
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National Register of Historic Places
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Lafayette’s First Residential Local Historic District
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State of Indiana Historic Marker
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One of America’s Most Fun Neighborhoods— named by Disney’s FamilyFun Magazine!
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On list of Great Places in America, American Planning Association
Located just within the Neighborhood Garden, this stone displays the American Planning Association’s recognition of Ninth St. Hill as a Great Neighborhood.
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About The Tour Tickets
Restrooms
This booklet serves as your ticket, as well as a guide to the houses you will see today. Greeters will mark the back of your ticket as you tour each site.
Restrooms are available at the Art Museum of Greater Lafayette, 102 S. Tenth St. (at the bottom of Ninth Street Hill). Restrooms are not available in houses.
Children must have a ticket; babies in arms are free. No strollers, please.
Choose How You Tour
Because these are historic residences, they are built before the Americans with Disabilities Act and are not accessible.
All tour sites are open between noon and 3 p.m. You may tour in any order you like. Enter each site where you see a sign. Visitors will be admitted in small groups.
No pets allowed. No photography or video recording.
Please respect the privacy of neighbors and homes who are not on the tour. And mind the traffic when
Hours The tour hours are noon-3 p.m.
crossing busy streets.
Parking
Information Center:
Art Museum of Greater Lafayette
Parking is available on the street, at the Art Museum of Greater Lafayette, and at Central Presbyterian Church in the lot on 8th Street, between South and Columbia.
At the Art Museum you will find: n
Courtesy Shuttles Free bus service (courtesy of Holiday Inn/Four Points by Sheraton) will be available from the parking at Central Presbyterian Church and from the Art Museum to the top of the hill. Wave and the bus will stop for you.
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Ticket sales ($20 day of tour)
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Free bottled water
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Restrooms and first aid
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Fabulous art exhibits
Ninth Street Hill Neighborhood Map Tour Homes Points of Interest Restrooms First aid
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Points of Interest Mound Spirea, Forsythia Northern Sun, Common Witch-hazel, Miss Kim Lilac, Gold Flame Spirea, Winterberry, Service Berry shrubs, Redbud, Black Hill Spruce. Broad Moor Juniper, Andorra Juniper and a scattering of perennial and annual flowers.
904 State Lou and Nancy Nargi Home/Apartments On the corner of Ninth and State, this house was obviously designed for the site—it seems to face both streets! The home displays numerous characteristics of Victorian architecture: a porte-cochere, turret, varied roof lines, porches galore, art glass and leaded glass windows, balconies, cupola with finial and sawtooth decorative shingles.
122 South Ninth “Rosewood” Cottage Thomas Wood was the postmaster of Lafayette when he spearheaded the first air mail flight in the United States, which left the Tippecanoe County courthouse square on August 17, 1859. At the time, Wood lived in this house. Rose and Stan Thomas lived here in the late 1980s to 1990s. Rose combined her name and Wood’s and christened the name of her cottage “Rosewood.” Rumor has it, that the cottage is one of Lafayette’s earliest remaining structures, built in 1835.
907 State Ayers Mansion This home, a flagship of the neighborhood for its visibility at the top of the hill, has recently been purchased; you will likely see workers in the yard as the complete restoration is currently underway. Please do not step on the lawn or up to the house, so as not to impede the process.
402 South Ninth Ball Mansion
16 South Ninth
Italianate/Second Empire, built from 1865-1869 by Judge Cyrus Ball The Ball Residence is built on what was called “the pasture” because some members of the Lafayette community owned land on the hill where their livestock was driven to graze.
Neighborhood Garden The neighborhood garden was established in 2003 on the site of the former railroad corridor after the railroad tracks were relocated along the Wabash River. The City of Lafayette provided funds from Community Development Block Grant money to help create the garden with the Historic Ninth Street Hill Neighborhood Association and Bennett’s Greenhouse. Plantings: Five types of grasses give height and movement and provide winter beauty. Lavender Munstead and Russian Sage provide color and fragrance. Other plantings include—Lime
The most notable feature of the Ball Mansion is the front mansard tower with iron balustrade. The double entry doors and balcony with iron balustrade add to its grandness. Notice the patterned masonary chimneys. The brick driveway is original. The home was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1984.
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102 South Tenth Art Museum of Greater Lafayette Post-modern, 1960
The Historic Ninth Street Hill considers itself lucky to have one very modern resident: The Art Museum of Greater Lafayette. Having the Art Museum at the bottom of the hill adds a connection to the arts, a vital part of any thriving community.
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The museum, built in 1960, added the Weil addition in 1981; extra space was also completed in 1988. n
The McDonald and the Weil Galleries host “Chairity: Wild and Crazy Chairs” through September 12. Place your bids for the chairs online at www. artlafayette.org A Live Auction will be held on September 15 for a select few of the chairs.
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The East Gallery hosts the Brown County Art Guild Juried Exhibition through September 12.
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The Shook Community Room/Gallery hosts “The Clay’s the Thing: An Invitational Exhibit by Museum Pottery Students.”
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The newly renovated Manya Fan Art Education Center is home to studio art classes for adults and children! Visit our website for details on education programs: www.artlafayette.org.
403 South Ninth Kerry & Gena Brown Queen Anne, built in 1890
Robert W. Sample built this house for his daughter Anne and her husband, Ashley Johnson. Sample was one of the first business owners in Lafayette. In 1863, he formed and became president of First National Bank, a forerunner to today’s Chase Bank in Lafayette. He also raised cattle and worked to perfect the Hereford breed. The Browns were first attracted to their home’s eye-catching turret and generous front porch. The beautiful gardens and the country feel in the heart of town also drew them to Ninth Street living. The Jon and Kathy Hicks family lived here for 25 years. They restored the home, keeping the old, yet making it carefree and designed for easy living. The three-car garage was once a carriage house. It now has heating, central air, cable and telephone—everything to make car maintenance a joy!
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The huge, original front door opens to the striking foyer with its natural woodwork, open staircase and stained glass window.
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There are two sets of pocket doors. Notice the swinging door that once led to the butler’s pantry, which is now a guest bath.
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The spacious dining room glows with its original woodwork, beautiful bay window and access to the balcony. The massive dining room table, corner cabinet and buffet were custom-made for the room and left behind by the previous owner for the Browns to enjoy.
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The kitchen, with its access to the balcony, has a grand view of the “forest in the city.”
511 South Ninth Jean Chmielewski & Mark Lipton Late Victorian, 1895
In the 1940s, the Chmielewski/Lipton house was converted into a two-family dwelling (upstairs and downstairs). They have brought the house back to single family status by removing an exterior staircase and extra door, and opening up the previously blocked-off back spiral staircase between the kitchen and the upstairs.
original front window, front and side door, and latticework over the porch.
On the exterior of the house, they have exposed and restored the exterior woodwork along the top of the house in the front and on the sides, including the fishscale siding. List the top four features of your site, giving as much detail as possible. Indicate the rooms or areas where these features are located. (Attach additional sheets as needed.) n
On the exterior of house, you can see the the original porch latticework that is mirrored in the
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You can also see original fish-scale siding at the top level of the exterior in the front and on the sides.
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On the interior ground floor note the original foyer woodwork, doors with Eastlake style hinges, pocket doors and mantel.
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The secret spiral staircase linking the kitchen and the upstairs — check it out!
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The backyard features a lovely Japanese garden.
533 South Ninth Ruben & Janna Minjarez Four Square with Tudor detailing, built in 1905
The Minjarez family was first attracted to the location of their home; once inside, they fell in love with its beautiful staircase and original light fixtures.
It took the Minjarez family more than three years to restore the home. They’ve furnished it with many family heirlooms.
Several past owners of the home were Lafayette notables:
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Most of the light fixtures are original to the time when the home was converted from gas lighting to electric.
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The house has original oak, heart of pine and maple hardwood floors throughout.
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The focal point of the living room is the marble wood-burning fireplace.
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The windows of the large middle landing of the staircase and the front bedroom windows boast striking diamond panes.
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William and Grace Murdock: William’s father built the Bishop’s mansion nearby on Lingle Avenue. John and Agnes Ruger: John owned Ruger’s Bakery, which was once in the 200 block of North Sixth Street downtown. A street named after him is near Columbian Park. Erston Marshall: One of the first Lafayette Life Insurance presidents.
This home has a “twin-sister house” in Highland Park neighborhood.
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534 South Ninth Jason & Lisa Cannon American Foursquare, 1910
Lisa and Jason Cannon are the newest owners of this Prairie-influenced home. A former duplex, it housed servicemen returning from the second World War in the 1940s.
The Cannons have already done their share of restoration, by adding a dishwasher, new carpet and light fixtures, and natural slate flooring. They knocked out a wall, opening up the foyer, and have worked on landscaping.
The house has been returned to a single-family dwelling, though you can see how rooms have been repurposed. The spacious second-floor master bedroom was once a main living space for the apartment dwellers. n
There is a small office off the master bedroom with a built-in writing table and roll top desk.
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The sunroom adjacent to the downstairs living room features original woodwork.
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A small hidden room in the basement has a bar and built-in booth, all done in a nautical theme.
Future plans include converting the two front doors into a single entry, updating the bathrooms, and continuing improvements to landscaping.
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601 South Ninth Sarah & Tracy Hill Free Classic with Victorian details, 1895
This home was built and occupied by noted Lafayette family the Scheumanns from 1885-2004.
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The Hills were attracted to the charm and beauty of a historic neighborhood near a busy and thriving downtown.
The house is home to a collection of gifts presented to Benjamin Tracy, Secretary of the Navy, throughout his career and upon the christening of the “U.S.S. Tracy.”
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Over the past six years, the couple has replaced the roof, completed a loft apartment in the third story of the home, and repainted the exterior. The fireplace was given a slate “face lift.” Landscaping and other cosmetic changes to the interior of home have kept the couple busy.
The front staircase offers a beautiful window seat, with cutwork brackets on the exterior of the home.
The Hills are reworking the front staircase. It was previously turned to accommodate two entrances so that the home could be used as a duplex. They plan to mimic the original placement of the stairs to achieve the intended aesthetic of the entryway.
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The living room boasts two beautiful sets of pocket doors, which are both still in working order.
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Be sure to note the mural in the master bedroom. Sarah painted it to bring some interest to the large space, which originally was two rooms.
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609 South Ninth Paul & Olivia Schueler American Foursquare, 1915
Longtime Ninth Street Hill residents Paul and Olivia Schueler only recently undertook their latest project: restoration of their 1915 American Foursquare. The Foursquare was a popular building style in the late 19th and early 20th century, a reaction to the “excess” of the Victorian period. It embraced design elements of the Prairie and Craftsman schools, with its emphasis on handcrafted, “honest” woodwork. With the exception of one window, the entire exterior of the all-brick home is original. The kitchen features a 1960s look; other updates include the full and half bath and light fixtures. n
The living room bookcases still have their original leaded glass doors.
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The split staircase is also a feature of the Foursquare style.
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All of the original wood floors are intact.
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Be sure to check out the detail of the eaves bracket around the house.
801 State Dick Stout Cape Cod, built 1951
Dick Stout’s home sits where the Wetherill Estate once was located. It was built by Thise for the Joyce sisters; the original blueprints are still with the house. The house is a representation of the colonial revival ranch style that was popular in the early 1950s. During remodeling in 2005, workers found inside the walls 14 whiskey bottles and two vintage beer cans — the ones that look like oil cans — from Lafayette Brewing Company. Rumor has it that one of the Thise craftsmen imbibed while he worked.
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The wonderful tile in the main floor “Jean Harlow” bathroom was crafted by Lafayette’s famous Cassini Brothers ‘Tile Company.
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The basement was dug out about 20 years ago by former owners the Hockemas.
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The sunroom and two-car garage were added by previous owners Will and Sally Miller.
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During remodeling by the Millers, a hidden room off the master bedroom was discovered. It was turned into a cozy sitting room.
Garden
The original 1951 wood plank flooring glows in the entry and living room. The kitchen has been completely updated. Only the fireplace, with its charming niches, remains from the earlier design.
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The deck is of a floating design, resting on concrete supports, rather than on wooden supports sunk into the ground.
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The garden boasts a rich Tuscan flair.
822 Kossuth Street Dave & Sandy Lahr Craftsman Bungalow, Henry Marshall, founder of the Journal and Courier, built this house in 1916 as a wedding gift for his son, Pic.
Home
In 1978 they added the large family room and open deck with brick patio. In 1998 they removed the deck and added the side sun porch. In 2005 they remodeled the small bath and stripped the kitchen flooring to sub flooring, revealing stunning maple floors.
The Lahrs’ home, known as the “Honeymoon Cottage,” was built by Henry W. Marshall, founder of the Journal and Courier, as a wedding gift for his son Pic and his new bride. The builder/designer was George E. Holstead, a 1906 Purdue civil engineering graduate, who also designed and built the Main Street Bridge, now known as the Myers Pedestrian Bridge between Lafayette and West Lafayette. This house was one of only 233 Lafayette buildings designated as “Group 2” buildings of excellent architectural significance in the Lafayette Preservation Notebook, published by the Lafayette Redevelopment Commission in 1978. In 1971, the Lahrs remodeled the kitchen, which included removing black Carrara glass wall tile and sixfoot black cast iron sink with custom curved metal base.
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The design, with the many windows, gives the home an airy, open feel. This is especially true in the living room, with the large width of the front door and the windows all being actual doors, which originally opened out onto the front porch.
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The amount and massing of woodwork — the beams, crown moldings, wainscoting, and “built-in” components — are typical of craftsman Bungalows. Striking in the home is the dining room’s large builtin sideboard with leaded glass doors.
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Though not original to the house, note the Carrara glass in the bathroom and on the kitchen ceiling,
which was from Carrara, Italy. n
The larger pieces of white iron furniture on the southwest patio once belonged to the parents of neighbors Jane Boswell and Martha Hall. Martha used the outdoor pieces until she thought they were too rusty, then she discarded them. Sandy saw the pieces in the alley and brought them home. The Lahrs used elbow grease and rust inhibitor to restore the iron. Sandy’s other “trash-day finds” can be found about the garden.
Garden The layout of the exterior lends itself well to landscape design. At the time of construction, the emphasis was on foundation plantings, encircling the home’s foundation with shrubs then flowers. This created massed plantings of large evergreen shrubs along the Kossuth Street side and deciduous shrubs along the Ninth Street side. The garage area was left bare, with trees dotting along the side and back. The maple tree at the rear of the garage is believed to have been installed at the time of the home’s construction. The maple next to it, closer to Kossuth, was a sapling that was allowed to remain. In the 1950s the stones were installed on the southeast corner of the property with room for floral displays. The pond in the back patio area was reconstructed to a lesser depth with the addition of small fountains and bubblers.
Throughout the years the family has developed outdoor rooms, with various stones and concrete landscape squares, adding garden designs in these areas. The rear porch and brick patio were added in the 1970s when the family room was added. Much of the furniture of these “rooms” are period pieces picked up by the family through the years. An old house is a work in progress; the Lahrs know that another project is always lurking just around the bend.
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P arker Apartments,
LLC
Historic
Efficiency, 1 and 2 Bedroom Apartments P.O. Box 6952 Lafayette, Indiana 47909 Contact Tim: 765-412-0033
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“900 Block” HERE
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Instant Copy printer, neighbor, friend through the years! As the Historic Ninth Street Hill Neighborhood commemorates its 25th anniversary, we also celebrate our 25-year friendship with Bill Freeman and Instant Copy. For 25 years • Instant Copy has printed our monthly newsletter on what we call “screaming yellow” paper. The newsletter is always on time, even when we’ve been less than timely with our delivery to Bill. In 1987 • we held our first home tour and hoped that people would come. We had no money to print tour booklets. We assured Bill that the neighborhood association officers would cover the bills if the tour was a flop. He said, “Don’t worry about it. We’ll work something out.” The tour was a success, Bill celebrated with us, and we paid the bill! In 1988 • we applied for the prestigious SERVAAS Award given by The Historic Landmarks Foundation of Indiana. We assembled our entry—a multi-page bound booklet—on the floor of Instant Copy. Bill didn’t mind that his other customers had to jump over us to get to his counter. In 1996 • we published a 200-page recipe/ memory book to celebrate our 10th birthday. To cut costs, we were forced to hand-collate 1,000 copies, after hours at Instant Copy. Bill seemed to enjoy watching us walk in a huge circle to pick up sheets and place them just so. This 25th Anniversary Tour Guide was printed at Instant Copy • Thanks, Bill, for enjoying our projects with us! You are a true neighbor to The Hill.
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Many thanks to the following for making the 2012 Historic Ninth Street Hill Home Tour possible: The Art Museum of Greater Lafayette Central Presbyterian Church Gretel’s Henry Poor Lumber Co./Homeworks Instant Copy Interior Objects K. Dee’s Coffee & Roasting Co. Marsh Supermarkets Wabash Valley Trust Holiday Inn/Four Points by Sheraton Sylvia Mueller Kerry & Gena Brown Jason & Lisa Cannon Jean Chmielewski & Mark Lipton Tracy & Sarah Hill Dave & Sandy Lahr Ruben & Janna Minjarez Paul & Olivia Schueler Dick Stout
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Proceeds benefit our annual gifts to the community: Historic Festooned Fourth Flag Display • Children’s Old-Fashioned July Fourth Box Parade • December Holiday Luminaria Glow. $10 of the cost of your ticket is tax deductible. Limited number of tickets available. Historic Ninth Street Hill Neighborhood Association was founded April 28, 1986. www.ninthstreethill.org