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Towering.4 HEIGHTS

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Ironton home boasts charm, history and character

Story Dawn Nolan | Photography Jeremy Holtzapfel

Built in the mid-19th century by iron mill owner Frederick Norton, the Tower House — as it has become known — located at 709 S. Fourth St. (part of the Rankin Historic District) in Ironton has caught the attention of many over the centuries. Two admirers include Elizabeth and Ethan Finkelstein, the couple behind HGTV’s ‘Cheap Old Houses.’ The home was featured as part of the season one finale that aired earlier this summer. On the show and social media, the couple fawned over this “quirky Victorian,” with its “stunning details” including “exquisite hardware everywhere, Mercury glass doorknobs, interior and exterior doors that are more than twice my [Elizabeth’s] height, and a black walnut staircase to end all staircases.”

Heather Williams, of Bunch Real Estate Associates, was responsible for posting the listing on several website and social media pages. That is how the show’s producers learned about it. Current owners Jake and Shelby Cogan closed on the house just a day before filming took place.

The original “Save this House” post featuring the residence on the @cheapoldhouses Instagram was made in May 2020 and garnered more than 36,000 likes — making it one of the most popular posts on the page. Another post congratulating the Cogans — and including the words “I’ve been Saved!” on it — went up in September and received 90,000 likes.

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“We learned while visiting Ironton how much this house means to the community,” the post said. “It’s wonderfully heartwarming to see it land in good hands.”

The Cogans, a young, married couple from the area, bought the house in April. Shelby moved in, but it would be a few months before Jake would be able.

“Jake didn’t get here until July because he was in Missouri at the time for the military,” Shelby said.

Shelby, who is from Ironton originally, is the director of nursing at Trinity Station Retirement Community. Jake, a South Point native, is a nurse at Hershel “Woody” Williams VA Medical Center and part of the Kentucky Army National Guard. The couple also manage a few rental properties.

“If there’s one thing I could pass on, it’s that we’re not spilling money,” Jake said. “We’re just two normal people trying to fix this place.”

Prior to purchasing the home in Ironton, the couple lived in South Point. They weren’t specifically looking to move when they got wind that the property was for sale.

“We saw it when it first popped up for around $180,000,” Shelby said. But, she added, the exterior was looking a little worse for wear — clearly in need of a paint job.

When it went back on the market after the previous family moved to Kentucky, some noticeable work had been done to it (along with the paint job, the roof was replaced with slate tile), and the price had dropped to less than $150,000. So, the Cogans called their realtor to take a look.

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Shelby was struck by the 11-foot tall doors “They are completely original as far as we know,” Jake said), 12-foot high ceilings, many windows and of course, the tower. “When will we ever have a chance to buy a mini mansion, in Ironton, at this price,” she thought.

The Cogans purchased the home for around $145,000, and though they are renovating it, it is their primary residence.

“It was livable when we moved in,” Jake said. “There was a lot of plumbing and electrical work that the owner before us did.”

The home spans more than 4,400 square feet, and the four-story tower, which is actually three rooms stacked on top of each other with entrances off each floor and a ladder extending from the third floor to the fourth level, is the most prominent feature.

“There are a lot of cool, historic houses around here, but none of them have a 40-foot-tall tower,” Shelby said.

“There’s a lot of theories, but it’s been said that Frederick Norton used the view from the top of the tower so that he could see the boats coming down the river. He relied on them for his business,” Jake said. “His family would also look out to see when he’d be on a boat coming home.”

Unfortunately, over the years, the tower has started to develop a slight lean, which has led some to refer to it as the “Leaning Tower House.” Though it is structurally sound for the time being, it would require restoration to combat further issues.

“It’s been an ongoing issue. The tower roof is a little too heavy for the structure,” Jake said. “There’s not a lot of support in there, and for years, it just kept going. More windows were added, and didn’t help it and most likely caused it to turn out. We’re trying to take care of it for good so that the community can see we’re trying to make this a better spot.”

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Jake said that quotes for renovating the tower have ranged from tens of thousands of dollars to upwards of $100,000. “So, it’s not going to be cheap,” he said. “We’re looking into a number of options including things like historical grants, but there’s a lot that those entail.”

T-shirts made by Custom Ink are being sold and a GoFundMe account has been set up to help with restoration expenses. Links can be found on @towerhouseironton on Instagram.

Some of the other renovations, such as painting, restoring the original yellow poplar hardwood floors on the first level, and modernizing the kitchen appliances are already in progress.

“Some things we can either YouTube or have people that can show us how to get started,” Shelby said. “The first floor has been our priority since everyone sees it.”

In addition to the tower, the house also boasts a number of fireplaces (two marble ones that were imported from Italy), a mantle painted to look like marble, fretwork molding and many other intricate details. It is made up of five bedrooms, four bathrooms, two kitchens (one being the original placement with service doors and stairwell), a parlor, several living spaces — equaling a total of 19 rooms — and porch.

As they go through the renovation process, the Cogans are doing quite a bit of research on the house’s history with the help of the Lawrence County Historical Society and the Briggs Lawrence County Public Library.

“They are a wealth of knowledge,” Jake said.

And though they are trying to be as historically accurate as possible, Jake

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admits “it can be hard to find period appropriate pieces.”

A complete renovation is still a long time coming, but the couple hopes to one day invite the public to see some of the home by holding events.

“It will be kept as our primary residence, but at the same time, I think there’s a lot of historical value, and we’re going to find a way to incorporate that and let other people come in and see it,” Jake said. “It’s definitely a huge project, but we’re super excited to be a part of it.”

As for whether we’ll see the Tower House on HGTV again, “They expressed interest in wanting to come back when it’s done, and we hope that they do,” Shelby said. a

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