6212

When this house was built in 1898, the U.S. was involved in the Spanish American War. On this block, there were eight homes with spacious lawns. Four, including the one at 6233, were built in 1893 and two others were built in 1898. Of those eight houses, only two survived until the 21st century.

The house, which stands between a commercial building to the south and a 1928 apartment hotel to the north, seems smaller than it is though it sits on a 50’ by 150’ lot and has 4000 square feet. The house has three floors, an attic and a basement. It is rectangular with a hip roof and four dormers extending over the roof to form the third floor. Its construction is post and beam with wood clapboard siding which has been covered with a false stone front and asphalt siding on the other sides. Most of the original diamond mullion windows are still in place.

The building permit which originally called for a brick structure was taken out by Mrs. K.M. Davis for a home to be built by C. Pistroud.

The projected cost was $4000. In the home’s first two decades it was sold about every two years, with one of the owners of record being a member of the Bowman Dairy family. There were two long term owners, each owning the home for about 30 years. One of the children of these families visited the house recently and said that during WWII, the house was broken up into three apartments where various extended family members lived.

As you approach the house, there is a spacious front porch with the original pillars capped with Corinthian capitals. You enter the home through a double door entry hall with tiled floor and a cove ceiling. The light fixture is European alabaster. Next you enter the foyer with a parlor and grand staircase to the right and the living room and dining room on the left. In front of you is the door leading to the back stairwell and into the kitchen.

The living room has beautiful oak paneling half way up the wall, capped with a ledge. There are two built-in bookcases, a window seat and a green tiled double mantel fireplace. Around the ceiling is an oak cornice. On either side of the fireplace are windows with diamond patterned mullions. All the wood, including the floors is oak.

Connected to the living room and the hall is the bright and spacious dining room. There is a cove ceiling and an oak plate rail. The chandelier came from a bank lobby and the china cabinet, though it looks original, came from Wisconsin. Through the swinging door is the original butler’s pantry which connects to the kitchen. Off the kitchen is a powder room, which once was a food pantry. In the kitchen is the door to the mud room and backyard. The other doorway leads to the back stairwell and again to the foyer.

The wide oak staircase leads to the second floor. On the way up there is a beautiful bay window again showcasing the diamond mullion design. The two bedrooms to the front of the home are connected by a large closet with an oval window. The original master bedroom has been converted into a family room. There are two window seats with storage. The third bedroom faces the south side of the home and includes a closet with a diamond design window. This room represents the condition of the home when the current owners purchased it. From this room is a door to the fourth room which may have been a day/sewing room. In this room there is an exit through a window that leads to a small balcony over the back porch. Back in the hall you will pass by the bathroom with original linen closet and find the staircase to the third floor.

The third floor of the house was either the servants’ quarters or perhaps the playroom for the children. This part of the home was a rental unit for many years. The third floor, currently the master suite, consists of a bathroom, master closet, master bedroom and kitchen. Between the dormers are scuttle spaces wrapping the third floor. All the rooms, with the exception of the bathroom, have a series of tall narrow windows. The unique ceiling angles are the roof lines or, as in the bedroom, a false ceiling for balance. Through the kitchen ceiling is access to the attic.

The house and grounds are going through a slow and thorough renovation reviving it to the splendid home it was when built 104 years ago, but with today’s amenities.