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In 1894, Arthur Johnston took out a permit to build on this property. His permit said he was building a basement. Sometime after that, he built this brick home. It has been a landmark on the street for more than a century. Recently B&R development purchased the home and took on the task of updating it while preserving its original brackets, bull’s-eye moldings and window openings.

This brick home retains many of its original exterior details including the roof line brackets that indicate its early construction date. They have been painted to make them more noticeable. It is a front gabled house with a high basement and, therefore, a high first floor. There is an entrance to a lower floor unit (not in use). Each window on the façade has been given an iron railing like a balcony. The windows also have limestone lintels. The entrance porch has been enclosed for years to provide protection from the elements. It may have been an open porch originally. Once inside the front door you will stand in the foyer. The oak floors are a replacement. There is a guest closet with double doors.

To the left is the living room with high ceilings and large windows, which was typical of homes built in the 1890s. Each window is framed in a molding with the bull’s-eye design at the corners. The moldings along the floor have been preserved. Notice how high they are. The wall between the living room and dining room has been removed and a space for a wood burning fireplace created between the rooms. The dining room features a large bay window that expands the space in the room. Opposite the dining room is the open space kitchen with breakfast counter. The new cabinetry is cherry.

The staircase to the second floor may have been originally open on one side. The side along the wall is partially covered in a special embossed material which can be painted. The previous owner had it painted dark green. At the top across from the staircase is a unique section of wall that is curved. This too is treated with the embossed design. In this upstairs hallway is a portion of the original railing and balusters connected to the original newel post. This woodwork is painted white and is probably pine.

The hallway to the left leads to the bedrooms. The one facing the front of the house has a second small room attached which is an element repeated in many late 19th century homes. It may have been a nursery or a dressing room. You will walk into the master bedroom. Notice the small closet tucked under the stairs to the attic. At the back of the bedroom is the opening to the sun porch. The flooring on the second floor is maple and on the sun porch it is fir. There is one original closet on the sun porch. Back in the master bedroom, there is a little passage way to the bathroom, which has been updated. In that hallway is the door to the attic, which is unfinished.

Return to the first floor and go out the back door so you can see the deck and lovely garden. The rehab and restoration of this home is a bright spot in Edgewater.