5210
This two unit apartment building was built by
Lilly and John Hoar in 1922. When their daughter Pearl married
Gilbert Plensener in 1924 the Hoars moved from 5341 Magnolia to this
building. Their daughter and her husband lived on Magnolia as tenants
until John Hoar passed away. Then Gilbert and Pearl moved with their
children to 5210 Lakewood. After their passing the children, Pearl
and George continued to live here until a few years ago. Pearl’s
mother Pearl Hoar was one of Edgewater’s earliest settlers. As
a child her family lived at 5533 Winthrop in a grand house that has
since been demolished.
The craftsmanship of the building is evident throughout both units. The floor plan of the apartments includes a front sun porch which brings more light into the large living room.
These windows dominate the façade with four across the front and three narrow ones along each side. At the top of the sun porch is a parapet designed as a clipped gable with limestone edging and a decorative square of limestone. The sun porch and the front of the building is roofed in green Ludowici tiles made by the Ludowici Company of Ohio that has been in business for 127 years. The remainder of the roof is flat.
The entrance is on the left side and it is framed in limestone with a limestone bracket above the door. An inset in the limestone is a cross with two limestone squares on either side. A limestone band connects around the sun porch below the first floor windows.
The entrance hall is original with beige tile walls and a tile floor with a fret design around the edge. The original dark stained doors have leaded glass windows with 12 panes of glass. The window to the south is a replacement window put in after someone stole the original stained glass during the night.
You will be able to see both apartments. The first floor unit has had fewer modifications than the second floor. The entrance hall opens to the living room on the right and the dining room on the left. The living room has a beautiful fireplace in the original dark stained woodwork with book cases on either side. The tile is original. On either side of the mantel are two leaded glass windows in a geometric design. These were always visible unlike those on the second floor. The leaded glass design is a squared flower which is evident in the doors of the bookcases in both apartments.
Off the entrance hall is a bedroom with an opening to the interior hallway towards the back. To the left of the front hall is the dining room with south facing windows. In this room the woodwork has been painted white. Off the dining room is a hallway that connects the two bedrooms and the full bath. The tiles in this bath with the pink coloring and green accents are original.
Beyond the dining room is a china hutch on both sides of the passageway to the kitchen and behind that is the pantry. Off the kitchen is a back porch with the original windows that are four over four panes of glass.
The second floor unit is similar to the first floor. In the living room you can see the unique fireplace that is the focal point of the room. It is also an unusual invention with a metal housing and electric logs with coils that could provide intense heat to the spacious room. All the tiles surrounding the fireplace will heat up when the logs are on. Here you can see the beautiful original tiles and the windows that were uncovered and restored with reclaimed wood to match the originals.
The dining room in this apartment also has painted woodwork. It connects to an updated kitchen where the china cabinets and pantry have been removed. The back porch is smaller and separated from the service porch which is accessed from the kitchen.
As you descend the staircase note the straight spindles on the railing and the hall window that is six over six panes of glass. These are more details that make this building such a beautiful place.