House Tours
Nine Rails
Creative
DistricT
OGDEN
Saturday, September 8th, 2018
10 a.m. – 4 p.m.
Tickets:
$15 in advance
$20 day of the event
One free ticket with $35 individual membership
Two free tickets with $60 family membership
The deadline for online ticketing has been reached.
To purchase tickets, please purchase them in person.
To purchase tickets in person, visit:
2580 Jefferson Ave, Ogden
(801) 392-6935
For the past 40 years, the Weber County Heritage Foundation’s annual Historic Home Tour has been re-igniting a passion for historic architecture, along with a renewed interest and appreciation for the history that shaped, influenced and built the communities of Weber County.
In our 41st year, we are honored and proud to present the annual Fall Home Tour in the heart of Ogden in the Nine Rails Creative District.
The core of the Nine Rails Creative District has been identified as the area between Washington Boulevard and Jefferson Avenue, from 24th to 26th Streets. The district, which contains some of Ogden’s most unique historic architecture, has been designated as a home for the community to engage with art in the public realm, and supports places and programs that encourage creative people to live and work in Ogden.
Many of the homes on this year’s tour fell into disrepair during the 1980s and 1990s, and in the last decade have come into new ownership and undergone heavy renovations and restoration. These homes and their creative transformations are iconic of the Nine Rails Creative District, as well as the renaissance of history and historic architecture in Ogden.
Each residence in the 2018 tour was home to a prominent Ogden citizen. Previous homeowners of the houses on this year’s tour include a journalist, a grocer, a judge, a saloon owner, a cabinetmaker, a bookshop owner, a lumber dealer and a former mayor. The variety of the former tenants’ occupations, home sizes, and life circumstances are a proud representation of the eclectic variety of people who lived and worked in Ogden, contributing to the rich and diverse community we have become today.
In engaging with our community each year during the home tour and other events, the Weber County Heritage Foundation aims to revisit the stories of our community’s history, to breathe new life into those stories, and to grow an appreciation for the people, places and events that made us.
Proceeds from the 2018 home tour will go toward restoration of the Doughboy statue in the Ogden City Cemetery. A re-dedication celebration is scheduled for November 10th to commemorate the 100-year anniversary of the signing of the Armistice that ended fighting on the Western front.
We hope you will join us in the magic that is bringing history back to life!
Tickets for the 2018 Fall Home Tour may be purchased via the link above, or in person at the Eccles Community Art Center during open hours.
For questions or more information, please contact Connie Cox at ccoxaprilfool@yahoo.com.
529 25th hamner-argo House
John H. Hamner, born in Kentucky in 1847, came to Ogden around 1892 with his wife, Carrie. He operated the Arlington Saloon & Gambling Hall, which later became the White Elephant Saloon, at 320 25th Street in Ogden. The saloon & gambling business was very lucrative for the Hamners and Mr. Hamner was famed for wearing diamonds. Sometime between 1895 and 1899, he had this Victorian Eclectic style house built.
Mr. Hamner’s business and home were burglarized several times. Unfortunately for him, the burglars usually made off with cash and jewelry that was never returned. However, in a robbery in 1908, Mr. Hamner quickly “threw his diamonds into a copper cuspidor (aka spittoon), and then rescued them after the robbers left.” After his 1910 arrival in Ogden, Iowa native Pearl F. Kirkendall lived in and operated his business, Kirkendall Undertaking Company, from this house. He also served as Ogden City mayor (1924-25) before his death in 1928. His business continued on at 529 25th Street as the Kirkendall-Darling Mortuary.
Similar in appearance to the residence at 2543 Madison Avenue, the house has a central block and projecting bays floor plan, a stone foundation, shingled gable bays, and brick masonry walls. The large 2½-story home also features a two-story porch, with a hipped roof and projecting dormers, and a single-story addition, circa 1960, on the west that likely supported mortuary services. In recent years, the structure housed an alcohol and drug recovery facility. A recent rehabilitation supports its new function as a design colony, providing office space and design studios in the Nine Rails Creative District.
More info including floor plans: http://theargohouse.co/
The first owners of this beautifully preserved home were Abbot and Elizabeth Heywood. Mr. Heywood donated to the Children's Aid Society, sent food through others to the poor, helped to build churches, and contributed generously to the public library. He held many public appointments included one as Ogden City Mayor (1916-17). Heywood funded the construction of the children’s room at the Carnegie Library where he served as Director.
Two generations of the Welsh family occupied the home after the Heywoods. The second generation, Michael and Marlene Welsh, were avid supporters of another historical landmark in Ogden, Peery's Egyptian Theatre. They supported the theatre financially and donated their time and talents, serving there as ushers for years. Michael became the organist who played the Mighty Wurlitzer Theatre Organ for silent movies and special events.
The splendor of this Dutch Colonial Revival house, specifically its interior, is indicative of the Heywoods’ standing in the community. Built in 1902, it has leaded glass windows, maple floors, an ornately carved fireplace in the original music room, original light fixtures, push-button switches, and pocket doors. Craftsman Style influences are apparent in the trim, paneled doors, and newel post. The dining room, built for entertaining, is enhanced with a cross-beam ceiling, a corner fireplace with wrought iron accents, and a Tiffany ceiling lamp. A large butler’s pantry has floor-to-ceiling cabinetry for storage of dishes and other kitchen supplies.
Upstairs, the original master bedroom – unusually spacious for the time – now serves as a family room. The adjacent bedroom was likely a nursery. Down the hall, a large bathroom retains its original blue-and-white tile floor, porcelain lavatory, and clawfoot tub. A door opens onto the original “airing room” that likely provided space for drying laundry.
Harmon and Tamera Jensen purchased the house in December 2016 after long-time owners Marlene and Michael Welsh had passed away. With no heirs to claim the personal property, much of the furniture and original wool carpets transferred to the Jensens. The numerous paintings throughout the house were collected or painted by Mr. Jensen.
675 25th jensen House
In 1906, Robert and Emma Boyd moved from South Bend, Indiana to Ogden, where Robert was to take a position as Assistant Manager of the Eccles Lumber Company. By that time, they had three children: Robert E. Boyd, Jr. (born 1893), Ruth (born 1901) and Helen (born 1906). Mr. Boyd was involved with several lumber-related ventures and by 1917 had opened his own lumber company: Boyd Lumber. By 1923, he and Emma moved to Glendale, California by 1923 and in 1927 he sold Boyd Lumber to Smoot Lumber.
The Boyds secured a building permit for this home in 1908 and records indicate they occupied it by 1910. It is an American Foursquare with a brick first floor, a shingled second floor, a hip roof, and a hip-roofed dormer on the front façade. The Craftsman door has a reproduction doorbell below a 12-pane window. Inside are wood floors, Craftsman trim and molding, and paneled wood doors. Short pillars atop partial walls separate the entry hall from the living room and an elevated area that served as a music room. The living and dining rooms have exposed beam ceilings, brick fireplaces, and original multi-paned wood windows. Built-in cabinetry with glass doors is found in the dining room and the former music room.
685 25th jensen House
2520 Madison phipps/ rolapp House
Constructed circa 1900, originally the larger twin of the home at 2514 Madison Avenue, the dwelling features brick masonry and has a foursquare type floor plan with an enclosed front porch (a later alteration) and a hipped front-
facing dormer. The foursquare form was a moderately popular 2-story residence type in Ogden. Foursquares generally consist of four roughly square rooms on each floor and this type of architecture represents a rejection of the eclectic irregularity of earlier Victorian styles.
The house, designed by architect Julius A. Smith, was built for German immigrant Judge Henry Hermann Rolapp and his wife Martha, the daughter of Mormon pioneers. They married in 1885 and soon settled in Ogden where Mr. Rolapp became an influential member in the community. He was City Assessor (1885-87), Assistant County Attorney (1887-91), and cashier for Utah Loan & Trust (1892-95). From 1888 to 1895, he served as a member of the State Board of Corrections and as a Supreme Court jury commissioner.
2524 madison barragan/
littlefield house
The exterior of this house, built in 1889, is representative of Victorian-era residential architecture. The two-story structure is clad with brick (lower level) and wood shingles with decorative corner boards (upper level). In the front gable, a bank of three windows flanked by fish scale shingles is stacked above pairs of tall, narrow windows.
By 2015, the house had been converted into a triplex with multiple additions, and few historic features remained inside. An extensive remodel converted it into a six-bedroom, three-bathroom home. It also introduced a spacious kitchen with a large granite-topped island that the current owner ds perfect for her new home-based
business, Brookey Bakes. Hints of the past can be found in the stairway’s square newel post and wood balustrade, as well as in painted wood molding around doors and windows.
The first known occupants, Edwin & Florence Littlefield, moved to Ogden from Virginia City, Nevada around 1881. They arrived with three children—Mary, Charles, and Florence – and the family grew with an additional three: John, Edmund and Theron. Mr. Littlefield started a newspaper titled The Ogden Pilot and served as Ogden’s postmaster from 1883 to 1887. He was a member of the BPOE No. 719 and of the Episcopal Church of the Good Shepherd, passed away in 1911.
Mrs. Littlefield was a charter member of the Martha Society in Ogden. She belonged to the Lincoln Circle No. 2, the Grand Army of the Republic, the Women’s Relief Corps, Queen Ester chapter, Order of the Eastern Star, the American Legion Auxiliary, and f the Service Star Legion. She died in 1928. The Littlefields’ oldest daughter, Mary, married Julian Houtz in the house in 1896 and later lived here until her death in 1946.
Additional info: https://youtu.be/Xhhkkbe4gi0
2543 madison phipps/
smith house
Similar in appearance to the residence at 529 25th Street, this Victorian Eclectic style home, with a central block and projecting bays floor plan, has a stone foundation, shingled gable bays, and brick masonry walls. Featuring a single-story porch with a hipped roof and projecting dormers, it was built for the Charles Henry Smith family. Mr. Smith was born Francis “Frank” Funk in 1870 in Illinois. For unknown reasons, he moved away from his family around 1890 and settled with a new identity in Soda Springs, Idaho where he married Mary Caroline Vaughn in 1895. Four years later, the couple moved to Ogden with their two daughters.
Mr. Smith’s occupation in Soda Springs is unclear but in Ogden he operated Uncle Sam's Loan Office, a pawnshop offering short-term loans on private property, preferably jewelry. Also known as Smith Loans, the
business was at 278 25th Street from the early 1900s through the 1980s, although the Smith family’s ties to the operation ended around 1949.
With the revenues from a profitable business, Smith purchased the lot at 2543 Madison in 1903 and in 1904 completed construction of the spacious 2½-story home. The Smiths were devoted members of the First Baptist Church of Ogden, and Mary frequently hosted the Baptist Ladies Mission Circle at the house. She was also a member of Ogden's Home Culture Club, while Charles spent his free time as a member of the Royal Arch Masons and Knights Templar.
The Smith family lived in the home for 31 years, moving in 1936 to a smaller home at 1179 25th Street. Mr. Smith passed away unexpectedly in 1938 and Mary died in 1968 at age 95.
2557 madison largent/
collins house
This 2-story Victorian Eclectic style house is a good example of the side passage entry hall with a single-story porch. As represented here, side-passage houses, which are often 1½ or 2 stories high, have rectangular floor plans with the entrance passage on one side, a couple of rooms on the other side and room(s) on the rear. The gable portions of the home feature original decorative wood siding.
County records indicate this home was built in 1882 although other documents suggest a construction date of circa 1890. Its first known occupants were William George Collins, a cabinet carver, and his wife Mary, a nurse. Both came to Ogden around 1873 from Bath, Somerset, England and were living in the home by 1895. They had nine children before Mr. Collins died in 1899. Marry passed away in 1916, and both are interred at the Ogden City Cemetery.
2622 madison
cross/
dalton house
This 1886 house is a rare Ogden example of the Second Empire style, which was popular in Utah between 1875 and 1890, primarily in urban areas. Downtown development wiped out the greatest number of these highly decorative houses, and today few examples remain in the state. The Second Empire style drew from French architecture popular during the reign of Napoleon III. The mansard roof, named for noted 17th century French Baroque architect Francois Mansart, is the most recognizable feature of the style. Other characteristics include the projecting central pavilion, highly decorative wall dormers, an ornamented frieze, and tall, narrow windows. Ghost marks on the front façade provide clues about the original porch.
Inside, a surved stairway with carved wood newel posts and stringer molding complement the wood floors, paneled doors, and intricate crown molding. High ceilings and transoms are evidence of early climate control features. To the rear of the house, a circa 1915 addition contains a master bedroom and a door to the backyard where original porch columns serve as garden art. A separate brick structure existed by 1906 and likely served as a summer kitchen. Part of it has been converted to a bedroom.
The two-story house was home to John and Mary Elizabeth Warner Dalton. John entered the Salt Lake Valley on October 19, 1848 with members of the Willard Richards Company. While in Ogden, he was a partner in the firm Dalton, Nye, and Cannon, a book and music store that later expanded to include furniture and stoves. He eventually relocated to California and then Idaho with his second wife. Elizabeth remained at the Madison Avenue house until 1898 when she sold it to James L. Porter.
By the 1970s the house was divided into a four-plex and it eventually fell into disrepair, prompting the Ogden Redevelopment Agency to purchase it. Jim and Elizabeth Love bought the home for $1 and spent considerable time and money restoring it. Listed in the National Register of Historic Places, the house was featured on the Utah segment of HGTV’s Restore America with Bob Vila.
2669 madison house
This Greek Revival Four Square style home features oak window frames, original roof and Corinthian columns. It was built approximately 1912 for Lars & Caroline Hansen at a cost of $15,000. Mr. Hansen was the founder of the Ogden Packing & Provision Company, the forerunner to the old Swift Packing Plant located west of the rail yards. The Hansen’s only owned this magnificent home for a few short years, losing it to bankruptcy following the cancellation of a government contract for meat products after the Armistice in November 1918.
The home was then purchased by Samuel James Hooper Pingree, the President of Ogden’s Pingree National Bank. After Mr. Pingree’s sudden death in 1924, the home passed through several owners until 1971 when it fell into the hands of Henry & Francis Berghout. Today the home belongs to David & Stephanie Berghout and after 47 years it is now on the market and looking for a new owner. The entryway rewards the visitor with oak hardwood floors accented with amazing inlaid walnut, room dividers with sculpted oak columns and an oak staircase, with a sculptured banister light that was designed by French Sculptor, Echo de la Montagne, and is original to the home. The home is heated with a very sophisticated hot water heating system and it’s original service bell system is till intact and functional. Other remarkable features are the painted domed ceilings that have been meticulously maintained to preserve their original colors. The dining room and parlor have handsome tile fireplaces surrounded with highly polished oak cabinets and columns. This home was the recipient of the 1984 Preservation Award from Weber County Heritage Foundation & Ogden City Landmarks and was a feature home of the WCHF Historic Home Tour in 1996.
Photos by Carolyn S. Jacobson