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NPS Form 10-900-a (Rev.

8/2002)

OMB No. 1024-0018

(Expires 5-31-2012)

United States Department of the Interior National Park Service

Put Here Jones Home Subdivisions Historic District


Name of Property Cuyahoga County, Ohio County and State Name of multiple listing (if applicable)

National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet


Section number 8 Page 1

The Jones Home Subdivisions Historic District is defined by its distinctive street pattern of relatively wide streets, spacious lots and rear lot line alleys that combined with the Jones Home for Children and its spacious park-like setting to stimulate the development of a turn of the century middle class neighborhood that survives largely intact today. The properties contained within this nomination possesses architectural significance under Criterion C as a microcosm of well-preserved examples of American architectural styles during its period of significance, from 1872, when the area was first subdivided, through World War I, when the area was completely developed. The historic resources of the district are diverse, ranging from large-scale turn-of-the-century residences to smaller vernacular working class housing to churches. The neighborhood is focused around four streets, which contain some of near west Cleveland's best preserved housing stock. The streets here compare favorably from an architectural standpoint with such Cleveland streets as Archwood Avenue, Franklin Boulevard, Jennings Avenue (West 14th Street) and Bolton (East 89th), all of which have been listed on the National Register of Historic Places. These streets are significant for their concentrations of turn of the century middle class to upper middle class housing stock that survive with a high degree of integrity in settings that accentuate their architecture through relatively spacious lot sizes and historic landscaping. The significance of this neighborhood lies in its overall ambiance, with an occasional individual landmark such as the Jones Home. The area is an oasis of sorts of larger and better preserved housing stock in the midst of a late nineteenth century working class neighborhood of smaller and less imposing houses. It is cut off from a similar concentration of historic houses to the south, being nominated as the Brooklyn Centre Historic District, by Interstate 71. The district also contains significance under Criterion A in that it is associated with events that have contributed to the broad pattern of Cleveland's history. One major event is the growth of a prosperous second generation middle class on Cleveland's west side, people who could afford to own relatively spacious and attractive detached single-family houses. Statistics obtained from U. S. Census records show that the great majority of the early residents of this historic district were second generation Americans with Central European parents who actually owned these houses, with about half being mortgaged and half being owned free of encumbrance. This is a significant difference from older inner city neighborhoods where the percentage of first generation immigrants was higher, as were the percentages of renters versus owners. This neighborhood has a special character in terms of the background of its first residents in that they were overwhelmingly of immigrant parents but were also largely property owners and not renters. Also of significance under Criterion A is the advent of a systematic streetcar system in the 1880s and 1890s such that by 1900 the area was being served by lines along both West 25th and Fulton. The streetcar lines probably influenced the layout of the district's street patterns and contributed to its growth. Unlike older neighborhoods closer to Cleveland which were more dependent on horse transportation in the form of individual carriages, hacks and horse-drawn omnibuses, when this neighborhood was in its prime, the city had a well-developed electrified streetcar system, serving the district from both ends. The district contains as its centerpiece the Jones Home for Children, a turn of the century Colonial Revival style building that is a major architectural landmark of Cleveland's west side. It stands on a

NPS Form 10-900-a (Rev. 8/2002)

OMB No. 1024-0018

(Expires 5-31-2012)

United States Department of the Interior National Park Service

Put Here Jones Home Subdivisions Historic District


Name of Property Cuyahoga County, Ohio County and State Name of multiple listing (if applicable)

National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet


Section number 8 Page 2

spacious landscaped lot at the eastern end of the district. This three story building is distinguished by its central cupola, elaborate entrance portico, modillioned cornices, central Palladian window and elaborate stone trimwork. Newer buildings on the property are set behind the original building and are not highly visible. Another prominent landmark in the district is the former Fourth Reformed Church which stands at West 32nd and Woodbridge. This Late Gothic Revival landmark, designed by the architectural firm that designed Jones Home, is a major visual landmark in the residential district and survives with its major features intact. Historical Background The area was originally part of the Connecticut Western Reserve, surveyed by the Connecticut Land Company into part of what became Brooklyn Township in 1818. West 25th Street, earlier known as Columbus Road and later as Pearl Street, had already been established as a major Indian route, following a distinctive ridge overlooking the Cuyahoga River's west bank. This route was by the early 1800s a stage coach route to Columbus, hence the name. The area's economy grew as a result of the Ohio Canal in the 1820s and 1830s, and experienced its first wave of ethnic migration. The earliest Euro-American landholders in this area were the Brainard family, who settled here in 1812. Within a few years the lands were settled. The lands were developed early in the nineteenth century into farmsteads, with a row of farms facing onto both sides of West 25th Street. David Jones arrived in Brooklyn Township in 1831 from New Jersey and developed a farm on this site. He also owned lands in Parma Township. Originally from Troy, New York, David Jones came here with his wife Cynthia and family, including son Carlos Lloyd Jones. In the years before the Civil War, greater Cleveland began its expansion toward the district. In 1854 Ohio City was annexed to Cleveland and the city's new southern boundary on the west became Walworth Run. An area south of Walworth Run along West 25th Street, extending to a point several blocks south of Clark Avenue was annexed to Cleveland in 1867. That same year, the farm of the late David F. and Cynthia M. Jones was incorporated into Brooklyn village at the northern end of that newly incorporated settlement. Brooklyn village centered about the intersection of Pearl and Denison south of here and the area north of Mapledale Avenue was still rural at the time of incorporation. By 1868, when the Cleveland Leader Printing Company printed a map of the city, the lands along West 25th to a point south of Clark Avenue were already subdivided into residential lots. On June 1, 1872 a plat was entered for the northern portion of the former Jones farm by Julius S. Edwards, with Carlos Jones as one of the signers. This marked the initial development of the district into a residential community. By 1874, several houses lined Marvin and Woodbridge avenues. The farmstead was subdivided in a series of plats that were recorded later that year and in the next few years. These later small subdivisions, Jones Home Allotment No. 1, Jones Home Subdivision No. 2 and Jones Library Association all followed the same plan as the original allotment, with fairly broad streets and spacious lots with alleys in the rear. Carlos Lloyd Jones (1827-1897), the son of David and Cynthia Jones, grew up on the farm on this site and, after a brief stint as a farm hand, he moved back to Cleveland and went into the business of manufacturing agricultural implements. He made a fortune in that business. Carlos Jones was also

NPS Form 10-900-a (Rev. 8/2002)

OMB No. 1024-0018

(Expires 5-31-2012)

United States Department of the Interior National Park Service

Put Here Jones Home Subdivisions Historic District


Name of Property Cuyahoga County, Ohio County and State Name of multiple listing (if applicable)

National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet


Section number 8 Page 3

actively involved in the development of his parent's farmstead, which he acquired after the death of his mother in 1867, his father having passed away in 1863. In apparent partnership with Julius S. Edwards he developed the northern part of the farm into a residential subdivision. The central and southern portions were developed according to the same plan later that year and in the following years. He reserved a good portion of the original farm for the grounds of his residence at 1633 Pearl Street. Two events led Jones to devote his efforts and his remaining land here to what he termed "friendless children". The first was the death of his first wife Delia Brainard Jones in 1853 at age 34. She was a descendant of the family that were the first settlers of Brooklyn Township. The second tragedy was the death of his only son, John Marvin Jones, in a boating accident. Whereas Carlos Jones had intended to bequeath his holdings to his son, he and his second wife began planning for the transfer of their property into a children's home. The institution was founded November 5, 1886 as the Jones School and Home for Friendless Children and its articles list former U. S. President Rutherford B. Hayes, leading Akron citizen Lewis Miller, Cleveland industrialists Lamson and Sessions and other prominent citizens among the home's incorporators. The home was first established in the former Jones farmstead and initially housed only nine children. The frame Italianate style farmhouse was soon moved and expanded with frame wings to provide space for fifty children. In response to a serious diphtheria epidemic a separate hospital building was in use by 1894. Carlos Jones died in 1897 and his wife the following year. Under new leadership, the Jones Home board in 1903 erected a new main facility, on the site of the former Jones farmstead, which was demolished. It was designed by nationally known architect Sidney R. Badgely, at a cost of $35,000. A donation by John D. Rockefeller helped to fund the project. With an addition in 1908, the home had a capacity of about eighty children. As early as 1914 the institution began a cooperative relationship with the Cleveland Humane Society and in 1954 began a plan to house emotionally disturbed children, with a branch of the Cleveland Guidance Center on site. Residential cottages were added at this time to facilitate this transformation. In 1966 the Jones Home was merged into a regional children's services organization and continues to serve as a residential and treatment center for emotionally disturbed youth. In 1968 a cottage was erected on the western part of the grounds. The development of Jones Home parallels that of the neighborhood. During the late nineteenth century, growth was relatively slow. This area was part of Brooklyn village for over twenty years after its initial subdivision. In 1894 the district, along with the core of former Brooklyn, was incorporated into the city of Cleveland. The subsequent establishment of city services such as water, sewer, paved streets, increased police and fire protection and the development of nearby school facilities, all encouraged the rapid growth of the district. From a population of over 260,000 in 1890, Cleveland gained an additional 120,000 residents by 1900 and almost another 200,000 by 1910. By the start of World War I, all lots within this district were completely developed and little new construction has occurred here since that time. Unlike earlier settlements such as the Tremont or Broadway neighborhoods, the first residents of this district were not attracted here by a single major industry nor is there disproportionate representation

NPS Form 10-900-a (Rev. 8/2002)

OMB No. 1024-0018

(Expires 5-31-2012)

United States Department of the Interior National Park Service

Put Here Jones Home Subdivisions Historic District


Name of Property Cuyahoga County, Ohio County and State Name of multiple listing (if applicable)

National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet


Section number 8 Page 4

among a single ethnic group or geographic background. Rather, the neighborhood was from the onset richly diverse in its heritage. The wide range of occupations reflected the growing presence of a merchant class of citizens as well as a professional class. In this neighborhood, from its inception, doctors lived next to factory workers, lawyers next to storeowners and shopkeepers. Accountants, public officials, railway workers, steelworkers, bankers, insurance agents, contractors and other businessmen lived here. For example, the residence at 3223 Daisy Avenue was home in 1913 to Adolph F. Humel, president of the Pearl Street Savings and Trust Company, located at Pearl and Clark. In general, the early residents of the district worked on the near west side or in downtown Cleveland, although the presence of streetcars along Pearl and West 25th since the 1880s made the neighborhood easily accessible to other parts of the metropolitan area. The physical state of the district has remained remarkably constant over the years. The most significant change has taken place along West 25th Street. Here, some commercial properties have been replaced by automobile-oriented establishments. Interstate 71 opened to the south of the district in the 1960s, radically changing the character of West 25th Street through significant widening and the loss of numerous commercial buildings in the process of making a broad interchange here. Structures have been demolished by MetroHealth Medical Center, which has in recent years extended its campus westward across Scranton Road to border the district along its eastern edge, facing West 25th Street. Architecture The Jones Home (Listed 8-30-96, Brooklyn Centre M. R. A.) is a rare and architecturally significant example of turn of the century institutional architecture. It was designed by prominent Cleveland architect Sidney R. Badgely, who, according to architectural historian Eric Johannesen, "enjoyed a national reputation, having designed buildings all over Ohio and in many other states. A native of Canada, he was the architect of a number of Canadian buildings and also of the Methodist Church in Foochow, China" (from Cleveland Architecture 1876-1976, p. 52). Badgely specialized in church and college architecture. Another major building of his in Cleveland, which still stands nearby on Starkweather and West 14th Street, is Pilgrim Congregational Church. The Jones Home is an inspired example of Colonial Revival architecture, with an unusual gambrel roof crowned by a Colonial-inspired central cupola and featuring corner quoins and cornice modillions which reflect the Georgian influence. The building survives in good condition and stands on a spacious lot. It was erected in 1903 with funds provided in part by John D. Rockefeller and is one of a number of institutional buildings erected around the turn of the century in the Cleveland area. Many of its contemporaries, such as the Alta House, Ursuline Convent, and historic hospital buildings, have been demolished. Thus it is a rare example of an early social/welfare facility in Cleveland. Fourth Reformed Church, designed by Badgely & Nicklaus, is a major landmark of the district. Its tall corner tower dominates its surroundings and the building's elegant brick and sandstone exterior is a fine example of Late Gothic Revival style architecture. The building features a large sanctuary space in its front section, accented by vaulted ceilings and two-story gothic stained glass windows. Its rear section is a two-story classroom wing in a modified version of the Akron plan, focused around a central Sunday school auditorium space. The building survives without significant alterations or additions.

NPS Form 10-900-a (Rev. 8/2002)

OMB No. 1024-0018

(Expires 5-31-2012)

United States Department of the Interior National Park Service

Put Here Jones Home Subdivisions Historic District


Name of Property Cuyahoga County, Ohio County and State Name of multiple listing (if applicable)

National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet


Section number 8 Page 5

The more than four hundred residences in the district are overwhelmingly Colonial Revival in style and of wood frame construction. Most are very well preserved with their original siding, windows, doors, porches and other exterior features intact. A smaller number have newer siding and some may have enclosed porches and a few altered windows, but with very few exceptions, the properties have not lost their basic integrity and no residence has been categorized as not contributing to the character of the district. Most houses have garages that complement the residences in basic character, with some having identical architectural embellishments and others constituting rare examples of historic carriage barns. The residence at 3000 Library is an excellent example of late Queen Anne architecture with a sharply pointed front-facing gable and elaborate Colonial Revival full-width front porch. Hubemyer Terrace and Woodbridge Terrace are two elaborate brick terrace apartment buildings that gain their architectural character through a series of undulating two-story semi-octagonal bay windows. These are the only terrace apartments in the district. Tall parapet walls and cut stone trim combine with their sheer size to give the buildings landmark character. The residence at 3428 Library is one of west side Cleveland's most imposing Bungalows. It is unusually large in size, though rambling because of its one story height. The building has Queen Anne characteristics in its bay windows and projections and features fine interior woodwork and vaulted ceilings. 3502 Library is a fine and especially well restored Queen Anne landmark that gains prominence because of its corner location. 2700 Daisy is one of the older houses in the district and features a very elaborately detailed wrap-around pedimented front porch. The residence at 3000 Daisy Avenue is a large and vigorous Queen Anne house with an Eastlake-inspired wrap-around front porch. 3005 Daisy is an elegant hip-roofed Colonial Revival of rather larger proportions and robust detailing. 3211 Daisy is an example of a house with a corner tower and is Queen Anne in style. Houses with corner towers are rare within this district. 3219 Daisy is distinguished by its large central front-facing Palladian attic window. 3223 Daisy is a highly distinctive and rare example of Dutch Colonial Revival style architecture whose gambrel roof extends out over its front porch. 3417 Daisy is a quite well preserved Bungalow with a second floor porch in its front-facing shed dormer. Its exterior is faced with rusticated cement blocks. This is a rare example of Bungalow architecture within the district, since Jones Home district buildings largely predate the timeframe within which Bungalows were popular. 3014 Marvin is a rare and distinctive Dutch Colonial Revival residence, dominated by its two-story enclosed front porch and its gambrel roof. This house has been exceptionally well restored internally and externally. It is larger and more massive than 3223 Daisy and its front porch projects out from the building, rather than being recessed. Across the street, 3101 Marvin has been rehabilitated as a fine example of Queen Anne architecture. Two architecturally significant neighborhood commercial buildings stand at the corner of Marvin and West 32nd Street. On the southeast corner is a vernacular two and a half story building with a western falsefront facade and bracketed cornice, recalling the Italianate style. Across the street is a Queen Anne house with elaborate trimwork and other detailing that had its porch removed and replaced by a brick Colonial Revival style storefront addition in about 1920. This building has recently been rehabilitated. 3311 Marvin has an especially elaborate front porch with spindlework at its eaves and base that is exceptional in its skill. 3809 Woodbridge is the district's only Tudor Revival style residence and the only house to have half-timbering on a large area.

NPS Form 10-900-a (Rev. 8/2002)

OMB No. 1024-0018

(Expires 5-31-2012)

United States Department of the Interior National Park Service

Put Here Jones Home Subdivisions Historic District


Name of Property Cuyahoga County, Ohio County and State Name of multiple listing (if applicable)

National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet


Section number 8 Page 6

Its first floor has fine Flemish bond brickwork. Comparison With Other Cleveland Residential Districts A city the size of Cleveland may be expected to contain a number of residential districts that possess National Register eligibility and indeed several have already been placed on the National Register. Ohio City is a large locally designated residential and commercial district located east of Franklin BoulevardWest Clinton Avenue Historic District (National Register, listed 1993). First listed in the 1974 and expanded to the west 15 years later, this district has houses of an earlier period than Franklin-West Clinton. It has far more Italianate style houses and numerous Greek Revival style buildings. It also has more examples of vernacular architecture, as that district contains several side streets lined with smaller, closely spaced residences. Tremont is Cleveland's largest residential district, containing more than 800 buildings. Like Ohio City, this district has a generally earlier housing stock plus more vernacular examples. (Tremont Historic District was listed on the National Register in 1994.) Tremont, an ethnic neighborhood, is also more heterogeneous, containing numerous commercial buildings, industrial buildings, churches and public buildings. Brooklyn Centre and Franklin-West Clinton, has more in common with Jones Home Subdivisions. They feature large turn of the century houses on fairly spacious urban lots. Brooklyn Center is somewhat older and has more examples of Queen Anne style architecture and fewer Colonial Revival and Arts and Crafts buildings than FranklinWest Clinton or Jones Home Subdivisions, which both developed when these latter styles became more popular. Franklin Boulevard Historic District (listed 1989) consists of the portion of the street below West 52nd and because of its proximity to the downtown, contains examples of earlier styles of architecture, primarily Italianate, although it also contains turn of the century multi-family infill housing. Cleveland's east side also has residential historic districts. Broadway is listed on the National Register as a commercial district (Broadway Avenue H. D., 1989). East 55th Street, adjacent to but not part of the Broadway district, is similar to Jones Home Subdivisions in architectural character but is much smaller and not as well preserved. Generally the areas west of University Circle were developed earlier than Jones Home Subdivisions, thus the East 89th Street Historic District (listed 1988), while a fine residential district, contains far more Queen Anne and Shingle Style residences than Jones Home Subdivisions. The western edge of the City of Lakewood has an early subdivision known as Clifton Park (Clifton Park Lakefront District, N. R. listed 1974) which is listed on the National Register. This prestigious lakefront neighborhood features much larger houses than Jones Home Subdivisions that are located on lots far bigger and more extensively landscaped. It was home to a wealthier class of Clevelanders in comparison with the middle and upper middle class status of the early residents of the Jones Home district. A large portion of Lakewood was recently determined potentially eligible for listing on the National Register. Within this large residential suburb are neighborhoods contemporaneous with Jones Home Subdivisions and which have houses of similar architectural character. The primary difference would be the more orderly development characteristic of Lakewood, as opposed to the frequent mixture of

NPS Form 10-900-a (Rev. 8/2002)

OMB No. 1024-0018

(Expires 5-31-2012)

United States Department of the Interior National Park Service

Put Here Jones Home Subdivisions Historic District


Name of Property Cuyahoga County, Ohio County and State Name of multiple listing (if applicable)

National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet


Section number 8 Page 7

commercial, religious and multi-family buildings as well as the occasional earlier house style in Jones Home Subdivisions. Neighborhood Architects The architectural character of the district was enhanced by the two major works here of architect Sidney R. Badgely: Jones Home and Fourth Reformed Church. Badgely (1850-1917) was a prominent church architect who practiced in Cleveland from 1887 until his death. The houses of the district were largely the work of contractor/designers, as can be ascertained from surviving city building permits. The elaborate house at 3428 Library was apparently designed by Joseph Meltius, who served as the carpentry contractor. Henry W. Grone was listed as the architect of Emmanual Apostolic Church. The building permit lists the architect for the house at 3410 Daisy as Traco. Frank Brothers were listed as designers of the Daisy Avenue Terrace. G. E. Rudolph was the designer for the Arts and Crafts-styled Bream Apartments. The residence at 3444 Marvin has a building permit listing Hubert as its architect. Given the incomplete condition of the city's historic building permit files, only a sampling of the architects involved could be obtained. From this limited information and from observations of all the properties in the district, it seems most likely that Badgely is the only major historical architect associated with the district. Early Population The neighborhood was largely developed by 1910 and many of the properties were still under their original ownership by that time, making the 1910 U. S. Census a logical data base of analyzing the characteristics of the early inhabitants of this neighborhood. In searching for background information, the birthplace of these individuals was researched, as well as the birthplace of their fathers, whether they owned or rented their house and whether it was mortgaged or owned outright. The results are as follows: Birthplace: 87% of the individuals were Ohio-born, 8% were German-born and 5% were Bohemian-born. The highest proportion of foreign-born was on Library Avenue. Birthplace of Father: 47% in Germany; 28% in Ohio; 19% in Bohemia; and 6% elsewhere in the U. S. No clear geographic patterns were noted. Own or Rent: On 65% of the sheets, owners were predominant, on 35% of the sheets renters were predominant. Along West 25th Street, at the eastern edge of the district, the residents were almost all renters. This is consistent with the storefronts with apartments above that characterized this street. No clear geographic patterns were noted within the district, except that owners were always in the majority on Library Avenue. Mortgaged or Free of Debt: On 35% of the sheets, free properties predominated; on 24% mortgaged predominated. On 41%, the numbers were about equal. No clear geographic pattern emerged. Using this data and analyzing the properties here and in the older neighborhoods to the north, this

NPS Form 10-900-a (Rev. 8/2002)

OMB No. 1024-0018

(Expires 5-31-2012)

United States Department of the Interior National Park Service

Put Here Jones Home Subdivisions Historic District


Name of Property Cuyahoga County, Ohio County and State Name of multiple listing (if applicable)

National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet


Section number 8 Page 8

neighborhood displays a trend at this time in America's larger cities, the progression of second generation Americans from smaller scale and often vernacular rental housing into larger and more commodious housing that they actually owned. The older neighborhood adjacent to the north of here was built up with first generation immigrants, also largely from Central Europe, but these immigrants did not have the financial means in many cases to be able to purchase houses. Mortgages were also less common in the late nineteenth century than in the early twentieth century. Rental housing units were also often smaller and less elaborate than houses commissioned by their owner/occupants. This neighborhood, therefore, has greater architectural significance because of its more distinguished housing stock. The neighborhood also has significance because it is one of the first neighborhoods of the city to reflect this change from rental housing stock to a greater concentration on neighborhoods where a high percentage were owner-occupied and middle class. A publication titled Cost of Living In American Towns, a report of an inquiry by the Board of Trade of London into working class rents, housing and retail prices, together with rates of wages in certain occupations in the principal industrial towns of the United States, published in Washington in 1911 notes the major differences in housing conditions from Britain to the United States. It describes a type of house in Cleveland that typifies many within this historic district. "An important type of house which deserves more extended description is the modern sevenroomed house which is built for purchase by installments and is occupied mainly by skilled mechanics, building trade operatives, railway engineers, etc. This type of house is commonly about 24 feet square or 24 by 26 feet. It has two stories and an attic and is rectangular, without projecting outbuildings. The ground floor is divided into four rooms of nearly equal size, viz. about 11 feet by 12 feet, one of them curtailed so as to provide for the staircase. There is no hall. The front door opens into one of the rooms, through which the others are reached, not by doors, but through openings over which curtains are occasionally hung. On the floor above are three bedrooms and a bathroom, the bedrooms being of the same size as the rooms below. The attic is left unplastered when the house is built and hence does not constitute a living room, but after a house has been sold, the purchaser often finishes off this apartment and makes out of it one or perhaps two bedrooms. The house throughout is heated by a furnace fixed in the basement which underlies the entire building. Beyond providing room for the furnace and coals, the basement is not much used, for it is too warm to make a good storage room, unless partitioned. Some owners have partitions, but they do not seem to be general. It is only these modern houses which have furnaces in the basement." From this description and the report's descriptions of earlier housing types that lacked these features, it is clear that a newer form of housing had been identified, as exemplified by many examples within this district. This so-called "modern house type" was noteworthy in 1911 in a report designed to call attention in Great Britain and Europe of the progressing standards of living in American cities. While other Cleveland neighborhoods display such house types, this historic district has concentrations that are unusually intact and set within a recognizable subdivision centered about a magnificent landmark, the Jones Home for Children. Streetcar Influence

NPS Form 10-900-a (Rev. 8/2002)

OMB No. 1024-0018

(Expires 5-31-2012)

United States Department of the Interior National Park Service

Put Here Jones Home Subdivisions Historic District


Name of Property Cuyahoga County, Ohio County and State Name of multiple listing (if applicable)

National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet


Section number 8 Page 9

The influence of the streetcar in the development of this historic district is displayed in two major ways. First, the streets here run east-west rather than north-south as they do north of here. This is consistent with the layout of subdivisions in areas near streetcar lines. In these instances, the residential streets are laid out perpendicular to the major roads upon which the car lines run. With streetcar lines at the eastern and western ends of the district, along West 25th or Pearl to the east and along Fulton Road and West 41st Street to the west, it was logical that the east-west avenues would be the site of the desirable residential lots. North-south intermediate streets are kept to a minimum and few houses face onto these side streets. Lakewood is a city that displays this same gridiron system. With houses laid out along streets that paralleled the major streetcar lines, the residents would have to first walk north or south and then east or west to reach a streetcar line. However, since these earlier subdivisions to the north of here were laid out before streetcars came into popularity, this was not a factor in their design. The second major influence of the streetcar as displayed in this historic district, was to make possible large and distinct residential neighborhoods as opposed to areas that mixed residential, commercial and industrial development. Except for a few widely spaced residential commercial storefronts at strategic corners within the district, it is entirely residential. Commercial blocks are focused strictly along West 25th Street and Fulton Road. There is no industry within the neighborhood. North of here, this is not the case. Sizable brick factories may be seen along side streets. These enterprises often employed people who lived in the neighborhood who often walked to work and so were not dependent upon the streetcar. In these instances, a person often lived within walking distance of work and, as a result, neighborhoods were often not free from the smoke and noise of industrial activity. In the Jones Home Subdivisions, the streetcar enabled people to live here and work elsewhere. It freed the neighborhood from the smoke and noise of factories. Given the increasing trend at this time toward home ownership, it was important that subdivisions such as this address issues that would enhance their appeal to people seeking to invest in them on a long-term basis.

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