8 Lesser Known Historic Buffalo Homes
Historic Homes in Buffalo NY
Buffalo is full of old and historic homes. We’re blessed as a City to have homes still standing like Delaware’s Millionaires Row, the Theodore Roosevelt Inaugural House, and of course all of our Frank Lloyd Wright homes. But there are so many others that don’t get the attention they deserve. We’ll take a look at 8 historic homes around the City that aren’t as well known. Homes that you may walk by regularly and not realize the rich history.
Historic Elmwood Village Homes
The Johnston House at 24 Tudor and the Col. William Kelly House at 36 Tudor Place were constructed in 1934 and 1937 respectively. The land that they were built on was part of the Charles F. Wadsworth estate in the mid-1800's and later the John J. Albright estate.
The Johnston House was built by the architectural firm of Bley and Lyman. Lyman holds a special place in Buffalo’s architectural history having built The Saturn Club, Christ the King Chapel at Canisus College, and the M&T Bank Center downtown among many others.
The Col. William Kelly House is a colonial revival style structure that was originally owned by Col. William Kelly. He served as an officer in the Army Corps of Engineers and supervised the construction of roads and bridges in the Philippines during the early 1900's. After that, served as the president of the Buffalo Niagara Electric Corp. until 1945.
The How House at 41 St. Catherine's Court was built in 1924. James How, the original owner, served as president of the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra and was a staple in the local arts community. The house was designed by architect Harold L. Olmsted, an interesting man in his own right. After Olmsted completed college he went on an 18 month bicycle tour (how extremely Buffalo of him) across Europe and Africa. During this trip he sketched drawings and paintings of the various landscapes. These pieces of art were exhibited in a one-man show at the Albright Knox Art Gallery when he returned.
Historic Allentown Homes
The Carlton Ladd House at 11 Plymouth Avenue was built in 1887. The architect was Richard Caudell who was born in England and immigrated to the U.S. He was a well know residential architect at the time and built many houses around Allentown including 154 Fargo Street and 44 Orton Street. It was added to the list of local historic landmarks in 2003.
The Rohlfs House at 156 Park Avenue is a very unique home. Built in 1912 by Charles Rohlfs and a team of architects, it was made a local landmark in 1987. Charles Rohlfs, who was originally known as an actor, became a world famous furniture designer. His furniture was, and is still, sold all over the world, including a set in Buckingham Palace. A very famous mahogany chair of his was recently sold for $220,000 and appeared on the hit show Antiques Road Show in 2006. Watch the clip from the show here.
Other Notable Historic Buffalo Houses
The Nash House at 36 Nash Street in Downtown Buffalo was built in 1893. This served as the home of Rev. J. Edward Nash from 1925 – 1987. Rev. Nash was the pastor of the Michigan Avenue Baptist Church from 1892 until his retirement in 1953. Rev. Nash was an absolute champion of civil rights in Buffalo. The home itself sits as a testament to preservation as it’s the only house on the entire block and is now used as a Museum. Visit their site to learn more.
The Dayton House at 243 Deerborn in Black Rock was built in 1840. It was the home of former Buffalo Mayor, Lewis P. Dayton who served in the position in 1874. This home is currently undergoing restoration and is the last remaining brick residence of its style in the neighborhood.
Finally, the Stone Farmhouse at 60 Hedley Place. The date which it was built is not fully known, but it's thought to be sometime between 1830 and 1850. It functioned as the original farm house for the entire area. It's the oldest structure in Hamlin Park Historic District and is in beautiful shape for a property that's over 150 years old. At the time it was built, the entire area around it was nothing but farmland with this home being the only structure.
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