| Historic Name: |
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Common Name: |
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| Style: |
Arts & Crafts - Craftsman |
Neighborhood: |
Wallingford |
| Built By: |
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Year Built: |
1909 |
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| Significance |
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This craftsman bungalow was built in 1909 according to Assessor's record (the original building permit has not yet been located). It is one of three quite similar houses built at the northeast corner of 34th and Densmore, alhough this structure is the only one of the three that does nto appear to have been significantly altered. (This group of houses in noted in "Wallingford: An inventory of Buildings and Urban Design Resources" prepared in the 1970s.) Attempts to modify the appearance of the house in the years between 1937 and 1949 were reversed at some point since mid century, although a few of the details of the cladding system appear to hve been permanently altered. The foundation was repired in 1994 by Blackhawk Construction for the owner at the time, Jim Sekor. The use of the structure was changed from single family residence to administrative law office in 2001. The house is a good example of the craftsman bungalow in the years when the style was first becoming popular and is made more significant by its proximity to the industrial waterfront, the first part of the neighborhood to be developed. Situated in the block between Buchan's Bakery and the old shoe factory (later Grandma's Cookies and now Avtech), it demonstrates the willingness of early residents of the neighborhood to live amongst the early industrial enterprises.
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| Appearance |
| This is a shingle and wood clad frame residence on concrete foundation over a half basement.. The low slope of the main roof, the exposed underside of the overhangs, and extended roof beams that appear to support the barge board are typical elements of the craftsman bungalow style. The inset porch at the south east corner of the house is accentuated by the projecting porch gable, supported by large, built-up wood posts standing on "piers" clad with clapboard siding. The porch is balanced by a corner bay window at the opposite end on the front (south) elevation. A larger bay is tucked under the eave approximately in the middle of the west wall. When first built, a heavy drip mould provided a strong horizontal element visually connecting the sills of the major windows, the base of the corner bay, and the caps of the porch rails while also dividing the shingle siding in the upper part of the house from the clapboard siding that skirts the lower part of the building. This moulding, and the horizontal band that once stretched across the gables at porch soffit height, have been replaced with somewhat lighter and less powerful trim elements. The windows are double hung and most feature a small sash with numerous small lites divided by delicately porportioned muntins over a larger, undivided lower sash. Despite the detail adjustments in the façade, and although the entry stairs have been modified and a timber retaining wall now encloses the site, the house appears much as it must have when it was first completed. |
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