401 Cedar St
Burlington, IA, USA

James M. Forney House

The James M. Forney House is a historic building located in Burlington, Iowa, United States. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1986. Forney was a cabinet maker in Pennsylvania who came to Burlington in 1850 and opened a saw mill. By 1857 he sold his business to his competitors and entered into a partnership with his brother-in-law, Samuel Mellinger, in a tin and coopersmith firm. By 1866 he put his wealth into real estate. In 1875 Forney started another commercial venture with M. C. Buffington, the inventor and patent holder for the Improved Sarven Wheel, also known as the Buffington Wheel. They formed a partnership and opened Buffington, Forney & Company, a carriage wheel manufacturer. They patented and manufactured the Universal Wheelwright Machine, which was considered the finest wheel making machine in the world.

The 2½ story, brick house is located on property that encompasses a half block at the top of a bluff. It features Italianate influences found in the main block, the roof line, and ornamental details. They are combined with the Gothic Revival influences found in the central cross gable, the pointed arch windows in the gables, and the tracery between the columns of the front porch.

National Register of Historic Places - James M. Forney House

Statement of Significance:

The James M. Forney House was constructed in 1864 of red brick and capped with a side gabled roof, featuring a front center gable, consisting of 2 1/2 story rectangular core and a 2 story symmetrically placed rear wing. Viewed collectively with its period carriage house, patterned brick walkways and general landscape qualities, this house, which combines the Gothic Revival and Italianate, is typical of the picturesque movement promoted by Andrew Jackson Downing and other pattern book authors in the 1850's and '60's. The Forney House and its surroundings are very well preserved and constitute one of the best examples of the picturesque in the area. The house proper is believed to be the only extant major domestic example of picturesque combining Gothic and Italianate in Burlington.

From a physical point of view, the architecture of the Forney House is the most significant aspect of the property. People traveling through the neighborhood are drawn to this picturesque setting which an expansive view of the Mississippi below. However, the Forney House also serves as a reminder of several important commercial industrial developments in late 19th century Burlington. There were several people involved with this property whose overlapping business ventures highlight real estate and the building trades during a period of rapid community growth. Real estate developer J. W. Heisey worked primarily in the outlying suburban neighborhoods and was responsible for the Forney construction. To this project he brought well known Burlington contractors, including Simeon Russell. Many substantial commercial and public buildings of the period are attributed to Russell, a brick mason and general contractor. James M. Forney, longtime owner and resident of the house was a successful businessman whose life was representative of the capitalists of his day. He was able to determine the needs of the expanding West and then meet them in a way that brought to him a comfortable lifestyle. His fortune was made in sawmills, tin smithing, real estate, and carriage wheel manufacture. The result of these economic successes is distilled in what we see as the Forney House today.

The land was developed by John W. Heisey, advertised as a rel estate broker, speculator and capitalist. He was active in the surrounding neighborhood as early as 1862, living in several houses that he built and sold before setting into a long-term residency there (extant, but altered). Heisey was also instrumental in developing other suburban neighborhoods. For example, during approximately the same period (1869), he purchased several lots in what was to become known as Cameron's Addition in the western section of town; the main street in the addition is named for Heisey.

Working with Heisey were two well know Burlington contractors--Heinrich Meyer, whose family were stone cutters and stonemasons, and Simeon Russell, brick mason and building contractor. Also involved in the Forney House construction was a third contractor, J. S. Holiday (Or J. S. Halliday) who may have been a stone cutter. It was a relatively common practice at this time for contractors to receive a mortgage on the house they constructed to insure payment for their services. All three of the contractors mentioned held such mortgages from August 1864 until March 1866.

Most important among the contractors was Simeon Russell (1825-1906), who started his career in Burlington as a brick mason working on Burlington's first public school building (North Hill School 1851). Immediately after that he went into the contracting business for himself. He sometimes worked with various architects and served as construction superintendent for public and commercial buildings. Among his activities, he was City Building Commissioner (1885-86) and worked on the first brick street paving in 1887. Russell built many notable structures between 1851 and 1986 - South Hill School (1852), Cumberland Presbyterian Church (1855), Second Presbyterian Church (later St. Paul's 1856), South Boundary School (1861), Germania School (1866), Hibernia School (1875), Prospect Hill School #1 (1879), German National Bank (1885) and Saunderson and Sunnyside Schools (1891). Russell is also reported to have done numerous residential structures. However, his own residence (1851 in the present-day Heritage Hill Historic District, NRHP) and the Forney House are the only known residential projects.

The Forney property was originally purchased from J. W. Heisey by Edward Van Meter, a Burlington music professor and proprietor of Van Meter and Lang Music Store. Although the contracting for construction was initiated by Heisey and Van Meter, it is not clear whether Van Meter ever lived in the house. He sold to James M. Forney in March of 1866 at the time the contractor mortgages were retired. Van Meter lived at various places throughout the town from 1864 to 1876 and then disappeared from city directories.

As a young man in Pennsylvania, James Forney was trained in the art of cabinetmaking. But he was drawn by the opportunities in the West, settling in Burlington during 1850. This was a boom period for Burlington and Forney's first business venture was the operation of a sawmill, one of the most important industries of the day. River floated log and lumber rafts coming from the northwest pineries in Wisconsin and Minnesota provided the resources for regional expansion. Burlington's riverfront hummed with activity as these raw materials were sawed up for both local use and westward shipment on convenient rail service. During the 1850's there were at least six sawmills operating in Burlington, and probably several others. This young industry experienced tremendous growth and competition between the firms. One result of this rapid growth was that the lager mills of E. D. Rand and the Gilbert Brothers bought out controlling interests in the smaller ones. The early sawmill operators had the opportunity, after becoming established, to make a good profit and move into other capitalist ventures.

So in 1857 Forney entered into a partnership with his brother-in-law, Samuel Mellinger. He joined the firm of Mellinger & Co., Tin and Coppersmiths, who also dealt in stoves and sheet iron manufacture. By 1866 Forney was a twice successful businessman who "retired11 into his spacious new home on the river bluff at the ripe old age of 44. He is representative of the capitalists of this era who made considerable fortunes during the periods of rapid community growth and then retired to enjoy life and continue investing in other commercial ventures.

Forney had come to Iowa at the urging of Mellinger, who came from Pennsylvania the year before Forney. One of the reasons Forney retired to this neighborhood was that Mellinger had earlier located his family on a South At Street property "commanding a beautiful river view". When Forney purchased his new house at the corner of S. 4th and Cedar, the brothers-in-law became neighbors. Then in about 1889, Mellinger built a newer home on his property across the street from Forney (extant but altered).

After his retirement Forney was at least partially involved in real estate. Mellinger and Forney had sold he tinsmith business by the middle 1860's and Samuel Mel1 linger had become a real estate broker. In 18?0 Forney and Mellinger purchased a business block on the north side of Jefferson between 5th S 6th Streets, a prime location. Mellinger then maintained his real estate office in the "Mellinger and Forney Block". Mellinger's son, Frank, was also in another business with Forney and then followed into the real estate business, becoming well known for extensive farmland developments in the river bottom areas. The extent of Forney 1 s involvement in real estate is yet unknown and he was about to enter another manufacturing effort. However, real estate brought together three capitalists as the Forney House: Heisey, Forney and Mellinger. Although Forney bought the house, it was the interrelationship of these men which brought Forney to the site.

In 1875 Forney began another commercial venture, which was perhaps his most significant. M. C. Buffington was the inventor and patent holder for the Improved Sarven Wheel, also known as the Buffington Wheel. But he did not have the means to manufacture and market his improvement. James Forney, because of his background in the building trades, recognized the value of the invention, furnished the capital for the business, and took Buffington into partnership with him. They became Buffington, Forney & Co., carriage wheel manufacturers. Frank Mellinger eventually became secretary treasurer of the company, continuing those family business ties even further.

The factory, located on Osborn Street, was a substantial three-story building which expanded with an additional four story building in 1882 (razed 1983). The company employed fifty people, but frequently could not keep up with their orders. By 1882 their business was between $80,000 and $100,000 yearly. The unique feature of the Buffington Wheel was a "centrally enlarged, two-band hub, with mortised metallic shell in combination with mortised wooden hub." The hub was banded, and the band riveted together before the spokes were driven, making it easy to repair because it was not necessary to remove any rivets. According to their advertisements, it was guaranteed to be the best spoke holding wheel on the market. It was strong, durable and easy to repair. The market was national—from Kentucky and Illinois, through Kansas and Missouri, all the way to the Pacific Coast.

The Universal Wheelwright Machine was also patented and manufactured by Buffington, Forney and Company. It was called the finest wheel making machine in the world and was used by some of the largest wagon manufacturers in the West. The company was absorbed by the American Wheel Company around the turn of the century.

Forney 1 s first business venture—the sawmill, and his last—the wheelworks, best show his capitalist abilities in identifying the managing industries important to the growth of the era. His house is representative of this success. Forney family members were longtime residents of the house--75 years. The address was 803 S. 4th through the turn of the century but was changed to 401 Cedar in more recent years.