616 4th Avenue Southeast
Cedar Rapids, IA, USA

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Property Story Timeline

Preserving home history
starts with you.

Feb 21, 2016

  • Charmaine Bantugan

Glenn M. and Edith Averill House

The Glenn M. and Edith Averill House is a historic building located in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, United States. Designed by local architectural firm Josselyn & Taylor, it was completed in 1906 in a combination of the Queen Anne style and the American Craftsman style. It replaced a smaller house that was located on its original lot at 1113 2nd Avenue, SE. The Averill's lived here until 1913 when they moved into a new residence and rented out this home. In 1924 this house was sold to the Phi Alpha Pi fraternity. Later, the house was divided into apartments, and it was then used by several different businesses. St. Luke's Hospital acquired this and several other houses for a new medical pavilion. It was bought by Charles Jones and saved from being torn down. The house was moved to its current location on Fourth Avenue, SE, and renovated according to the Secretary of the Interior's Standards for Rehabilitation. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2015.

Glenn M. and Edith Averill House

The Glenn M. and Edith Averill House is a historic building located in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, United States. Designed by local architectural firm Josselyn & Taylor, it was completed in 1906 in a combination of the Queen Anne style and the American Craftsman style. It replaced a smaller house that was located on its original lot at 1113 2nd Avenue, SE. The Averill's lived here until 1913 when they moved into a new residence and rented out this home. In 1924 this house was sold to the Phi Alpha Pi fraternity. Later, the house was divided into apartments, and it was then used by several different businesses. St. Luke's Hospital acquired this and several other houses for a new medical pavilion. It was bought by Charles Jones and saved from being torn down. The house was moved to its current location on Fourth Avenue, SE, and renovated according to the Secretary of the Interior's Standards for Rehabilitation. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2015.

Jul 27, 2015

  • Charmaine Bantugan

National Register of Historic Places - Glenn M. and Edith Averill House

Statement of Significance: The Glenn M. and Edith Averill House was designed and built between 1905 and 1906 on a narrow urban lot at 1113 2nd Avenue SE in the Oak Hill residential neighborhood east of Cedar Rapids' central downtown district. The Oak Hill area is described by Marlys Svendsen: "Originally the name "Oak Hill" was used to describe the entire southeastern section of Cedar Rapids. The name first appears on the subdivision platted in 1857 by S.D. and Sarah Carpenter. Tradition has it that the name resulted from the presence of several varieties of oak trees native to the area." (Svendsen, Section E, Page 8) The Averill's lived in the house until 1913 when they moved into a new home on their Linn County farm and rented out their home on 2nd Avenue SE. In 1924 it was sold to the Phi Alpha Pi fraternity, after which it was used for residential apartments, and more recently had been used by several different businesses. Very few changes were made to the house to accommodate these different uses however and the original interior layout, materials, cabinets and fireplaces remain. In 2011 it was purchased, along with other houses in the area, by St. Luke’s Hospital for construction of the P.C.I. Medical Pavilion. The house was slated for demolition when the current owner purchased it and, after obtaining preliminary approval from the National Park Service, moved it to a compatible lot on 4th Avenue SE, just six blocks to the south and west from its original location. The house has been rehabilitated following the Secretary of the Interior's Standards for Rehabilitation. The Averill House was designed by the local Cedar Rapids firm of Josselyn and Taylor, a partnership described as "one of the first major modern architectural firms in Iowa" (Shank, Page 90). The house is a good example of late 19th and early 20thcentury American residential architecture with a mixture of details from several different architectural styles of the day. It is one of the few remaining homes in Cedar Rapids designed by the firm of Josselyn and Taylor. The Glenn and Edith Averill House at its new location continues to be significant under Criterion C as a building that embodies the distinctive architectural character of late 19th and early 20th-century homes in Cedar Rapids. The exterior reflects the Arts and Crafts style with its monolithic form with minimal decoration, battered piers at the corners of the front facade and porch, and a monochromatic color palette. However the front facade has a distinctive Queen Anne style two story tall oriel that houses the second floor staircase on the front and a smaller 1-story oriel on the east side. The Averill House is also different from other homes designed by Josselyn and Taylor that were in other more popular turn of the century residential styles. (Continuation Sheets 36, 37, 39 & 40) The period of significance for the Glenn and Edith Averill House is circa 1906 when they moved into their new home to 1913 when the character of the neighborhood changed and when the Averill's moved to a new home outside of the city. At its new compatible property on 4th Avenue SE and after the completion of the historic rehabilitation project, the home continues to reflect the era in which it was constructed and the original design intent of the architects, Josselyn and Taylor.

National Register of Historic Places - Glenn M. and Edith Averill House

Statement of Significance: The Glenn M. and Edith Averill House was designed and built between 1905 and 1906 on a narrow urban lot at 1113 2nd Avenue SE in the Oak Hill residential neighborhood east of Cedar Rapids' central downtown district. The Oak Hill area is described by Marlys Svendsen: "Originally the name "Oak Hill" was used to describe the entire southeastern section of Cedar Rapids. The name first appears on the subdivision platted in 1857 by S.D. and Sarah Carpenter. Tradition has it that the name resulted from the presence of several varieties of oak trees native to the area." (Svendsen, Section E, Page 8) The Averill's lived in the house until 1913 when they moved into a new home on their Linn County farm and rented out their home on 2nd Avenue SE. In 1924 it was sold to the Phi Alpha Pi fraternity, after which it was used for residential apartments, and more recently had been used by several different businesses. Very few changes were made to the house to accommodate these different uses however and the original interior layout, materials, cabinets and fireplaces remain. In 2011 it was purchased, along with other houses in the area, by St. Luke’s Hospital for construction of the P.C.I. Medical Pavilion. The house was slated for demolition when the current owner purchased it and, after obtaining preliminary approval from the National Park Service, moved it to a compatible lot on 4th Avenue SE, just six blocks to the south and west from its original location. The house has been rehabilitated following the Secretary of the Interior's Standards for Rehabilitation. The Averill House was designed by the local Cedar Rapids firm of Josselyn and Taylor, a partnership described as "one of the first major modern architectural firms in Iowa" (Shank, Page 90). The house is a good example of late 19th and early 20thcentury American residential architecture with a mixture of details from several different architectural styles of the day. It is one of the few remaining homes in Cedar Rapids designed by the firm of Josselyn and Taylor. The Glenn and Edith Averill House at its new location continues to be significant under Criterion C as a building that embodies the distinctive architectural character of late 19th and early 20th-century homes in Cedar Rapids. The exterior reflects the Arts and Crafts style with its monolithic form with minimal decoration, battered piers at the corners of the front facade and porch, and a monochromatic color palette. However the front facade has a distinctive Queen Anne style two story tall oriel that houses the second floor staircase on the front and a smaller 1-story oriel on the east side. The Averill House is also different from other homes designed by Josselyn and Taylor that were in other more popular turn of the century residential styles. (Continuation Sheets 36, 37, 39 & 40) The period of significance for the Glenn and Edith Averill House is circa 1906 when they moved into their new home to 1913 when the character of the neighborhood changed and when the Averill's moved to a new home outside of the city. At its new compatible property on 4th Avenue SE and after the completion of the historic rehabilitation project, the home continues to reflect the era in which it was constructed and the original design intent of the architects, Josselyn and Taylor.

1905

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