911 6th Ave S
Stillwater, MN 55082, USA

Italianate Stillwater Historic Homes

Known as the John Moodhe House , this fine representation of Italianate architecture was constructed somewhere between 1878 -1882 for the sum of $700. While brick construction is not common for local Italianate homes, the brick does allow for architectural details not found in wood sided homes. At the corners of the home are prominent quoins and under the windows are lentils. The arched windows, brick window crown, and low pitched roof are some other characteristics of the style. The only thing really missing are large decorative brackets under the eaves, but it looks like the home never had them. The house was sold a year ago for $504,000. It has a little over 2700 square feet, three bedrooms, and three bathrooms.

John Moodhe House

This stately, two-story Italianate style house is one of the few brick constructed houses in the Hersey, Staples Addition to Stillwater. Based on Tax Assessor records the house was built circa 1882 for $700 for John and Christine Moodhe (Donald Empson, Hersey, Staples Addition Resdential Area, 2000:48). The house rests on a limestone foundation is cover by a hip roof. Its low-pitched roof with widely overhanging eaves, tall and narrow arched windows with projected hoods, the brick quioning on the corners and two-story bay window are distinctive characteristics of the Italianate style. The ornate brick lintels above the windows and doors, the dogtooth pattern brick between the first and second stories and the shutters further embellish the design. The hipped-roof porch on the southeast corner of the house has chamfered columns and decorative brackets that are features found on high-style Italianate houses. According to the 1892-1893 city directory, Moodhe was employed as a rafter at the Musser S L L & Manufacturing Company. After Mr. Moodhes death in 1893, his widow, Christine, lived in the house until she sold it to Johns brother Erick Moodhe around 1896. Erik had previously resided next door at 915 6th Avenue South. The property was subsequently acquired by Rutherford Goff, and in 1913, he sold the house to the parents of Ellen Carlson for $800 (Ellen Carlson oral interview 1984 provided by homeowner). According to Ellen Carlson, who lived in this house from 1913 to 1978, a large frame addition was constructed on the rear elevation sometime prior to 1912. The addition had 14 rooms and was used as a boarding house (Ellen Carlson oral interview 1984 provided by homeowner). Circa 1950, the Carlson family demolished this addition and replaced it with the existing two-story brick addition on the rear elevation that generally respects the design and scale of the original building. The hipped-roof garage that is located behind the house was built circa 1980, after Ms. Carlson moved out of the house.