Andrews-Leggett House

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Andrews-Leggett House
CommerceMI AndrewsLeggettHouse.jpg
Location 722 Farr St., Commerce Township, Michigan
Coordinates 42°35′39″N83°29′25″W / 42.59417°N 83.49028°W / 42.59417; -83.49028 (Andrews--Leggett House) Coordinates: 42°35′39″N83°29′25″W / 42.59417°N 83.49028°W / 42.59417; -83.49028 (Andrews--Leggett House)
Area 2.7 acres (1.1 ha)
Built 1837 (1837)
Architectural style Greek Revival, Late Victorian
NRHP reference # 87000949 [1]
Added to NRHP June 12, 1987

The Andrews-Leggett House is a single-family home located at 722 Farr Street in Commerce Township, Michigan. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1987. [1] The house contains the only documented examples of 1830s-40s stenciled wall decorations in Michigan. [2]

Commerce Township, Michigan Charter township in Michigan, United States

Commerce Township, officially the Charter Township of Commerce, is a charter township of Oakland County, and suburb of Detroit, located in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 40,186 at the 2010 census. The terrain is rolling hills with large expanses of flat farmland and suburban development. The Huron River runs mostly north-south through the township. Commerce was formerly a weekend and summer resort for Detroiters because of the area's small inland lakes and peaceful seclusion, but due to recent development the cottages are now all permanent homes. There has been a sharp increase in population in the last few years, mostly on or near the several lakes and golf courses. Much of Proud Lake State Recreation Area is within the township. The northern terminus of M-5 is in Commerce. The busy highway would have continued north to Interstate 75, but because of the area's high property value and the many lakes that dot the landscape such a project would have been far too costly.

National Register of Historic Places federal list of historic sites in the United States

The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance. A property listed in the National Register, or located within a National Register Historic District, may qualify for tax incentives derived from the total value of expenses incurred preserving the property.

Contents

History

In 1836/37, Amasa Andrews purchased land near location, along with the rights to divert the Huron River to create a millrace and mill. In 1837, he purchased the farm where this house is now located, and likely constructed this house at the same time. In 1853, Andrews sold the farm to Augustus C. Baldwin, a lawyer from nearby Milford, who had just been elected county prosecutor. Baldwin had served in the state legislature before becoming prosecutor. Baldwin lived there only a short time, and in 1855 sold the house to Samuel M. Leggett, a gentleman farmer and poet. [2]

Huron River (Michigan) river flowing to Lake Erie in southeast Michigan

The Huron River is a 130-mile-long (210 km) river in southeastern Michigan, rising out of the Huron Swamp in Springfield Township in northern Oakland County and flowing into Lake Erie on the boundary between Wayne County and Monroe County. In addition to thirteen parks, game areas, and recreation areas, the river passes through the cities of Dexter, Ann Arbor, Ypsilanti, Belleville, Flat Rock and Rockwood.

Augustus C. Baldwin American politician

Augustus Carpenter Baldwin was a politician from the U.S. state of Michigan.

Milford, Michigan Village in Michigan, United States

Milford is a village in Oakland County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 6,175 at the 2010 census. The village is located within Milford Township.

In 1872, Leggett sold the farm to Martin S. Smith, a businessman from Detroit. Smith owned a jewelry store, and in 1874 became treasurer of Alger, Smith, and Company (whose president was Russell A. Alger), which soon became the largest pine lumbering company in the world. In 1876, Smith transferred ownership of the farm to Alden Hunnewell, one of the employees of Alger, Smith, and Company. The farm later passed to Alden Hunnewell's daughter, and her husband Thomas Field. The house remained in the Field family until 1986. [2]

Detroit Largest city in Michigan

Detroit is the largest and most populous city in the U.S. state of Michigan, the largest United States city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of Wayne County. The municipality of Detroit had a 2017 estimated population of 673,104, making it the 23rd-most populous city in the United States. The metropolitan area, known as Metro Detroit, is home to 4.3 million people, making it the second-largest in the Midwest after the Chicago metropolitan area. Regarded as a major cultural center, Detroit is known for its contributions to music and as a repository for art, architecture and design.

Russell A. Alger Union Army general

Russell Alexander Alger was the 20th Governor and U.S. Senator from the state of Michigan and also U.S. Secretary of War during the Presidential administration of William McKinley. He was supposedly a distant relation of Horatio Alger; although Russell Alger lived his own "rags-to-riches" success tale, eventually becoming an army officer, financier, lumber baron, railroad owner, and government official in several high offices.

Description

The Andrews-Leggett House consists of three sections. The original c. 1837 section is a two-story, side-gable, Greek Revival structure, measuring about 40 feet by 28 feet. It was originally a five-bay center entrance house. The second section is a 1-1/2-story ell, measuring 40 feet by 24 feet and extending to the rear of the original house. This ell is a very early addition, and may have been built in 1837 along with the main section of the house. [2]

A later two-story Victorian addition, constructed in 1855 and measuring 20 feet by 26 feet, is centered on the front of the main section of the house, presenting a front gable to the street side of the house. This front-facing centered addition is unique among Michigan houses constructed at the time. The addition projects four feet from the front facade, and contains a semi-octagonal bay window on the first floor, topped by a small covered porch on the second floor. Porches flanking the addition are likely the remnants of a veranda that originally ran across the front of the 1837 house. [2]

The entire house is constructed with a hewn timber frame and covered with clapboard. The entrance is through two doors on either side of the front addition, beneath the porches. The first floor contains a living room, dining room, parlor and kitchen, along with a stair hall with access to the second floor. The second floor contains several bedrooms opening from the stair hall, and a ballroom. The second-floor hallway and three of the bedrooms contain the remnants of early stenciled wall decorations. [2]

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References

  1. 1 2 National Park Service (2013-11-02). "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places . National Park Service.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Doris Smith (October 15, 1986), National Register of Historic Places Inventory-Nomination Form: Andrews-Leggett House
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