Powell House | |
 The building in 2025 | |
  Location of building in California | |
| Location | 203 S. Pine St, Nevada City, California |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 39°15′44″N121°01′08″W / 39.2621°N 121.0188°W |
| Built | 1855 or 1860 |
| Part of | Nevada City Downtown Historic District (ID85002520) |
| Designated CP | September 23, 1985 |
Powell House, formerly Nevada City Baptist Church, is a historic residence and former church in Nevada City, California.
Powell House, originally Nevada City Baptist Church, was built as a one-story frame structure in 1855 [1] [2] or 1860. [3] It was not damaged during the Nevada City fire of 1863, the city's last citywide fire, and provided facilities for the other congregations that did sustain losses. [3]
Emma Nevada made her singing debut in the church either at age three in 1862/63 [2] or age five in 1864/65. [3]
E. T. R. Powell, operator of Nevada City Soda Works, bought the building in 1886 and enlarged it significantly. [3] He also divided the building into two living quarters, divided the congregation room into sixteen rooms, and manufactured soda in the ground-floor basement. [1]
The building was later bought by Charles Woods and David Osborn, founders of the nearby American Victorian Museum, who used this building as a residence and boarding house. They later converted the building into a "teddy bear castle" with 3,000 teddy bears on display. [1]
The building was listed as a contributing property in the Nevada City Downtown Historic District in 1985. [3]
Powell House was bought for $730,000 in 2006 [1] ($1.14 million in 2024) and reopened in 2011 as a five-unit apartment complex. The building had previously been converted to a ten-room hotel. [4]
 | This section relies largely or entirely on a single source .(August 2025) |
Powell House was originally a one-story frame that featured a tall steeple over a gable. The building was later expanded to two-stories. [3]
The building's entrance is elevated, framed by an archway, topped by a transom, and features two doors carved in their lower panel with a glass panel above. The second story features a balustraded balcony on top of heavy double brackets, above which a gabled shingled roof is supported by two arches, the arches supported by ornamental posts. [3]
The building features single glass pane windows with original 1860 stained glass panels above. [3]