Jacob and Rebecca Fuerst Farmstead

Last updated
Jacob and Rebecca Fuerst Farmstead
FuerstFarmsteadNoviMIB.jpg
USA Michigan location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Location in Michigan
Usa edcp location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Location in United States
Location24000 Taft Rd., Novi, Michigan
Coordinates 42°27′54″N83°29′36″W / 42.46500°N 83.49333°W / 42.46500; -83.49333 (Fuerst, Jacob and Rebecca, Farmstead) Coordinates: 42°27′54″N83°29′36″W / 42.46500°N 83.49333°W / 42.46500; -83.49333 (Fuerst, Jacob and Rebecca, Farmstead)
Area6.5 acres (2.6 ha)
Architectural style Bungalow, American Craftsman
NRHP reference No. 97000928 [1]
Added to NRHPAugust 21, 1997

The Jacob and Rebecca Fuerst Farmstead was a farm located at 24000 Taft Road in Novi, Michigan. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1997. [1] The farm was demolished in 2008 [2] and the property redeveloped into Fuerst Park. [3]

Contents

History

The Fuerst Farm land was first developed in 1827 by Gamaliel Simmons, who purchased this quarter section of land. The farm passed through several owners in the next few years; historical records suggest that a Greek Revival frame house was constructed on the property at some point before 1830. In 1836, the farm was purchased by George Dennis, who made improvements and constructed outbuildings on the farm. Dennis and his family owned the property until 1898, when it was purchased by James and Minnie Dunham. It is likely that the Dunhams leased the property before purchase, possibly as early as 1889. [4]

In 1918 the farm was purchased by the Jacob and Rebecca Fuerst family, who at the time owned a farm in Greenfield Township. By 1918, the city of Detroit was encroaching on Greenfield Township, and the original Fuerst farm was platted as a subdivision. farm already had some orchards planted, but the Fuersts developed them further, turning the farm into a thriving business selling fruit, eggs, and butter. [4]

In 1931 the Fuersts demolished the old Greek Revival house on the property and built a new bungalow. Rebecca and Jacob Fuerst lived on the farm until their deaths, Jacob in 1941 and Rebecca in 1954. Afterward, their daughters Ruby and Iva remained on the farm. [4] The Fuerst sisters sold their 160 acres of land to the city of Novi in the 1970s for a token amount, retaining a life lease on this five-acre farmstead parcel. The Fuerst sisters both died in 1991. [5]

The farm was demolished in 2008 [2] and the property redeveloped into Fuerst Park. [3]

Description

The site of the Fuerst Farmstead is on a 6+1⁄2-acre site featuring a small hill atop which the farmhouse once stood. The site contains the remains of a fruit orchard, primarily pears and apples. Other shrubs and trees, including lilac, honeysuckle, buckthorn, barberry, sugar maple, and black walnut trees dot the site. The farmstead once consisted of a 1927 house, four barns, and a few smaller outbuildings. [4]

Most significant were the house and the 1876 Old Barn. The house was a 2500-square-foot Arts and Crafts structure, sided with wood on a fieldstone foundation. A stone porch ran the length of the house, and a massive stone chimney dominated one side of the house. The Old Barn was a wood-framed structure with a front gable roof on a fieldstone basement. The barn was built into the side of the hill, so that the basement level could be accessed from below. [4]

The site has been redeveloped into a park, and contains an amphitheater, large gardens, and the historic Novi Township Hall, which was relocated onto the site. [3]

Public art

Fuerst Park has several sculptures on display: [6]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Novi, Michigan</span> City in Michigan, United States

Novi is a city in Oakland County in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2020 census, the population was 66,243, an increase of 20% from the 2010 census.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John and Edna Truesdell Fischer Farmstead</span> Historic house in Michigan, United States

The John and Edna Truesdell Fischer Farmstead is a private farm, including house and outbuildings, located at 4896-5228 Sheldon Road in Canton Township, Michigan. The 1897 Queen Anne farmhouse located on the site is also known as the Michael and Catherine Hasselbach Fischer House. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2000.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">George and Mary Pine Smith House</span> Historic house in Michigan, United States

The George and Mary Pine Smith House is a private house located at 3704 Sheldon Road, near Sheldon in Canton Township, Michigan. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2000.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rentschler Farm Museum</span> United States historic place

Rentschler Farm Museum is a historic site located at 1265 East Michigan Avenue near downtown Saline, Michigan. The site consists of an old-fashioned farmhouse and eleven outbuildings, including a hog house, an equipment shed, a hen house, and a windmill, among others. The site is now a museum that serves as a tourist attraction, showing how farming has changed over the years. The site was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2013.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lamson Farm</span> United States historic place

Lamson Farm is a historic farm property on Lamson Road in Mont Vernon, New Hampshire. Founded in the 1770s and operated as a farm until 1975, it is one of the few surviving intact 19th-century farm properties in the community. Its land, over 300 acres (120 ha) in size, is now town-owned conservation and farmland. The property has trails open to the public, and an annual celebration of Lamson Farm Day is held here every September. The property was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1981.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Charles C. Fitch Farmstead</span> United States historic place

The Charles C. Fitch Farmstead is a historic farm property located in Eugene, Oregon. It was listed as a historic district on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) on June 16, 1989.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Park Farm (Grafton, Vermont)</span> United States historic place

Park Farm is a historic farm property at 26 Woodchuck Hill Road in Grafton, Vermont. With a farmhouse dating to about 1820, and most of its outbuildings to the 19th century, the farm remains an excellent example of a typical 19th-century Vermont farmstead. The property was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2003.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Scott Farm Historic District</span> Historic district in Vermont, United States

The Scott Farm Historic District encompasses a historic farm property at 707 Kipling Road in Dummerston, Vermont. Developed between about 1850 and 1915, Scott Farm is a well-preserved farm and orchard complex of that period. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2001.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rock S. Edwards Farmstead</span> United States historic place

The Rock S. Edwards Farmstead is a collection of farm buildings located at 3503 Edwards Road in Sodus Township, Michigan. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1995.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Axford-Coffin Farm</span> United States historic place

The Axford-Coffin Farm, also known as Cranberry Lake Farm, is a farmstead located at 384-388 West Predmore Road in Oakland Charter Township, Michigan. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2002.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Langford and Lydia McMichael Sutherland Farmstead</span> United States historic place

The Langford and Lydia McMichael Sutherland Farmstead is a farm located at 797 Textile Road in Pittsfield Charter Township, Michigan. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2006. It is now the Sutherland-Wilson Farm Historic Site.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">George Louk Farm</span> United States historic place

The George Louk Farm is a rural farmstead located at 1885 Tooley Road near Howell, Michigan. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1995.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Timothy and Lucretia Jones Warner Homestead</span> Archaeological site in Michigan, United States

The Timothy and Lucretia Jones Warner Homestead is a farmstead and archaeological site located at 4001 Pleasant Valley Road near Brighton, Michigan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Waterloo Farm Museum</span> United States historic place

The Waterloo Farm Museum is a museum located at 9998 Waterloo-Munith Road in Waterloo Township, Michigan. It was originally the Siebold Farm and then the Realy Farm. The farm was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1973.

The Frederick A., Jr. and Caroline Hewett Kennedy Farm is a historic farmstead located at 8490 Hanover Road near Hanover, Michigan. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2000.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">James and Anne Atmore Bryant Farmstead</span> United States historic place

The James and Anne Atmore Bryant Farmstead is a farm located at 12557 L Drive North in Convis Township, Michigan. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2002.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Drake Farmstead</span> United States historic place

The Benjamin and Maria (Ogden) Drake Farm, also known as the Drake Farmstead, is a farmstead located at 927 North Drake Road in Kalamazoo, Michigan. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2012.1

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Leonard Neighbor Farmstead</span> Historic house in New Jersey, United States

The Leonard Neighbor Farmstead is a historic house located at 177 West Mill Road near Long Valley in Washington Township, Morris County, New Jersey. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places on May 1, 1992, for its significance in architecture. The farm overlooks the valley formed by the South Branch Raritan River. The house is part of the Stone Houses and Outbuildings in Washington Township Multiple Property Submission (MPS).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sharpenstine Farmstead</span> Historic house in New Jersey, United States

The Sharpenstine Farmstead is a historic farmhouse located at 98 East Mill Road near Long Valley in Washington Township, Morris County, New Jersey. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places on May 1, 1992, for its significance in architecture. The 22.4-acre (9.1 ha) farm overlooks the valley formed by the South Branch Raritan River. The house is part of the Stone Houses and Outbuildings in Washington Township Multiple Property Submission (MPS).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Case-Dvoor Farmstead</span> Historic house in New Jersey, United States

The Case-Dvoor Farmstead is located on a 40-acre (16 ha) farm at 111 Mine Street in Raritan Township, near Flemington, of Hunterdon County, New Jersey. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places on December 11, 2009, for its significance in agriculture and architecture. It is now the headquarters of the Hunterdon Land Trust.

References

  1. 1 2 "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places . National Park Service. November 2, 2013.
  2. 1 2 "5 on Council Vote for Demolition". Friends of the Fuerst Farmstead. Archived from the original on July 9, 2011. Retrieved April 24, 2018.
  3. 1 2 3 "Fuerst Park". City of Novi. Retrieved April 24, 2018.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 Dane Archer Johnson (April 1997), National Register of Historic Places Registration Form: Fuerst, Jacob and Rebecca, Farmstead
  5. ↑ McKenna Associates Inc; Wilkie & Zanley Architects (March 17, 2008), City Owned Property at Ten Mile Road & Taft Road (Fuerst Property) Master Plan, City of Novi
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "City of Novi, Michigan - Novi Public Sculptures". www.cityofnovi.org. Retrieved 2020-04-05.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.