704 North 4th Street

This is the starting point of your tour. Edwards Place was built in 1833 by an early Springfield physician, Dr. Thomas Houghan.  It is the oldest house in the city still standing on its original grounds. Judge Benjamin Edwards, for whom the house is named, was the youngest son of Ninian Edwards, governor of the Illinois Territory, who became the state's first senator. In August 1839, Ben Edwards married Helen Dodge, his college sweetheart. In 1843 they purchased a country estate with fourteen wooded acres north of town, and in the summer the family moved in. During the 1850's the Edwardses remodeled their home.  It was expanded from its original one and one-half stories to its present size of two full stories, with an attic which was used for servant's quarters.

Edwards Place is a stately mansion with a wide porch supported by graceful Corinthian columns, wide eaves, and an ornamental cupola. This home is a wonderfully preserved Italianate.  The interior, with lovely walnut woodwork and elegant furnishings, was the scene of much of Springfield's social life. Prominent citizens such as Abraham Lincoln and Stephen Douglas were entertained here with lavish dinner parties. 

Ben Edwards died in 1886, and his widow occupied the house until her death in 1909.  Three years later, as a memorial to her parents, one of their three daughters, Mrs. Alice Ferguson, donated the house to the Springfield Art Association.  The Art Association has restored the house as nearly as possible to its original appearance.   Your visit will include a guided tour through the formal receiving parlor, music room, family dining room and the second-floor bedrooms.  The home is furnished with wonderful examples of Victorian furniture, including many pieces that belonged to the Edward's family.

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620 North 5th Street

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704 North 5th Street

"Barker Apartments"

This Arts and Crafts style structure was built about 1896 as a 2-story rectangular dwelling.  It was first occupied by John C. Pierik, a druggist, and family.  Around 1915 Abraham and Flora Barker probably expanded the building to its current dimensions with four apartments.  It has been altered little since then.  This house is eligible for placement on the National Register of Historic Places.  It has always been known as the Barker Apartments.  The present owners, Owen and Karen Anderson, have gradually restored each apartment to its original beauty since they purchased it in 1986.

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722 North 5th Street

The Enos Flats or the "Row Houses" were the latest in up-to-date apartments -- or flats as they were then known -- when they were built in the early 1890's.  They were constructed for Zimri Enos, son of one of Springfield's most prominent pioneer families.  The Enos family once owned huge tracts of land in the area bounded by Fifth, Carpenter, Fifteenth and North Grand.  Zimri was a well-known Sangamon County surveyor and amateur historian.

Zimri's flat buillding consisted of five units -- each one like a private home with entryway, stained glass window, large rooms, finely finished interior trim, basements and rear yards.  They were built as an investment and appealed to many middle-and-upper-middle class Springfield citizens who wanted the benefits of a house with the convenience of apartment living and a close-in location.

Upon his death in 1907, Zimri left one unit each to his five children, Louisa, George, Zimri, William and Catherine.  During the intervening years the apartments were further subdivided into three apartments each by subsequent owners.  Today these units have been restored by the present owners, Owen and Karen Anderson.  They have a definite mystique and are reminiscent of "old town" sections of other cities.

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821 North 5th Street

This two-story. wooden frame, Italainate home was built in 1881.  Joseph Boyd, his wife Henrietta, and daughter Grace lived in the home until 1947.  Grace fell in love with a young man by the name of Guy Mathis who lived next door at 823 North Fifth.  They were married on May 28, 1891, in the Boyd home and lived there the rest of their lives.  Guy Mathis was an ambitious entrepreneur who started out working for his father-in-law at the Ferguson China Shop which was owned by B. H. Ferguson, president of Marine Bank.  The Ferguson family lived at 815 North Fifth Street in a large, beautiful home which was known as the Ferguson mansion.

In 1896, Mathis opened Springfield's first camera store.  He was a skillful photoographer himself and became known as Springfield's first official photographer.  There is a collection of 1700 of his pictures depicting the homes and people of Springfield at the turn-of-the-century.  In 1903, after reading a catalogue about the "horseless carriage," he went to Detroit and came back with two one-cylinder Northern Cadillac runabouts.  He immediately sold one to Harry Loper, restaurant and motion picture proprietor, and became Springfield's first automobile dealer.

The home is currently owned by Steve and Diane Combs.  They have renovated the home, exposing the eleven-foot ceilings and original plaster crown moldings, along with the pocket doors and grand staircase in the foyer.

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1141 N 5th Street

In the 1866 City Directory, Patrick Haggerty was living in a building on the property.  On the Sanborn map in 1876 it was designated as Lot #3, Rafters Addition.  Mr. Haggerty was a brick mason but the building was a frame structure in the Victorian style.  In 1979 a title transfer was recorded as a sale to Catherine DeCamp (husband Charles) for $1,200.  Though it was unusual for the woman to hold title to property, this property was owned by several women through the years.  Charles DeCamp was a machinist for the Illinois Watch Company.  Martha Britt bought the property in 1881, then sold it to Susan Corbley.  It changed hands many times, becoming a duplex in 1930.  Arch and Marie Cantrall bought the home in 1940.  Mr. Cantrall operated a grocery store at the corner of 1101 North Fifth.  Mr. Cantrall died in March of 1980 while still living at 1141 North Fifth Street.  His widow, Marie, continued to occupy the home until 1988.  Fletcher Farrar bought the property in 2005 and restored it, then sold it to Bryan Allen and Jeff Miller, present owners.

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513 East Miller Street

"Barker Flats"

The Barker Flats, owned by Owen (Andy) and Karen Anderson were built in 1906 by Abraham Barker, son of Barker Lubin Lumber, Building and Contracting Co.  It is a large brick structure with simple Prairie and Colonial Revival detailing of the Classical revival style.  This flat building was designed by the Springfield firm of Bullard and Bullard in 1906 and is typical of the modern apartment buildings then built in large numbers in Springfield.  The plan is symmetrical in the neoclassical tradition and detailed with classical columns, detailed cornice and formal balustrades on the open porches.

Because people were not yet used to living in apartments, designers had to make them appear as much like houses as possible.  Here Bullard made an effort to appear that units were merely private houses stacked one over another, each floor with its own front and rear porches, modern plate-glass windows, fireplaces and large rooms.  Barker's building has been excellently maintained since its completion over 100 years ago.  Currently there are three original flats, front to back of the building.  The rest are one bedroom and studios and still retain the old world charm of hardwood floors and woodwork, pocket doors, mantelpieces and stem heat radiators.

The second and third floors have received the black iron railings, with a flair of New Orleans.

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717 North 6th Street

The history of this home can be traced back to at least 1887, when it was occupied by A. E. Bentley, a manager at the Illinois Watch Co.  In 1920, William P. Fortune and his wife, Helen purchased the house and retained ownership until 1971.  Fortune was a partner in Springfield's Fortune Brothers' Saloon, located at 201 North Sixth Street and 226 South Fifth Street.

Owners of the house in the early 1980's turned the property into an illegal "Social Club" that plagued city officials, police and neighbors for quite some time.  During that period the structure was almost demolished.

Owen and Karen Anderson, present owners, have complletely restored the house.  This "L-shaped" two-story house was a Classic form for Springfield houses in the 1870's through the 1890's.  The long "French" windows were fashionable and remain intact on the first floor today.

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