Elgin Then & Now - The Gifford House

This article is courtesy of The Elginite.

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This was the home of Elgin’s founder, James T. Gifford. Originally a simple stone house, it reflects a contruction technique native to New York state. Note the cobblestones laid in courses with stone quoins at the corners and stone lintels. The mansard roof and classical detailing (added later) show a Second Empire influence. This is one of the few remaining works of builder Edwin R. Reeves. Gifford Park and Gifford Street are named for the original owner of this home. (source: Gifford Park Association)

The home of Elgin’s founder dates back to 1850. It has been divided into four apartments. I’d like to see it deconverted and restored to its former glory. I wonder if the city should offer special incentives for the rehabilitation of buildings with historic significance (those on the National Register of Historic Places), such as this one. Such a policy would cover only 8 buildings. It’s something we can afford.

I’m especially interested in seeing this building restored, not just because it’s the home of Elgin’s founder, but it’s the finest remaining cobblestone home in Elgin, and probably over a much wider area. It would serve as a fine example for what a distinctive local vernacular architectural style might look like.

It could serve as an inspiration for local builders and developers. If they pick up on the use of cobblestone as a facade element, it could help create a distinctive local architectural style. Even though cobblestone construction is associated with Rochester, it would be pretty much unique in this area.

By the way, this house is for sale at a price of $470,000. The listing says the building is eligible for $70,000 in rehabilitation/deconversion grants, which I don’t think is enough to persuade anybody to convert it into a single family home. After the grants, they would still be paying $400,000, which is excessive for the neighborhood. The city should consider increasing the grant for a house of special historic significance, such as this. Otherwise it will remain a dilapidated apartment building.

Elgin Then & Now - The Post Office

This article is courtesy of The Elginite.

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Old post offices are often among the most beautiful buildings in a town, and thankfully many towns have preserved theirs, even though the U.S. Postal Service has long moved out of (most of) them. Elgin unfortunately is not one of those towns.
It was a lovely building. Had it survived, I think it would have been the finest example of Beaux-Art architecture in Elgin. Unfortunately, it was demolished because some people thought it was dirty and seedy, the same complaint they leveled at the Crocker.
Read more about the old Elgin post office.

Elgin Then & Now - The Henrietta Block

This article is courtesy of The Elginite.

Link to the location.

The downtown Elgin Community College building-often referred to as the Sears building-was built in 1908. It first was called the Henrietta because of the name carved in stone on the pediment above the main entrance, in memory of Henrietta Hackerodt Burritt. She was the first wife of Peter Burritt, whose extensive real estate holdings in Elgin were inherited by Rebecca McBride Burritt Gilbert, his second wife. It was Rebecca who named the building for Henrietta.
The Henrietta was constructed for leasing to Swan's Department store, which occupied the building for 30 years. Theodore F. Swan began his Elgin mercantile career with- a grocery store on River Street (North Grove Avenue) in 1867. By 1880 he had added dry goods and shoes in larger quarters on South Grove. In 1893 he moved his growing business to the Spurling Block (now the Commerce Building) on the northwest corner of DuPage and Spring Streets.
Swan was the first Elgin merchant to introduce the "cash railway system" to send money from any part of the store to the cashier. He also was the first to abandon evening hours in the interest of his employees. Unlike many other stores of the time, Swan's terms were strictly cash. Carrie Jacobs Bond, the composer of "I Love You Truly","Just a Wearying for You", and "The End of a Perfect Day", plugged sheet music sales at Swan's in the early '90s.
Swan's move across the street to the Henrietta gave his operation a main floor of 25,000 square feet. The basement was initially used for storage. The second floor at one time housed the Elks Club. When Theodore F. Swan died in 1922, the business was carried on by his son, Theodore 1. Swan. The store closed in 1938.The Henrietta was then occupied by Sears, Roebuck & Company, which had arrived in Elgin ten years earlier. In 1941 the basement and second-floor selling areas were expanded, and a parking lot to accommodate 85 cars was developed. This compelled the removal of six small houses owned by Gilbert along the Fulton Street frontage. The Sears automotive wing was added in 1948.
The Henrietta block, was erected for $60,000. Its renovations for college use cost more than $2 million. (source: ElginHistory.com)

Elgin Then & Now - The Hubbard Block

This article is courtesy of The Elginite.

Link to the location.

While many of Elgin's pioneers made their money through farming or the dairy industry, William G. Hubbard made his fortune through the dry goods business. Hubbard, a pioneer merchant, opened his building on the corner of Chicago and Douglas in 1851. It was there that he kept company with the best of the movers and shakers that Elgin had to offer. One of HubbardÂ’s original tenets was John Newman, owner and operator of Springbrook Creameries, as well as the owner of over 500 dairies. His other tenets were many of the German enterprises of the day, including SiedelÂ’s Bakery, AdlerÂ’s clothing store and Pabst Chicago House.
The original wooden building was destroyed in one of ElginÂ’s worst fires ever, on March 23, 1974. The fire shattered the glass windows across the street and seared buildings blocks away. It would be replaced with a white brick building that connected many other building on the block via the second and third floors. The second building would come to be known as The Lawyers Building, which was gutted by fire in 1979. It was torn down in 1980. (Source:elginpostcards.tripod.com)

The present building, was built in 1999 by Kurt Kresmery.