The Kentucky Historic Preservation Review Board has approved 15 sites for listing in the National Register of Historic Places, nominations that will now be forwarded to the National Park Service (NPS) for final determination of eligibility. A decision on designation will be rendered within 60 to 90 days.
One of the sites is the Frank Duveneck House and Studio at 1226 Greenup in Covington.
Frank Duveneck House and Studio, 1226 Greenup St., Covington, according to the author Linda P. Crank “is being proposed for individual listing so that the significance of the house’s association with Frank Duveneck can be more fully realized.” The site consists of a 2½-story, Italianate, wood-frame house with a side-passage plan, gable roof, and single-story rear wing dating to 1875. A board-and-batten-sided single-story addition was built for a studio around 1900, and a small concrete block garage attached in the early 20th century. The site is being interpreted between 1872-1919 and is nominated for its national significance under Criterion B for its association with Duveneck (1848-1919), “one of the most celebrated American painters… known regionally, nationally and internationally for his talent with the brush, for his role in bringing Realism as a style of painting to America, for his role as teacher and for his leadership in the community of American art.”
Others are the W.G. Swann Tobacco Co. in Murray, the C.A. Baldwin Farmstead in Christian County, Peabody-Fordson Historic District in Clay County, Kentucky Buggy Co. in Owensboro, Roscoe Goose House in Louisville, First Vineyard in Jessamine County, Gardner Farmstead in Magoffin County, Stearns Golf Course in McCreary County, Ceralvo Masonic Hall and School in Ohio County, Versailles Elementary School, and in Bowling Green, the Charles M. Moore Insurance Co. and a multiple property nomination for the houses of architect James Ingram, including the Causey House and Givens House. A description of each of these nominations is below..
The Kentucky Heritage Council/State Historic Preservation Office administers the National Register program in Kentucky and provides administrative support to the review board, which is charged with evaluating National Register nominations prior to their submission to NPS.
Owners of National Register properties may qualify for state and/or federal tax credits for rehabilitation of these properties to standards set forth by the Secretary of the Interior, as certified by the Kentucky Heritage Council, or by making a charitable contribution of a preservation easement. National Register status does not affect property ownership rights, but does provide a measure of protection against adverse impacts from federally funded projects.
The National Register is the nation’s official list of historic and archaeological resources deemed worthy of preservation. Kentucky has the fourth-highest number of listings among states, at more than 3,300. Listing can be applied to buildings, objects, structures, districts and archaeological sites, and proposed sites must be significant in architecture, engineering, American history or culture.
Details of the other nominees:
Calloway County
W.G. Swann Tobacco Co., 111 Poplar St., Murray, authored by Angela Rowlett Lampe of Murray. The W.G. Swann Tobacco Co. building is a 49,000-square-foot, two-story brick building with large original windows, constructed in the early 1920s. It is nominated under Criterion A, property associated with events that have made a significant contribution to the broad patterns of our history, significant for its association with the tobacco industry in Murray and evaluated within the historic context from 1900 to 1960. After the Swann building was constructed, there were 13 tobacco industry facilities in the town, all grouped near the railroad tracks on the east side of Murray. With the disappearance of these buildings over time, according to the nomination, “the W.G. Swann building has emerged as one of the only tangible pieces of this important local industry.”
Christian County
C.A. Baldwin Farmstead, 2680 Masonville-Beverly Road, Hopkinsville, authored by Jess Lamar Reece Holler, a graduate student at Western Kentucky University. Built in 1937 as a part of the Christian-Trigg Farms project, the C.A. Baldwin Farmstead is an 88.3-acre site that also includes a chicken coop and agricultural fields as contributing features. It is nominated under Criterion A, significant within the historic context of New Deal rural and agricultural development programs in Christian County, 1935-1947. The period of significance marks the heyday of the farms resettlement project, with the Baldwin site one of five similar farmstead projects in a core cluster. The one-story farmhouse is constructed in the project’s “Small House plan” style with a front-gabled roof and cross-wing, weatherboard siding and an asphalt roof. According to the nomination, “The farmstead evokes a government dream of a streamlined, modernized agricultural life. It depicts the twin aims of the Resettlement and Farm Security administrations: to conserve and rehabilitate worn-out farmland via sustainable agricultural practices, and to resettle farmers from marginal land on new lands, which they might cultivate more profitably.”
Clay County
Peabody-Fordson Historic District, 91 Peabody Road, Big Creek, authored by Janie-Rice Brother with the University of Kentucky Department of Anthropology, with contributions by U.S. Forest Service archaeologists Cecil Ison and Wayna Adams. Currently utilized as the office for the Redbird Ranger District of the Daniel Boone National Forest, the Peabody-Fordson Historic District is being interpreted as a commercial operation centered upon extraction of timber and minerals from the region. The area is 23 acres and includes seven contributing features – the Club House/Ranger’s Office, a frame building constructed in 1924 by local craftsmen blending Colonial and Dutch Revival architectural influences; a 14-stall frame horse barn; and a garage, water well, two sets of stone stairs, and an air strip. It is nominated under Criterion A, significant within the historic context “Ford Motor Company’s Expansion into Appalachia, 1915-1930.” According to the nomination, “The property served as the seat of administrative oversight for the Fordson Coal Company and… gives physical evidence of an important chain of events that defines the entire eastern Kentucky region: the efforts by national corporations to exploit the region’s natural resources.”
Daviess County
Kentucky Buggy Co., 301 E. Ninth St., Owensboro, authored by Rachel M. Kennedy with Emily Skinner, both with Corn Island Archaeology. The Kentucky Buggy Co. building is a three-story, Italianate-style brick industrial building, constructed in 1901 and encompassing 36,000 square feet. The L-shaped building sits at the corner of East Ninth Street and J.R. Miller Boulevard, with a recessed, canted entryway. It is nominated under Criterion A, corresponding to a period of important industrial development in the city and locally significant within the historic context “The Second Industrial Revolution in Owensboro, 1870-1960.” The building functioned as a buggy company until 1910, after which it served various other commercial and industrial enterprises. According to the nomination, it was once “one of several buggy and carriage manufacturers in Owensboro… and provides an excellent example of a medium-sized buggy and carriage factory that illustrates the growth of the horse-drawn vehicle industry” in the community.
Jefferson County
Roscoe Goose House, 3012 S. Third St., Louisville, authored by Savannah Darr. Constructed in 1891, the Roscoe Goose House is a late Victorian-era, a 2½-story, Italianate-style, brick house located near Churchill Downs. The house is being interpreted for its association with jockey and horse trainer Roscoe Goose, a major contributor to Kentucky’s horse racing history. Goose purchased the building in 1913 and resided in it until his death in 1971. It is nominated under Criterion B, property associated with the lives of persons significant in our past, and its significance is interpreted within the historic context “Horse Racing in Louisville, 1900-1965.” A former jockey, Goose helped shape the industry by mentoring young jockeys and advocating for better safety regulations. According to the nomination, “In the early 20th century, jockeys’ wages were increased due to the rising popularity of the sport… Goose was one of the first jockeys to benefit… His earnings allowed him to buy the house on South Third Street and help other jockeys in the industry after he ceased to ride.”
Jessamine County
First Vineyard, 5800 Sugar Creek Pike, Nicholasville, authored by Thomas S. Beall III, owner. First Vineyard was established by John James Dufour in 1799 in the Big Bend of the Kentucky River. The area proposed for listing is six acres and includes one contributing site, the winery, and two contributing structures, the stone fencing and terracing. It is being interpreted for its use by Dufour from 1798-1809, nominated for its national significance under Criterion A for its association with winemaking in Kentucky and the nation, and evaluated within the historic context “Winemaking in the U.S., 1800-1830.” According to the author, “This Kentucky site was the birthplace of the wine industry in this nation… Dufour, a Swiss immigrant, had about 1.2 acres of the top portion of the hill terraced. The stones exposed while creating the terraces were used to construct the fence that enclosed the vineyard, as well as the winery used to process the grapes… His ‘The American Vine-Dresser’s Guide’ became the authoritative text for fledgling wine makers.”
Magoffin County
Gardner Farmstead, Licking Station Road, Salyersville, authored by Jack S. Cook. During the antebellum period, the Gardner Farmstead was considered a large agricultural operation for both eastern Kentucky as well as the state. According to the author, “Benjamin F. Gardner was an entrepreneur who managed a very successful agriculture operation that included a mercantile business known as the Licking Station Store… [which] provided an outlet for some of the farm’s produce, and its inventory provided for local residents’ material needs… The farm is an example of a highly successful agricultural complex, well above the norm for its time.” The site proposed for listing includes 190 acres of the original farmstead, a smokehouse and a residence, dating to about 1830, a five-bay log house with weatherboard applied in later years. The farmstead is being interpreted within the historic context “Agriculture in Morgan and Magoffin County, 1830-1860,” during the time of Gardner’s ownership, and is nominated under Criterion A, significant for its contribution within the historic context of local antebellum agriculture.
McCreary County
Stearns Golf Course, 131 Clubhouse Drive, Stearns, authored by Shane Gilreath and Marty Perry, Kentucky Heritage Council National Register coordinator. The original Stearns Golf Course consisted of nine holes and was established in the early 20th century in Stearns, a former coal company town, and in a region of few golf courses due to the ruggedness of topography and scarcity of level land. The area proposed for listing is approximately 180 acres, including the 49-acre golf course, a clubhouse and pool. The log clubhouse dates to 1936 and was funded by the Works Progress Administration. According to the author, the kidney-shaped, in-ground pool, also constructed in the 1930s, was one of only 805 WPA swimming pools constructed in the U.S. The site is nominated under Criterion A, significant within the context “Coal Company Towns in Eastern Kentucky, 1854-1965.” According to the nomination, the site “… is a very unusual place, as well as a significant one. It shows the lengths that some coal companies went to create a familiar experience in a very foreign place, importing a feature of urban leisure in a place of rural work.”
Ohio County
Ceralvo Masonic Hall and School, 942 Ceralvo Road, Centertown, authored by Celeste Happeny of Western Kentucky University. The Ceralvo Masonic Hall and School has served the needs of a small rural community for decades by simultaneously functioning as a school, Masonic Lodge and Methodist church. The building was constructed in 1897, replacing another on the site that had burned, and had dated to 1873. The two-story, white frame structure has a metal roof and gabled end facing the road, and still retains most of its original features in the architecture and in the furnishings. Behind is a cemetery that predates the building, the earliest burials taking place in the 1850s and continuing through today. The site is nominated under Criterion A, significant for its association with community history, and evaluated within the historic context “Multi-Purpose Buildings in Ohio County, 1798-1941.” According to the author, the site is important “…for showing how one building helped its rural community in Ohio County to maintain its autonomy through self-reliance and through meeting multiple needs through the sharing of an important resource: building space.”
Warren County
Charles M. Moore Insurance Co., 1007 State St., Bowling Green, authored by Katheryn Young of Western Kentucky University. Constructed in 1953, the Charles M. Moore Insurance Co. building is the earliest example of an International Style office building in Bowling Green. It is constructed of brick masonry with a flat roof and concrete tile on the front façade, with two significant additions to the back and left of the building in 1964 and 1972, respectively. Local architect Frank D. Cain Jr. designed the building for businessman Charles M. Moore. According to the author, Cain was one of two major architects involved in designing modernist buildings in Bowling Green and the surrounding region throughout the late 1950s into the early 1970s, and there are only two buildings remaining in the city built in the International style. The building is nominated under Criterion C, property that embodies the distinctive characteristics of a type, period or method of construction, and is being evaluated within the historic context “Modern Movement Office Buildings in Bowling Green and Warren County, 1953‐1980.”
Multiple Property Listing – The Architecture of James Maurice Ingram, 1929-1960, authored by Anton Banchy, Jill Breit, Alena Cieszko, Dale Rose, Sydney Varajon and Robin Zeigler. According to the nomination, “James Maurice Ingram is locally significant as the architect who helped shape the residential landscape of Bowling Green… He was the most prolific architect in Bowling Green’s history and had very little professional competition during the years he practiced in Warren County. He was the only architect in the city… to design residential structures in the 1930s and ‘40s, bringing nationally-favored residential styles to the area. Working through Roosevelt’s New Deal agencies and with private contracts, Ingram also designed many commercial and civic structures… bringing new styles… such as Art Deco and Art Moderne. Ingram also designed subdivision layouts, signs, entrances, display cabinets, gardens, fixture layouts, swimming pools, and even a Borders Milk Truck.”
In addition, two Ingram-designed homes were approved for listing:
Causey House, 936 Covington St., Bowling Green, authored by Sydney Varajon and Alena Cieszko, graduate students with the Western Kentucky University Department of Folk Studies. The L.K. Causey House is a two-story Colonial Revival cottage home with a center passage, double-pile plan, symmetrical façade and side gable roof. It was built in 1939 from a design by James Maurice Ingram, a prolific Bowling Green architect who also designed several neighboring properties. The house is being interpreted for its expression of his work, nominated under Criterion C, significant for architecture because of Ingram and as one of the best local residential examples of the Colonial Revival style.
Givens House, 814 Covington St., Bowling Green, authored by Sydney Varajon. The J.C. Givens House is a 1½-story, English Cottage variant of the Tudor Revival style home with an asymmetrical plan under a cross gable roof, constructed in 1938 from a design by James Maurice Ingram. The house is nominated under Criterion C, significant in the area of architecture as one of the best local residential examples of the Tudor Revival style and as the work of an important local architect. According to the author, “Referencing the influence of national trends toward Colonial and Tudor Revival aesthetics, Ingram homes also reflect elements of the architect’s own personal style.”
Woodford County
Versailles Elementary School, 229 S. Main St., Versailles, authored by Johan Graham, director of development at AU Associates, and Jonna Wallace, consultant. Versailles Elementary School is a three-story, five-bay brick structure, completed in 1939 as a Public Works Administration project and displaying characteristics of the Art Moderne style evident in other New Deal-era buildings. An earlier school at this location dated to 1828. The site contains a second contributing structure, a cafeteria and gymnasium dating to 1963. The buildings are nominated under Criterion A, significant for their role in local education, with the site’s historic significance evaluated within the context “Education in Versailles, Woodford County, 1875-1964.” According to the nomination, “The building’s site served as a seat of education in Versailles in changing auspices since the community’s earliest years.”