Owosso Downtown Historic District City of Owosso Shiawassee County Michigan August 2010
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Owosso Downtown Historic District City of Owosso Shiawassee County Michigan August 2010 Tom Cook, Chairperson c-989-277-3953 w-989-725-1621 Lorraine Weckwert 989-725-9113 [email protected] TABLE OF CONTENTS SECTION I EXECUTIVE SUMMARY…………………………………………….3 CREDITS & CREDENTIALS…………………………………………5 HISTORIC DISTRICT ORDINANCE & AMENDMENTS…………. 9 CITY COUNCIL ACTION…………………………………………...22 PROJECT OBJECTIVE & METHODOLOGY……………………... 23 EVALUATION RESULTS…………………………………………...25 DESCRIPTION OF DISTRICT…………………………………….. 26 CONTRIBUTING VS. NONCONTRIBUTING……………………..27 BLOCK MAPS 1-10………………………………………………….33 RECOMMENDATIONS…………………………………………….. 43 NOMINATION FOR NATIONAL REGISTER…………………….. 47 DATA LOCATION………………………………………………….. 80 SECTION II DESCRIPTIVE OVERVIEW………………………………………...83 THE OWOSSO DOWNTOWN HISTORIC DISTRICT……………. 85 THEMATIC NARRATIVE………………………………………….87 ARCHITECTURAL NARRATIVE…………………………………. 89 SECTION III GROUND LEVEL SURVEYS……………………………………… 99 INTENSIVE LEVEL SURVEYS…………………………………...253 BIBLIOGRAPHIES……………..483 APPENDIX………………………521 Owosso Downtown Historic District City of Owosso Shiawassee County Michigan August 2010 Section I Tom Cook, Chairperson c-989-277-3953 w-989-725-1621 Lorraine Weckwert 989-725-9113 [email protected] SECTION I Table of Contents EXECUTIVE SUMMARY -------------------------------------------------- 3 CREDITS & CREDENTIALS----------------------------------------------- 5 HISTORIC DISTRICT ORDINANCE & AMENDMENTS ------------ 9 CITY COUNCIL ACTION -------------------------------------------------22 PROJECT OBJECTIVE & METHODOLOGY--------------------------23 EVALUATION RESULTS -------------------------------------------------25 DESCRIPTION OF DISTRICT --------------------------------------------26 CONTRIBUTING VS. NONCONTRIBUTING-------------------------27 BLOCK MAPS 1-10 ---------------------------------------------------------33 RECOMMENDATIONS ----------------------------------------------------43 NOMINATION FOR NATIONAL REGISTER -------------------------47 DATA LOCATION ----------------------------------------------------------80 - 2 - Owosso Downtown Historic District Shiawassee County EXECUTIVE SUMMARY August, 2010 Background: Some citizens of Owosso recognized the potential benefits of creating an historic district in the downtown commercial district of the city, both in terms of preservation and economic development. Throughout the entire year of 2009, they conducted meetings to garner support for the idea, and they collected signatures from the proposed district's building owners that signified their support for creating an historic district. This grass-roots effort resulted in a petition that was made to the Owosso City Council to form a Historic District Study Committee in March of 2009. The grass-roots effort continued, and signatures were subsequently collected from additional building owners in the proposed district until over 60% of the building owners had signed in support of creating an historic district. On November 16, 2009, a petition to the Owosso City Council was made again. The new Owosso City Council voted unanimously in favor of forming the study committee. Appointments were made (page 22), and work began to research “The Owosso Downtown Historic District.” An ambitious time line was adopted for completion of the work by the study committee. This was done so that Downtown Owosso building owners could take advantage of the upcoming Michigan construction season. Boundaries of the proposed district were designated after consulting with Robert Christianson of the State Historic Preservation Office, and a map was created to delineate the district. (Page 26.) The area surveyed and recommended as an historic district encompasses 41.2 acres of land. Field Survey Forms were distributed to several members of the committee, and the field work was completed. The field survey yielded little revealing information about the area, because the district already had been widely recognized as having a large concentration of historic commercial buildings. The exercise was, nonetheless, completed as directed. It was determined through the survey within the proposed boundaries of the district, that the district contained a total of 115 buildings with 85 being declared contributing and 30 non- contributing, for a 73.9 percentage being historic. The recommendation by the committee was to proceed with an Intensive Level Survey. Field Survey Forms are found arranged alphabetically by street and sorted by number in Section III of the following report. While the Field Survey Forms were being completed, work had already begun on the historic research and the writing of the architectural descriptions for each building. Photographic evidence was simultaneously collected, which resulted in current photos, and in addition and - 3 - when available, vintage photos, for each of the 115 buildings in the district. The data forms are included in pages in Section III., arranged alphabetically by street name and sorted numerically by street number. As a result of the evaluations conducted, the final determination is that the entire ten block area is eligible for nomination to the National Register of Historic Places as the district meets all four of the criteria set forth by the National Register. Criterion A. Association with Significant Events: The Owosso Downtown Historic District is associated with over seventy-five significant historic events. The events are significant in Michigan history, or in American history, and sometimes even in world history. These events begin with Owosso’s association with the establishment of pioneer communities during the westward migration from settlements on the East Coast – especially following the opening of the Erie Canal. The events also include Owosso’s huge contribution to the Union effort during the Civil War, and Owosso’s association with abolitionism, which is exemplified, in part, by its hosting of an underground railroad station. Criterion B. Association with Significant People: Since 2007, committee member and author Shaffer Fox has done research and written about significant people of Owosso, and has lent his research and writing to this document. He has identified over one hundred people, who were born in Owosso and/or who lived long term in Owosso, whose lives have made national or international impact. He has provided biographies on several of these significant people in this document. Some of the entrepreneurs of early Owosso are among them. Criterion C. Architectural Significance: Owosso’s downtown historic district exhibits most of the important architectural styles of the nineteenth and twentieth century with exuberant brickwork and little repetition. The downtown architecture ranges from early Victorian commercial, Tudor Revival, Beaux Arts, Richardsonian Revival and Renaissance Revival, to Art Moderne. Criterion D. Yields Further Information: The Committee feels that even more history of buildings and people may be discovered, and members have agreed to continue research and exploration. The Evaluations Section of the report can be examined on page 25. The Planning Needs and Recommendations for action by local governing body can be found on pages 43-46 in Section I of this report. The Historic District ordinance and amendments are found on pages 9-21 of Section I. - 4 - CREDITS AND CREDENTIALS Owosso Downtown Historic District Study Committee Membership Tom Cook, chairperson Member of City Council, Executive Director of Cook Family Foundation, former city planner in California Shaffer Fox Researcher and historian, author of three books, author of histories now viral on the Internet about Owosso and about people from Owosso who have made national or international impact. He is a member of the Owosso Historical Commission, and Secretary of Owosso Friends and Neighbors Association. Scott Newman B.G.S. University of Michigan with concentrations in history and architectural history, M.S. Eastern Michigan University in Historic Agency Administration. He is the former Director of Operation Comeback – a program of the Preservation Resource Center of New Orleans. He also is a former member of Owosso Historical Commission. Maurice Shattuck Owosso businessman, owner and preserver of an historic home within a potential historic district, Owosso native and interested community member. James Civille Real Estate broker, historic home owner within a potential historic district, owner of two historic buildings within the proposed historic district. Don Marrah Owner, investor and restorer of a downtown historic property called “Mootsie's” art gallery. He restored his own 1840's house and two barns as well as his downtown property. He is a founding member of Preservation Owosso – a group of preservation-minded citizens. - 5 - James Eaton Pastor of an historic church within the proposed historic district. In his first career, he was a city administrator. Lorraine Weckwert Owosso historian and researcher, founding member of Preservation Owosso – a group of preservation-minded citizens. She is a member of Owosso Historical Commission, and President of Owosso Friends and Neighbors Association – the organization leading this effort for an historic district. Gary Wilson Active in historic preservation initiatives in Detroit since 1980. Since moving to Owosso in 1992, he has been involved in the restoration of the Arthur McHardy house, built in 1878. He is a member of the Michigan Historic Preservation Network, the Owosso Historical Commission, and he was a founding member of Preservation Owosso.