Hall House Demolished

[dl meckes]

It's a pile of rubble...

[John Guscott]

Maybe I haven't heard the latest word on the situation, but I thought that it was saved from demolition???

Wasn't that the idea of the Historical Society's preservation fund?

From this past May:
http://www.sunnews.com/news/2007/part1/ ... ALLHOU.htm

[michael gill]

Hall House-- the tiny, modest, and lately neglected home built by the Hall Family during the Civil War-- has been demolished. Hall, Ethel, Edwards, and other streets in Lakewood were named for members of the family, which once owned scores of acres in what is now Lakewood. Their most stately houses, demolished long ago, stood where Edwards Park and the new YMCA now stand.

A lot of people won't miss Hall house. People who need to find a parking space close to McCarthy's will probably appreciate its absence when it is replaced with a parking lot. Others of us who appreciate Lakewood for its character and history may lament the loss. I'm one of those.

But this was a difficult case. Historic as the house was, it is not big or especially handsome. The pile of splinters that stands there now will never inspire the kind of passion that rose in response to the proposed picking of the Faber-Morse bones.

But people tried. A descendant of the Hall Family was ready to take the house if it could be moved. The city was ready to facilitate. The Historical Society tried valiantly, establishing a fund for preservation that would have been used to move the house. The Halls had a little patch of available land. LHS studied the prospects for relocation, securing bids from companies that specialize in this sort of thing.

But history alone doesn't motivate much philanthropy. To get much attention, a historic house has to be architecturally stunning. It also would probably have helped if, once moved, the house would have become a Historical Society asset open to the public rather than returning to private ownership--even if it was to be by descendants of the Halls.

At least one good thing came of this--the establishment of the Historical Society's Preservation Fund, which is designed to respond to historical preservation needs that will no doubt continue to arise in town. That fund will continue to grow, and I certainly hope it will be big enough to respond the next time a situation like this comes along.

This wasn't one of Lakewood's many thousands of 1920's era houses demolished for upscale townhomes or a new emergency room or a school: It was a house built in the 1860s, demolished to make a little scrap of surface parking.

I hope there's a lesson in this--something about the need to be proactive if we want to retain the city's character instead of pave over it. Something more results-oriented than "you don't know what you've got til it's gone."

Hall House is a pile of splinters, and soon gonna be a parking lot.

[dl meckes]

It was a house built in the 1860s, demolished to make a little scrap of surface parking.

I hope there's a lesson in this--something about the need to be proactive if we want to retain the city's character instead of pave over it. Something more results-oriented than "you don't know what you've got til it's gone."

Hall House is a pile of splinters, and soon gonna be a parking lot.

Well said, Michael.

I'm sorry it couldn't have been moved and saved.

[Bret Callentine]

"today's paradise, put up a parking lot." - J. Joplin

Not a very good day for Lakewood.

[John Guscott]

count me among the ones that will miss this building. I grew up on Ethel Ave, 1 street away, and as a schoolkid passed it on a daily basis. I will also remember it as a Hixsons, a tea room, a gardening store, among its other incarnations.

Mike is on the money in that in that the house wasn't architecturally inspiring --- but look at the way East coast cities like Boston (and many countless smaller towns and cities) retain their historic houses, despite appearances, even among their more modern structures! It's much like the approach Italy has had for centuries in preserving hundreds of ancient structures and historic facilities (many non-architecturally inspiring, but historic and significant nonetheless.)

[Danielle Masters]

I drove by tonight with my son. It was a really pathetic sight. I know some will see this as progress, but I certainly do not. It's too bad that the building was neglected for so many years. There is a charm to older buildings that just can't be replicated, no matter how hard we try.

[dl meckes]

"today's paradise, put up a parking lot." - J. Joplin

Not a very good day for Lakewood.

I know Joni Mitchell's "Big Yellow Taxi" where she sings, "They paved Paradise and put up a parking lot" but I am unfamiliar with a Janis Joplin song of a similar nature...

[Bret Callentine]

I know Joni Mitchell's "Big Yellow Taxi" where she sings, "They paved Paradise and put up a parking lot" but I am unfamiliar with a Janis Joplin song of a similar nature...

I think you're right. I knew I shouldn't have majored in Jim Beam in college.

[dl meckes]

I think you're right. I knew I shouldn't have majored in Jim Beam in college.

It's just because you're a sprout.

[Rhonda loje]

Despite the best efforts of the Lakewood Historical Society and many others, the Mathew Hall House was demolished yesterday. Built in 1870, the Hall House was one of the last remaining links to the early settler history of our community.



For many months, the Lakewood Historical Society spent countless hours working with members of City Council , the City Administration, Hall family descendents and the current owner to devise a plan to move the house to a safer location. A site was identified and estimates for moving and restoration were gathered. The Society received many generous donations to the Lakewood Preservation Fund to facilitate this move, but these efforts were too late.



While the Mathew Hall House could not be saved, the Lakewood Historical Society is committed to continuing its preservation efforts before the next important Lakewood landmark is threatened. Through the Lakewood Preservation Fund we will educate the community on preservation issues, identify threatened structures and support the preservation legislation currently being reviewed by City Council . During the past year, hundreds of Lakewood citizens expressed their concerns for the Mathew Hall house and for the architectural heritage of our community.



We must work to retain and preserve the architectural character of our community. The cumulative effect of all the buildings lost to unsympathetic new construction and parking lots over the years is staggering! We must change the attitude that gives demolition precedence over preservation.



With the help of improved local legislation, preservation and economic development can work together to maintain Lakewood ’s unique attributes in a beautiful, viable and healthy community. We will keep you apprised of the status of the legislation as it goes before City Council . Please join our efforts to keep Lakewood special!





Mazie M. Adams

Executive Director

Lakewood Historical Society

14710 Lake Avenue

Lakewood, OH 44107

216 221-7343

lakewoodhistory@bge.net