Observatory Hill

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Summer 2017 Newsletter
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2012 House Tour

On Sunday, June 3, 2012, we are hosting a spring house tour that features ten houses and two churches. All of the homes included this year have beautiful views: of the park, of the city, or of the streets where we live.

Starting at Riverview United Presbyterian Church on the corner of Riverview Avenue, you will drive north to Garvin and Franklin streets then continue south to Waldorf, Baytree, and Orleans streets; finally closing the tour with visits on Oak Park, Norwood, Marshal Road and nearby Perrysville Avenue. The tour focuses on Observatory Hills architecture of the 1890-1940 period at its best. While the lower Northside’s historic district features nineteenth-century row houses, the majority of homes in Observatory Hill are detached, single-family residences.

The neighborhood developed along Perrysville Avenue’s winding turns and the rolling terrain with its many hills and bluffs ultimately determined the layout of our streets. Stately Victorian-style homes were built in the neighborhood in the decade prior to 1900 when trolley lines connected Observatory Hill with other parts of the city and made living in a hillside neighborhood less isolating and more convenient for homeowners. Victorian-style homes dominated the neighborhood until around 1910, when the less ornate Craftsman or Arts & Crafts style buildings became popular.

Two-story Craftsman four square and upright cottage-style bungalows were well suited to compact city lots. Occasionally one- or one-and-a-half story Craftsman bungalows were built on lots that could accommodate their larger first-floor footprint. During the 1920s American and Dutch Colonial, Tudor, and English Cottage Revival styles became increasing popular in the neighborhood. The Acorn Hill section of the neighborhood, northwest of the Perrysville and Marshall Avenue intersection, showcases an especially attractive assortment or pre-1940 Craftsman and Historical Revival styles. As you drive and walk through Observatory Hill, you will want to keep an eye out for the small, surprising details that make our neighborhood unique.

Tickets are priced at $10.00 through May 31, and $15.00 on tour day.
100 Waldorf Street

100 Waldorf Street


Home of Joyce and Paul Aloyi Back when she was living on Bascom Avenue, Joyce Aloyi would often drive past the charming house at 100 Waldorf Street on her way to visit a friend. For years she told her friend, "If you ever hear that this house is going on the marke... Read more...
 
151 Oak Park Road

151 Oak Park Road


Home of Dick & Kathy Klick This Spanish Colonial house, an unusual style for Observatory Hill, was built in 1923 for Edward Heer, a banker. The architect was Robert M. Trimble. With its traditional layout, large sun porch, and separate chauffeur's quarters, it's a... Read more...
 
28 Garvin Street

28 Garvin Street


Home of Bonny Kwoleck & Jeff Wagner This attractive and substantial house was built in 1928 on the edge of a large plan of homes that was never finished—probably because of the beginning of the Great Depression. As a result, the house presides over a secluded, pas... Read more...
 
3007 Norwood Avenue

3007 Norwood Avenue


Home of Adam & Jennifer Rittenhouse Puhak Built in 1932, this charming house was home for years to many generations of the Sweeney family. Today, it's the home of Adam and Jennifer Rittenhouse Puhak, who love the friendly neighborhood of Acorn Hill and its proximi... Read more...
 
3016 Norwood Avenue

3016 Norwood Avenue


Home of Sarah Parker This attractive house, built in 1955, has undergone an extensive renovation. Sarah Parker has been scraping paint, moving dirt, and hauling materials and furniture for years to make this charming house emblematic of her own style. Sarah has re... Read more...
 
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