Description
The Eastwood Historic District is located 10 miles (16 km) from downtown Cincinnati, between Cincinnati’s Oakley and Madisonville neighborhoods. The district includes 66 modestly scaled houses built prior to 1950, 19 historic pre-1954 garages and a cabin (2 additional houses and 1 garage are non- contributing). The houses were built in several architectural styles from this time period, including Tudor and Colonial Revival and some Bungalow/Craftsman. Many houses built after 1940 are Cape Cod and Ranch house types. Ten of the houses are Sears kit houses (one non-contributing, see attached copies). The Sears houses are in diverse styles and are frame construction. The rest of the early houses are largely masonry in the Tudor Revival style. At least three houses are the work of Wilbur M. Firth (4900 Madison Road) and his brother, Lee P. Firth (5068 West Eastwood Circle and 5081 West Eastwood Circle). Wilbur Firth was a local architect responsible for parts of Hyde Park and Terrace Park, nearby Cincinnati neighborhoods. He was also the designer of “Home Beautiful” exhibits of the time shown downtown at Music Hall. Firth was a member of Madisonville Masonic Lodge and the Norwood Chapter, Cincinnati Commandery Knights Templar. His work spanned the period from the early 1900s to the middle of the century. Before his death he designed at least one house on Eastwood Drive in a modest neighborhood to the north. Even though each house is unique, there are many commonalities in styles and materials chosen. The streets have the feel of an English village. This is possibly the influence of the nearby planned community of Mariemont (NR, 1979). Many of the older houses have the same mail slots and many of the newer houses also have mail slots that match each other. Besides exterior similarities there are interior style and material similarities. Much of the interior flooring, ceiling and archway styles is identical to the other houses from the same decade. Because of the commonalities in the houses and because this neighborhood was planned, it is surmised that most of the houses may be Mr. Firth’s work. One of the houses was constructed by the builder Charles E. Dawson, and at least ten others were built by George J. Dell (a company across from the Firth Office in nearby Oakley). The grandson of Wilbur Firth says that his father continued the business and he says they generally retained the same builders.
Outside the district, two houses on contiguous streets are large and very striking, and predate the period of significance. The house across from the neighborhood to the south on Madison Road dates from 1883. The buildings of the Children’s Home, which date to the early part of this century, are on the east side of the neighborhood. Some of its original buildings still exist and one house on the circle was moved from there.
The Eastwood houses are well maintained and exist largely in the style and layout of the original plans. The later houses are moderate and attractive and help maintain the character of the original houses. The Eastwood District was platted in 1922 (see plat map) and is bounded by Madison Road, Oaklawn, Duck Creek and the wooded land of the Children’s Home. From a 60-acre (240,000 m2) farm and forest the developers purchased 30 acres (120,000 m2) for the residential development. The neighborhood consists of two streets, East and West Eastwood, that form a “circle,” or flattened hexagon, and two small streets, Overbrook and Collinwood, that extend to the west of it. All three join through a point on the circle. The Eastwood Realty Co. had restrictions on the deeds in 1924 that required 40-foot (12 m) setbacks, a minimum value of $7,000 for single building housing and a “first class residential neighborhood”. This is a Sears street and trees were also available in the catalog. These trees may have been ordered through Sears. Many original maple trees with their wide tree lawns still line the streets. In the last ten years the city has replaced about thirty with new trees of many varieties. The landscaping of the tree-lined streets was all done at once, giving the neighborhood an attractive and unified feel.
Read more about this topic: Eastwood Historic District
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