Bungalow History – Part 1

I think it was during our 3^rd meeting with Indiana Landmarks to discuss purchasing the Horner House  that we were told the bungalow next door was also part of the property. Because the Second Empire is sooo very impressive, we hadn’t really even noticed the bungalow.

This information added a whole new twist to the idea of purchasing the Horner House. We had acknowledged that it would be difficult for Amanda & Eric to live in Beech Grove & still keep an eye on the house while it was being restored. Now it became possible to live next door. But this wasn’t all positive.

While the bungalow is in much better condition than the Horner House, it wasn’t in exactly move in condition. And working on the bungalow was going to cause the work on the Horner House to be slower than we wanted. But it did make sense to live next door. Then Amanda thought of the possibility of moving the business to the bungalow, too. The thought of having my family room back (where the business currently resides) was just too good to pass up. Since the closing last summer, the first goal was to get the West Wing stabilized - check. The second goal has been to get “the kids” moved into the bungalow. Of course that was before Eric broke his ankle, Amanda hurt her knee, ya da, ya da, ya da…

The bungalow is an historic building, too. It is not considered an outstanding example because there are many, many early 1900’s bungalows in Indianapolis. The east side is full of them. My parents lived in one for 35 years. But just because it’s not unique doesn’t mean it has no redeeming features. The added on parts of the house, enclosed front porch & back room with bathroom - not so much. While we will fix those up now, it would be nice to remove them or replace them with something more in keeping with the age and style of the bungalow.

The best features of the house are on the main floor. These pictures don’t really do it justice. There is a large entry or foyer, filled with original woodwork and hardwood floors. They are in fair condition. And there is a lovely stairway that is in fair condition. Other than repairs, we’ll not be restoring them until after the Horner House has been completed. 

  

                                                                   Front door with side lights in entryway.

The stairs are opposite the front door. Unfortunately, there is also an acoustic tile ceiling which is likely covering up a damaged plaster ceiling. To the right, there is a wide entry into the living room. It is flanked by two short walls which have wooden pillars - very classical for this type of bungalow. As you can see, we do have a lot of boxes and supplies waiting to be installed.

                                                       Stairway and columned opening into the Living Room.

The columns are repeated from the living room into the dining room. There is one wooden panel missing from below the columns but otherwise they are in pretty good condition.

                                                       View from the living room into the dining room. 

This is the best of the bungalow. The upstairs, while true to an early 1900’s bungalow, has no outstanding details. We'll be showing you more about the work being done, the setup/layout/condition and the history. We'll also continue to highlight the work done on Toad Hall. Stay tuned for more to come!