103. Colonial Houses in Winchester

Colonial Houses in Winchester

Winchester Journal Herald
November 15, 1947

     "Of particular local interest have been the last two editions of P. E. Goodrich's "Down in Indiana" letters, inasmuch as they have been about "Colonial Houses in Winchester," in which he tells of a few old colonial homes built here around 1830-1945.

     Quoting from Mr. Goodrich's letters.

     "The first one built is a brick house on South Meridian street (416 South Meridian Street), on a large lot (a full half block) with an iron fence around it, built and lived in, until he died in the late 1860s', by Carey Goodrich, my grandfather's brother. The house is a two-story affair, brick, built low to the ground with a solid wooden door in front, with side lights on either side and a transom over the full width of the entrance. The entrance is in the middle of the house and enters a wide hall and a beautiful colonial stairway leads tot he second floor, high ceilings and usual sized windows.

     "On the outside, south of dining room and a few feet south is the kitchen of large proportions, equipped with a fireplace and all facilities of its time, but the outstanding feature of the ouse is the cast iron railing and posts, and cornice made of castor iron, known as the grape pattern, picturing a grape vine crawling with heavy bunches of grapes hanging below, up each porch corner support. It's a place of interest today, the house originally was covered with a dark green slate roof.

     "The cast iron grills were cast in France and brought to Winchester, following a design made by George Goodrich, a brother of Carey Goodrich. His wife and mother lived in it until they passed away in 1869.

     "The property is well kept and has outlived three different families and to my knowledge has never been a rental property. Looks as sturdy as ever and will outlive many more generations of prosperous people.

     The Second Colonial Home 
     "So far as I know the next oldest house, and the best one in our city, was built in the 1830's by Moorman Way, an eccentric North Carolina lawyer. He came here about the same year as my grandfather, Edmond B. Goodrich, as an old bachelor. He bought a large tract of land in Winchester and to the east and about a mile and a half mile north to the swimming pool in Goodrich Park. His home was a two-story log cabin built before I can remember, on (247) East Franklin street, where he later built his fine home which yet stands and is occupied by my brother, Edward S. Goodrich, and his family.
 
     "It is a two-story brick, at the base a 20 inch brick wall, high ceilings. The bricks were hand made and made in a small field just across the road from his home. The lot was about 300 feet east and west and extended north to Washington street about 300 feet. The log cabin and log stable were still standing when I was a child.

     "Moorman was not related to us though his wife's name was Ellen Bell, the same as her cousin Ellen Bell, my grandmother, and she came up with them from Virginia. This house was the outstanding home in our little city, as it is today.

     "An interesting story was handed down to me by mother. Carey Goodrich, who built the large home on Meridian street, and Way were bitter enemies. When they locked horns in a law suit the fur would fly, so Moorman determined to build a larger and better home when he was sure Carey was through. His house was larger, more stately, in a grove twice as large as the other and more pretentious in every way. First he built the same entrance, only larger and more massive, solid brass locks, hinges, etc. Then to cap it he sent over to Paris and had built a two story porch much more decorative with much heavier iron railing, great flood of grapes and vines.

     "The entrance was a single slab sandstone brought from Cleveland Ohio, by team, the sills and joists were hewn from black walnut and yellow poplar timber on his farm. You enter the house exactly as you do in the South Meridian street home, but inside it is different. Much heavier woodwork, baseboard 1 1/2 inch poplar, the stairs leading upward on entering the home is solid mahogany, so is the woodwork in the hall and living room.

     "I'm sorry to say that some 30 years ago the wonderful double porch was discarded, though they were finer than anything in the French quarter of New Orleans and a pure colonial fluted column porch was built. Stately and superb but without the foreign charm of old France, which George Goodrich, the architect, had designed in Winchester's outstanding home today.

     The Third Old House
     "Is the one just north of the city library, corner of North and East streets (133 East North Street), built in the late thirties, designed and built by George Goodrich. It is different from the other two but still a colonial, heavy brick construction. Twenty-two inch wall at the base high ceilings 11' first and upper floor. Plain colonial cornice heavy but no dentals or other embellishment, the entrance is similar to the other two, but this entrance is on the left hand front corner.

     "Large door of 1 1/2" poplar and window each side, no porch, but an over hanging roof full width of the door and sidelights with about a 6' x 8' stoop.  When I first knew the house it sat on the corner of a lot about 300' x 300' facing south, now there are four other houses on the same ground with room for tow more facing east.

     "On entering the house you enter a wide hall and a fine old stairway leading to the second floor and back to the rear rooms on the first floor. The woodwork is massive and much like the other two. This one is all poplar lumber, heavy but plain. George Goodrich and family lived in it until they moved to Peru, Indiana, to assist engineering the Erie and Wabash canal. He served also as county surveyor for may years and died there. The house is well preserved. It's good for another 100 years. It has always been well taken care of.

     Jerry Smith Home
     "Is the last old house I will write about, it being built around 1837. Jerry Smith was a unique character, a lawyer, a fine litigant, and was in great demand in eastern Indiana. He called his home "The Mansion." I'm positive that the same architect designed this home, I am sure George Goodrich made them all. In general design it is just like house No. 3 situated on about the same sized lot, but the house was set facing south on Franklin half a square from the public square (125 East Franklin Street), the lot a full half square and but the one house on the lot between Franklin and Washington streets on North and East streets.

     "When I can first remember it had an ornate iron fence on two sides of the place with a cut stone base up to ground level, which the fence sat on. The entrance on this home is on the west end of the house with a one story porch and a balcony above with an iron ornate railing around it. The columns are square wood New England colonial type supports with a flag stone floor. The whole house is larger than the others, but outside of the front and stoop it is the same. The interior is the same massive doors and trim. It has been altered some, but the floor plans are the same.

     "Jerry Smith came to Winchester before the Big Four railroad was built as a part contractor on some of the construction. He was a lawyer, had a little colonial office on the corner of his lot, closest to the courthouse. There are other old houses in town but as I was asked to write only about these old colonial homes, finis."

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