Elisha Taylor House | |
| |
Location | 59 Alfred St., Detroit, Michigan |
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Coordinates | 42°20′36″N 83°3′16″W / 42.34333°N 83.05444°W |
Built | 1871 |
Architect | Koch & Hess |
Architectural style | French Renaissance Revival, Second Empire, Victorian, Gothic Revival |
NRHP reference No. | 75000971 [1] |
Significant dates | |
Added to NRHP | March 05, 1975 |
Designated MSHS | November 15, 1973 [2] |
The Elisha Taylor House is a historic private house located at 59 Alfred Street in Midtown Detroit, Michigan, within the Brush Park district. The house was designated a Michigan State Historic Site in 1973 [2] and listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1975. [1] Since 1981, it has served as a center for art and architectural study, known as the Art House. [3]
The Elisha Taylor House was built in 1871 for William H. Craig, a local lawyer, land speculator, and president of the Detroit Board of Trade. [4] The architects were Koch & Hess of Milwaukee and Detroit. [5] In 1875, [6] Craig sold the house to attorney Elisha Taylor. [7] Taylor was a Detroit attorney who held many offices during his career, including City Attorney, [7] assistant Michigan Attorney General from 1837 to 1841, and Circuit Court Commissioner from 1846 to 1854. [6]
The Elisha Taylor House is two-and-a-half stories tall, made of red brick on a rough stone foundation. [6] The structure is an eclectic mix of Gothic and Tudor Revival with elements of other styles, including Queen Anne and Italianate. [6] The house has a high mansard roof [7] with large protruding dormers and unusual vergeboarding at the peak. [6] It is one of the best examples surviving in Detroit of post-Civil War residential design. [7]
Since 1981, the structure has been used as a center for art and architectural study. The interior has been well preserved, boasting original fireplaces, mirrors, woodwork, decorative plaster, stenciling, Mintons floor tiles, parquet floors, and etched glass. [3]