Property Record
904 E COURT ST
Architecture and History Inventory
| Historic Name: | RUSSELL C. PARKER HOUSE |
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| Other Name: | |
| Contributing: | Yes |
| Reference Number: | 49834 |
| Location (Address): | 904 E COURT ST |
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| County: | Rock |
| City: | Janesville |
| Township/Village: | |
| Unincorporated Community: | |
| Town: | |
| Range: | |
| Direction: | |
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| Year Built: | 1920 |
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| Additions: | |
| Survey Date: | 1993 |
| Historic Use: | house |
| Architectural Style: | Spanish/Mediterranean Styles |
| Structural System: | |
| Wall Material: | Stucco |
| Architect: | Frank A. Carpenter |
| Other Buildings On Site: | |
| Demolished?: | No |
| Demolished Date: |
| National/State Register Listing Name: | Courthouse Hill Historic District |
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| National Register Listing Date: | 1/17/1986 |
| State Register Listing Date: | 1/1/1989 |
| National Register Multiple Property Name: |
| Additional Information: | In the twentieth century, period-revival houses supplanted the Queen Anne style. Among the more unusual examples is the Russell Parker House, constructed in 1927 in the Spanish Colonial Revival style. The style showed little concern for historical accuracy; instead, it tried to evoke the romance of the Spanish heritage of California, Florida, and the American Southwest, where the style was most popular. Spanish Colonial Revival design was also closely identified with the glamour of Hollywood and the motion picture industry. Stylistic hallmarks found here include stuccoed walls, a red tile roof, arched windows with wrought-iron balconets, and an arcaded corbel table between the first and second stories. Russell Parker, for whom architect Frank Carpenter designed the house, was vice president and treasurer of the Parker Pen Company, which was founded in Janesville. A later resdient, Bruxce Jeffris, was chairman of the board. "Spanish Colonial Revival style features of this stucco house at the edge of the district include a low-pitched red tile roof, and blind arcades over the first story windows. Russel Parker was the first Vice President and Treasurer of Parker Pen. A later resident, Bruce Jeffris, was Chairman of the Board." The Courthouse Hill Historic District: A Guide, Janesville Historic Commission, 1997. |
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| Bibliographic References: | (A) HISTORIC JANESVILLE, HERITAGE PRESERVATION ASSOCIATES, INC. MACDONALD AND MACK PARTNERSHIP, CITY OF JANESVILLE DEPARTMENT OF COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT, 1994. (B) CITY DIRECTORIES, 1913, 1919, 1925. (C) CITY CLERK'S BUILDING FILES. (D) Buildings of Wisconsin manuscript. The Courthouse Hill Historic District: A Guide, Janesville Historic Commission, 1990. The Courthouse Hill Historic District: A Guide, Janesville Historic Commission, 1997. |
| Wisconsin Architecture and History Inventory, State Historic Preservation Office, Wisconsin Historical Society, Madison, Wisconsin |