Indiana Preservationist 1989

              Abandoned
farmstead
saved from ruin
Michael Carter
Director, Eastern Regional OMce
The prospects for restoration did not
look good. The house had stood vacant
for well over a decade in an isolated
section of Fayette County, near Benton-
ville. Floors in two of the three rooms
had collapsed, large sections of the
exterior masonry and one of the
chimneys had fallen, and more than
one professional had intoned that the
house was beyond saving. However,
Genevieve Chaudhuri had received it
from her mother, and in addition to
feeling an attachment to it, she recognized its architectural significance. In
the late 1970s she decided to restore it.
The William Lowry House, named
for the original settler on the land, is a
single-story, L-shaped brick structure,
which originally had only three rooms
on the main floor and a summer
kitchen located in the basement. The
symmetrical front facade, with its center
door and transom, multipaned double-
hung windows, and restrained cornice,
marked it an example of the Federal
style, circa 1820. Portions of the interior
were also remarkably intact, with the
original doors, mantlepieces, chimney
cupboards and trim still in place.
INDIANA
#1   January - February 1989
A "Bigger is better" often spelled doom for small farmsteads, which were either torn
down or left to rot when a large, mechanized farm operation absorbed individual
farm plots. The early nineteenth-century Lowry House sat empty for years (top)
before it was rescued and rejuvenated as a rental unit by owner Genevieve
Chaudhuri (bottom photo: Ralph Pyle)
With Historic Landmarks Foundation's help, Chaudhuri successfully
nominated the house to the National
Register of Historic Places, and located
Tom Salmon and Camille Fife of the
Westerly Group to conduct a thorough
and sensitive restoration of the original
M In spite of tumbled bricks and caved-
in floors, many of the mantelpieces,
doors, and trim in the Lowry House
survived in excellent condition, and
were fine candidates for restoration.
(Photo: Tina Connor)
house. They transformed it into a comfortable rental unit which includes a new
kitchen, bedroom, and baths, all tucked
in a modern addition so that the historic
rooms would not be compromised.
This year, on Halloween day, over
100 people attended a reception at the
beautifully restored house, where
Chaudhuri observed, "I have been
fortunate to have travelled all around
the world and seen how people of
other cultures treasure and preserve
their antiquities. Here, I have tried to
preserve something of my heritage, and
to give something back to Indiana."
■*-&*sfprjt  *--»«-,*-.-
The envelope, please:
Servaas entrants go
for $1,000 prize
Minus the glitter and pomp of the
Academy Awards ceremonies, Historic
Landmarks Foundation of Indiana
presents its own prestigious "Oscar"
each year: the Sandi Servaas Memorial
Award. It is given to recognize organizations or individuals who have labored
tirelessly to develop and implement
programs which increase public awareness of historic architecture and preservation, and which highlight preservation's positive social and cultural impact
on our cities, towns and neighborhoods.
All winners receive an original
reproduction of John McNaughton's
sculpture "No Doors to Lock Out the
Past," and nonprofit organizations,
public institutions, or public agencies
will also receive $1,000. Individual and
corporate entrants who have made
outstanding efforts to rally public
support for preservation may also win,
and will receive the sculptural work.
Sandi Servaas served as Historic
Landmarks' director of development
and publications from September 1974
until her death a year later. She was
convinced that by promoting public
understanding of the built environment
and its beneficial contribution to the
quality of modern life, and by making
the goals and methods of the historic
preservation movement more visible,
she could turn many latent preservation
sympathizers into active supporters.
Historic Landmarks Foundation in
cooperation with the Servaas family
established the annual award in 1976,
so that the unflagging energy with
which Sandi approached her work
might be remembered and carried on,
as it has been by the Ninth Street Hill
Historic Neighborhood Association of
Lafayette, winner of the Servaas Award
in 1988. Co-chair Jane Boswell said
"we...are busily working on our next
project (of course) and perhaps with an
even greater commitment to preservation
now.. .Thank you for recognizing our
work and know that we are committed
to seeing it continue."
The 1989 Servaas Memorial Award
Committee (which recommends winners to HLFFs Executive Committee) is:
Luis A. Morales, Chairman; Jane
Boswell, ex officio; Tina Connor;
Thomas H. Greist; Mrs. Gloria Gresham;
Melvin Ice; James M. Rogers; Mrs. John
O. Servaas; J. Reid Williamson, Jr.
The competition is open to the
public. Entries must be received no
later than March 22, 1989. Historic
Landmarks will present the Sandi
Servaas Memorial Award during its
annual meeting and membership dinner
on April 23, 1989 at the Madame
Walker Urban Life Center in Indianapolis. For more information about the
award or entry requirements, please call
Tina Connor at 317-926-2301.
HISTORIC
LANDMARKS
FOUNDATION OF
INDIANA