January 2026.
The East North Broadway Historic District is an interesting residential district in Columbus. It has a wealth of Craftsman, American Foursquare, Tudor Revival, and Colonial Revival architecture, though a bit of earlier Victorian houses are sprinkled in as well. The street’s name has always confused me, though. Why is it North Broadway if there’s no South Broadway? How come the street has two directional names and is “East North?”
The East North Broadway Historic District is located in the Clintonville neighborhood of Columbus, Ohio. It is situated on East North Broadway Street, bordered by High Street to the west and Broadway Lane (a small alley east of Indianola Avenue) to the east.
History
Clinton Township, which is what would later become Clintonville, was first settled in 1804 by John Wilson and his wife. The area was first home to several farms, but it remained rural for much of the 19th century, sandwiched between more urban Columbus to the south and Worthington to the north. Clintonville grew due to several factors--the establishment and growth of The Ohio State University, population growth in Columbus, the extension of the streetcar system to Worthington in 1893, and the presence of Olentangy Park nearby. As a result, Clintonville became a streetcar suburb of Columbus, among other “ring suburbs” such as Grandview, Upper Arlington, and Bexley.
1897 view of the then-sparsely populated East North Broadway Street. (NRHP listing)
East North Broadway Street was platted in 1890, with a much wider street and larger lots than other streets in Clintonville. The earliest houses built on the street were Queen Annes that were built in the 1890s, some of which still exist today. Additionally, it was required to spend at least $3,000 on the construction of a house there. North Broadway Street was annexed into Columbus in 1910. The 1920 Baist shows a couple more homes in the area. However, several of the homes listed in the district were constructed more recently than 1920.
Photos
We’ll start at Broadway Place (the western terminus of the district) and proceed eastward from there. Note that this post does not cover every single house/building in the district, rather just the ones I found interesting.
North Broadway United Methodist
Methodists were also among Clintonville’s earliest settlers, as a Bible study group was organized as early as 1819. They would begin worshipping in Thomas Bull’s house, who would leave the property to them after his death, and the first church (Clinton Chapel) was completed in 1838. The congregation sold the chapel in 1881 and built a new church on Como Avenue (now known as the Church on Como, which I cover in a separate article) in 1910. By 1920, the congregation had exceeded 700 members and a larger church was needed. The existing church building was completed in 1924 and designed by Martin, Orr, & Martin in the Gothic Revival style.
Major renovations to the church took place in 1948 and 1972, and the school was built in 1951. The congregation seems to be doing well today and has taken care of their building nicely.
The church’s brick exterior was an economic choice, though decorated stonework still exists around the windows and particularly on the tower. It is a standard example of a late Gothic Revival design.
Surprisingly, the nave doesn’t have very many stained-glass windows, as many of the bays are simply empty.
The 1951 education wing, which surprisingly complements the church with a Tudor Revival design:
65 East North Broadway Street
I really hate shooting into the sun when it’s bright out, as it always creates a crazy glare like right here. This is a classic Craftsman with a tile roof that dates to 1920.
Percy Dolle House (77 East North Broadway Street)
A broad Colonial Revival house with some Craftsman details, this house was built by Percy Dolle in 1922, who founded the Columbus Warehouse & Storage Company (located immediately south of the Fireproof Building). Although the form and some of the details are Colonial Revival, the bracketed roof that broadly overhangs the walls and the shed-roof dormer are Craftsman in style.
Robert & Dora Fisher House (91 East North Broadway Street)
A symmetrical Colonial Revival with a large porch and pedimented side entrance, it was built in 1923.
Albert Archauer House (110 East North Broadway Street)
This brick Craftsman was built in 1923 for Albert Archauer at a cost of $5,000. Its widely overhanging eaves are supported by brackets, and it has two cross gables.
Samuel Forney House (111 East North Broadway Street)
A Foursquare with some Craftsman influence, 111 East North Broadway was built for Samuel Forney in 1922 and was initially valued at $5,600. Forney’s family would own the house until 1970. It has some subtle Craftsman details in the corbels and brickwork.
128 East North Broadway Street
One of the earliest homes in the district, this American Foursquare house dates to 1896 as an early example of the style. Its symmetrical appearance and rectangular form are very typical features. It has been altered with painted brick and contemporary black windows.
150 East North Broadway Street
This Queen Anne is much different from the later houses that surround it, which are designed in the more sober Colonial Revival style. It is simply labeled “late 19th century” on the NRHP listing, but the Franklin County Auditor’s website states it was built in 1884. Remaining original features include the woodwork on the soffit at left and on the gables, though the house has been painted.
The asymmetrical facade is very indicative of Queen Anne design:
Benjamin Bowen House (162 East North Broadway Street)
This Tudor Revival house was being renovated while I visited. It dates to 1948 and was built for Benjamin Bowen, with an original value of $8,340. The steep gable with decorative half-timbering, prominent chimney, slate roof, and brickwork are all characteristics of Tudor Revival architecture.
Walter & Hazel Bauroth House (169 East North Broadway Street)
This one has a unique form and detailing compared to other houses in the district, with some hints of the Prairie School or Arts & Crafts. It was built in 1923 for Walter Bauroth and his wife Hazel. Mr. Bauroth worked at the Jeffrey Manufacturing Company in Italian Village, and his daughter claims that he drew the plans to the home, which would make sense considering its unique design. Along with the Arts & Crafts details, its entrance is off-center, even though the house itself is symmetrical.
190 East North Broadway Street
I was struck by this house’s Colonial Revival form with Gothic Revival decoration, and it turns out it is one of the architect-designed houses in the district. It was designed by James Boyd Martin and completed in 1924. The rectangular form with simple windows, a gabled roof, and two chimneys centered on the sides are common features of Colonial Revival architecture, but the entrance portal, stone facade, and hood mold on the central second-floor window are Gothic Revival in design.
185 East North Broadway Street
This Colonial Revival has recently been drenched in black paint, though its appearance until 2022 was more faithful to its original design. It was built in 1915 and owned by Charles O’Harra in 1920.
193 East North Broadway Street
A classic Craftsman house with its broadly sweeping roof plane, large dormer, and horizontal emphasis, 193 East North Broadway was completed c. 1910. What interested me the most was the porch’s thick Doric columns.
Dickey House (215 East North Broadway Street)
This large Queen Anne house was built in 1896 and owned by C. L. Dickey, who was the school superintendent of Clinton and Perry Townships in Franklin County. The vaulted windows on the second floor might indicate some Romanesque Revival influence, though the tall roofline, dormer, and tower are all hallmarks of Queen Anne architecture.
Winfield Scott House (242 East North Broadway Street)
Another Queen Anne, this one was built in 1891. Its most prominent resident was Dr. Winfield Scott, president of Ohio State from 1883 to 1895 and professor of philosophy until 1910, who purchased it in 1902. The house’s very odd plan and array of unevenly shaped windows and dormers highlight the Queen Anne style’s tendency for picturesque appearances.
Masonry around the windows and the porte-cochere:
James Boyd Martin House (256 East North Broadway Street)
Architect James Boyd Martin designed this Tudor Revival house as his own residence, which was completed in 1928 and valued at $5,890. Its smooth stone exterior and tile roof are unusual compared to the brick or rusticated masonry and slate roof of other Tudor Revivals nearby. I like the massive central gable, very picturesque and storybook-like.
East North Broadway Street & Calumet Street Roundabout
(1910 Baist map)
An interesting tidbit about the intersection with Calumet Street is that it was formerly a roundabout. It has since been removed, but the concentric sidewalks are still visible today and form a circle:
(Google Maps)
A similar example which is intact today is the “Circles” of Dennison Place, which I visited on a later trip to King Avenue:
294 East North Broadway Street
Another Tudor Revival, this one dates to 1924 and has a gable-front appearance with a small cross gable. I thought the green-sided addition in the backyard was interesting. Here is the south facade, with a bay window and Gothic-influenced hood mold above the door:
James L. & Jennie Dorsey House (295 East North Broadway Street)
This Craftsman was built in 1923 for James L. Dorsey and his wife Jennie, who operated a construction company. The Dorsey family owned the house until 1969. The more vertical facade and roof are closer to Colonial Revival, but the shed-roofed dormer, widely overhanging eaves, and broad porch with thick columns are Craftsman features.
303 East North Broadway Street
This is the only non-contributing house in the district that I covered. It was built in 1983 and responds well to the forms and scale of other houses nearby, though this one is an example of the Shed style that was popular at that time.
M. R. & Gale Thomas House (306 East North Broadway Street)
This more vernacular Colonial Revival dates to 1922, and M. R. Thomas and his wife Gale would go on to live in the house until 1951. The little wreaths on each window add a nice touch of whimsy.
309 East North Broadway Street
This 1906 house has a form more common of the vernacular, early 20th century houses of Old North and the University District. It has stone lintels and sills and a small wooden porch.
Richard Berry Jr. House (324 East North Broadway Street)
A rather large Colonial Revival that was difficult to photograph due to the fence and plant cover, it was designed by Ray Sims (later of Sims, Cornelius, & Schooley, now Schooley Caldwell) and completed in 1929 for Richard Berry Jr., whose father owned the Berry Brothers Bolt Works. It is individually listed on the NRHP outside of the historic district as well.
350 East North Broadway Street
Another one of the few Queen Annes in the district, it was built in 1898. The large front porch and addition, though in decorative harmony with the original house, clashes with the latter’s verticality by sprawling outward:
I like the vaulted windows and dormers of the original house.
View looking west, with two chimneys:
Immaculate Conception Church
The Immaculate Conception congregation was founded in 1916; their first church building in 1922 was a small wooden frame chapel, which could host 50 families. The church’s school was actually the first large-scale structure built, which was completed in 1925. Classes were taught by the Sisters of Saint Francis from Joliet, Illinois, who lived in a nearby convent that was formerly a private residence. Additions to the school occurred in 1954, 1959, and 2002.
The existing Immaculate Conception church building was completed in 1939, which was built in a stripped-down interpretation of the Romanesque Revival style. Other modifications to the church’s grounds include a grotto built in 1961 and a new administration building that replaced the rectory in 1967.
The 1939 church building is simple in design. Its only features indicating Romanesque Revival besides its massing are the front porch and rose window, which are very simple and have smooth stonework. The columns have simple capitals.
Honestly, it’s in such good condition that I thought it dated to the 1980s or 1990s.
The church is more indicative of 1920s construction with its brick walls, subtle Gothic Revival ornament, and windows:
South facade--note the stone portal and central bay which terminates in a pointed arch:
Zoomed in on the central niche and datestone:
389 East North Broadway Street
This Foursquare stuck out to me due to its massive roof dormer. It dates to 1903 and has some original windows and its porch.
456 East North Broadway Street
Unusually, this Colonial Revival residence was built of stone (at least on the exterior), which gives it a more rustic appearance as a result. It was completed in 1924 and valued at $12,700. It is symmetrical but has some rhythm with its partially enclosed porch.
Looks like the owners have some replacement stone if needed.
489 East North Broadway Street
A Queen Anne dating to 1892, it exhibits many asymmetrical and eclectic features characteristic of the style, such as the porches, woodwork, and numerous bay windows. It appeared in the Handsome Homes of Columbus publication that documented early houses on East North Broadway.
Sources:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3hKZ00N5gCM
https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_OH/10000454.pdf
https://digital-collections.columbuslibrary.org/digital/collection/columbusmaps/id/84
https://digital-collections.columbuslibrary.org/digital/collection/columbusmaps/id/28
https://gis.franklincountyohio.gov/parcelviewer/
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