When you zoom into the map dots for each property appear, then click dot to find online information.
The Fort Wayne Historic Preservation Commission (HPC) is a seven-member mayoral appointed body. Commission members are residents of the City who are interested in the preservation and development of historic areas and include professionals with experience related to history, architecture, construction, and other disciplines related to historic preservation. Qualified Historic Preservation Planners in the City's Community Development Division serve as staff to the HPC. The HPC is empowered to preserve and protect historically or architecturally worthy buildings, structures, sites and districts which serve as visible reminders of the historic heritage of the city. The HPC enforces the provisions found in the Fort Wayne Historic Preservation and Protection Ordinance (Chapter 151 of City Code). See also Preservation Guidelines for Historic Districts 92-page document by the Fort Wayne Historic Preservation Commission by the Fort Wayne Community Development.
Preservation Tips: National Historic Preservation Month
by Christina Clary
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May is almost here, which means it is time to show our appreciation for preservationists around the country through National Historic Preservation Month! This year’s theme, chosen by the National Trust for Historic Preservation, is People Saving Places. If you know someone involved with historic preservation, make sure to say thank you for all the challenging work they do to preserve the beautiful historic buildings and history in your community. Here in Fort Wayne, we have the Fort Wayne Historic Preservation Commission and ARCH working to preserve historical integrity and provide preservation resources to the community.
This is a great time to tour some of the historic neighborhoods in Fort Wayne if you are local, including South Wayne, West-Central, Oakdale, Southwood Park, and Williams-Woodlands Park. Our Community Album features some great collections highlighting historic photographs of the area. Explore the Williams-Woodland Park Neighborhood Collection to see the first ‘planned’ neighborhood in Fort Wayne, or the Dix-Kelly Collection, courtesy of ARCH, for photographs of buildings and homes in the Fort Wayne area from 1919-1930. The Harter Postcard Collection is another great one to view for early 20th century architecture and scenes from around Fort Wayne.
If you're interested in discovering historic buildings and neighborhoods in your community, check out the listings from the National Register of Historic Places. It was established in 1966 as part of the National Parks System through the National Historic Preservation Act. It is a great resource if you are interested in restoring or preserving your historic building and do not know where to start. The National Register staff can also direct you to your State Historic Preservation Office for local assistance and resources.
The National Register also provides resources for nominating your property to be listed as an historic place. To be entered into the National Register, a building must meet the criteria in the three main categories: age, significance, and integrity. Buildings must be at least 50 years old with few significant alterations to their appearance and be historically significant to their community. A building less than 50 years old can be considered eligible if it has extraordinary historical significance. Joining the Register preserves the history of a place and its people and provides incentives to owners. Owners of a building on the National Register can apply for federal and state grants and tax credits and benefits, and nonprofits have access to preservation easements. Unfortunately, the one thing the National Register does not do is give out bronze plaques. That one is up to the owners to provide.
Check out the National Trust’s website, savingplaces.org, to find more ways to celebrate National Historic Preservation Month in your community.
Did you know the City of Fort Wayne has a Historic Preservation Commission, which helps preserve and protect historically or architecturally worthy buildings, structures, sites, and districts in our community?
LISTED HISTORIC PROPERTIES AND DISTRICTS FORT WAYNE and ALLEN COUNTY, INDIANA 12 page document: Updated through October 29, 2021, this list includes all properties in Fort Wayne and Allen County that have obtained historic designation. The types of historic designation are Fort Wayne Local Historic Districts, the National Register of Historic Places, properties that are listed on the Indiana State Register of Historic Places (without listing on the National Register), National Historic Landmarks, the Historic American Buildings Survey (HABS), and the Historic American Engineering Survey (HAER). Each entry includes the historic name of the property or district, the year of listing in parentheses, and the address of the property. at the Fort Wayne Community Development.
Bottle Works Lofts Featured on Historic Preservation Month Poster. The Indiana Department of Natural Resources has released its annual National Historic Preservation Month poster. Different types of historic resources are highlighted every year, and this year Fort Wayne is featured! The theme of the poster is historic Coca-Cola plants in Indiana, and the Fort Wayne Coca-Cola Bottling Plant at 1631 E. Pontiac Street is among the featured buildings. The bottling plant is now Bottle Works Lofts; home of 31 apartments.
The Landing is Fort Wayne’s and the State of Indiana’s First Historic District. The Landing Historic District in downtown Fort Wayne was designated in 1965, and it was the city’s first historic district. In fact, The Landing was the first historic district of any kind in the state of Indiana.
Turner Chapel AME Church Is Fort Wayne’s Newest Local Historic District. Located at 836 E. Jefferson Blvd., the church was constructed in 1927. It is significant for its Gothic architecture and for association with Turner Chapel African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church, the first African American congregation in Fort Wayne. It is also significant for local Civil Rights activities by the church in the 1960s.
West Central Historic District is Fort Wayne's Largest and Oldest Residential Historic district. West Central was designated as a local historic district in two phases in 1984-1985. It was listed in the National Register in 1984. The district contains virtually all architectural styles that were popular between 1830 and 1950.
Fort Wayne has 6 multiple property local historic districts and 80 individual local historic districts. An example of a multiple property district is the Williams Woodland Park Historic District. Old City Hall (The History Center) is an individual local historic district.
Fort Wayne has 17 districts listed in the National Register of Historic Places and 40 single property National Register listings. An example of a National Register district is the Lakeside Historic District. A new brochure with a map and history of the area will be available soon! The Embassy Theatre is an individual listing on the National Register.
The Chief Richardville House (Akima Pinšiwa Awiiki ) is one of only two National Historic Landmarks in Allen County. The Pinšiwa (Richardville) House is a rare and nationally significant example of a treaty-negotiated residence, built in 1827. It represents the resolve of Civil Chief Pinšiwa and the Myaamia (Miami) people to remain on their traditional lands within the expanding United States. When built, this was the finest house in northern Indiana. It was the primary home of Pinšiwa from 1827 to his death in 1841, and today it is owned and operated by the History Center. Note—the official NHL name of the house is in the Myaamia language.
The Allen County Courthouse is one of two National Historic Landmarks in Allen County. Completed in 1902, the Courthouse was designed by Fort Wayne architect Brentwood Tolan; it is a masterpiece of the Beaux-Arts style. The exterior of the building has unending classical features, and details that reflect local history. The interior has original murals and sculptures, scagliola faux marbling, unique tile floor designs, and abundant stained glass.
The Johnny Appleseed burial site is the oldest National Register Listing in Fort Wayne. John Chapman (1774-1845) was a pioneer, missionary, and businessman who planted orchards that provided apples (and hard cider) to settlers on the frontier. He died near the Archer family cemetery, where he was buried. The gravesite, listed in 1973, is the pioneer National Register listing in Allen County.
The South Side Farmers Market at 3300 Warsaw Street has been a local historic district since 2001. At the South Side Farmers Market rural life and agriculture, as well as fresh meat, produce, and flowers, can be found in the midst of urban Fort Wayne. The market began in 1926 and is owned and operated by the Allen County Producers Association. The market structures are unlike any others in Fort Wayne, representing the only location in the city with the feel of a historic fairground.
Fort Wayne has 16 national historic districts, but it only has 5 local historic districts concentrated downtown and in near-downtown neighborhoods, including the Columbia Avenue, The Landing, West Central, Williams Woodland Park, and Shawnee Place. it also has standalone historic structures that have their own designations. Read the rest of the story in Historic tours show city from a fresh perspective by Kara Hackett published February 7, 2018 on InputFortWayne.com.
History close to home City awash in areas with architectural, social significance by Jill Downs a Fort Wayne resident who has spent more than 15 years working with organizations and individuals on historic preservation efforts was published August 19, 2018 in The Journal Gazette newspaper. This article gives a brief overview of local historic homes. You can visit her website The Story of Your House .
Recording Historic Buildings 176-page book compiled by Harley J. McKee of the U.S. Department of the Interior National Parks Service, 1970. From the book's Forward: "This book has been compiled to serve the needs of those concerned with recording historic structures. It is designed both as an aid to persons already involved in the problems of architectural recording and to encourage others to become involved. Only a productive partnership between Federal, State, and local governments and private individual initiative and effort can assure the adequate recording and successful preservation of our great national patrimony of historic architecture."
City, ARCH to update countywide database of historic sites, structures by the City of Fort Waynestates: The last survey of historic properties in Fort Wayne was completed in the mid 1990s (1996?). It was expected to be complete in 2014. So far in 2019, have not found it online. The Indiana Historic Sites and Structures Inventory at the IUPUI University Library states: Every year since 1978 Indiana Landmarks has surveyed from two to four counties, looking for architecturally and historically significant structures and districts. Indiana Landmarks undertakes this federally mandated program through matching grants from Indiana's Division of Historic Preservation and Archaeology (DHPA). To date, Indiana Landmarks has surveyed 72 of Indiana's 92 counties.
That’s right, the type of mortar you use to point the brick or stone on your historic house or building matters. A LOT! Repointing is a common masonry repair for historic structures. This is when failing or lost mortar is removed and replaced with new mortar.
Historic mortars are frequently lime-based and are softer and more permeable than modern Portland cement-based mortars. This allows moisture to move in and out of the mortar joint, not the historic brick. The mortar breaks down, protecting the brick. If the historic soft mortar is replaced with a modern, harder mortar, moisture will move through the brick instead. This will cause the historic brick to break down because it is softer than the modern, impermeable mortar. This leads to visual and structural deterioration of your historic building. The same thing can happen with softer stones when paired with a hard, modern mortar.
Don't worry; there are ways to determine the appropriate mortar recipe for your structure! To learn more about mortar, check out these resources:
Did you kow that you can seardh the HABS/HAER/HALS Collection - the nation's largest archive of historic architectural, engineering, and landscape documentation - in The Library of Congress by subject? Yep!
Bookmark this handy-dandy link to conduct your search for FREE, down-loadable, publication-quality measured drawings, large-format photographs and written historical reports by subject.
The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation joins a national preservation effort by making a collection of historic architectural documentation available to the public as part of the Historic American Buildings Survey (HABS) Collection housed in The Library of Congress. Colonial Williamsburg’s architectural research collection is vast, spanning three centuries of construction and including structures ranging from estates to agricultural buildings.
For the collaboration with HABS, Colonial Williamsburg is sharing more than 570 drawings representing nearly 200 structures built primarily between 1750 and 1850 which were documented by Colonial Williamsburg architectural historians starting in the 1980s. The Foundation’s "Agricultural Buildings Project" was created at a time when many important everyday buildings were disappearing. Thanks to this project, many of these buildings were #documented before they were lost, providing a wealth of information for future researchers that will now be forever preserved thanks to the partnership among The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, HABS and the Library of Congress.
Historic brick with spalling due to a repointing repair with an improper mortar mix.