Christmas Stroll begins; Huntingburg Holiday Home Tour returns
Southern Indiana trees are wearing their autumn finery in shades of muted gold, scarlet, russet and burnt orange, which in Dubois County signifies it is time for one of the most anticipated events of the year, the Huntingburg Christmas Stroll, slated for November 7th through the 14th.
Here is an events list and this year includes the Holiday Home Tour, which will be held on the final day of the Stroll, Sunday, November 14 from 4 to 8 p.m. EST.
This year three lovely homes and one Airbnb will be included in the tour. Tickets are $20 and available at Gehlhausen’s Flowers and Gifts, the Downtown Emporium, Firefly, and Bean to Sprout.
Just a couple of notes. The interviews for this feature were completed pre-Halloween so most of the homes had not been decorated for Christmas but all plan to provide lavish seasonal decor. Also, booties will be available at all the homes and masks are required to tour.
The homes do not have to be visited in any particular order and include the following:
Randy and Lisa McWilliams, 507 East 4th Street.
The McWilliams own one of the most beautiful and stately historic homes in Huntingburg (which is high praise as the city is filled with stunning abodes). It was built by Dr. Dowell, a dentist who relocated from northern Indiana to Huntingburg and built his home in 1911 with an eye toward entertaining.
Crafted from brick, the porch spans the front of the house and it is easy to imagine Mrs. Dowell decked out in a charming chapeau and gloves while serving lemonade and tea sandwiches to Music Club members.
Dr. Dowell originally put his dental office inside what is now the living room. Hidden under an oriental rug is a brass fitting where his dentist chair once sat. This was just temporary as he built an office next door in 1912. Randy flipped back the rug to show the plate and explained the floors are oak with insets of Douglas Fir.
The home was designed in the Arts and Crafts or Craftsman style when artisans and craftsmen merged their talent for design, which coincided with the art deco movement. The original oak woodwork throughout the house is positively sublime. The two front rooms are adjoining and feature the living room on the east and the dining room on the west, divided partially by built-in narrow bookcases. The top of the bookcases features what could best be described as an extended trapezoid. Randy realized these pieces were missing and had replacements crafted by an Amish gentleman from Worthington. The overall feel of these two rooms is definitely that they had been designed to entertain.
The windows, with the exception of a block of stained glass in the dining room, are all original (and those windows are soon to be replaced with period pieces). Randy explained that when Home Depot came to measure the 11 windows lined up like sentinels across the front wall for blinds, the man told him he had never before encountered windows that are exactly the same size.
A feature of the craftsman style is symmetry, which is both striking and functional. Randy later discovered the ceiling would have been coffered with beams that had been removed at some point.
The McWilliams have done quite a bit of remodeling in the five years they’ve owned the home.
As all gracious homes in that era almost always had, this one boasts a butler’s pantry. For that project they had to strip green paint to return it to its former glory. The couple also found the original back door in the basement and after a thorough cleaning and a new coat of finish, they replaced a less than lovely door with the original.
Each room is more lovely than the next, from the kitchen to Randy’s office to the master bedroom.
Randy McWilliams’ wish? He would love to see a photo of Dr. Dowell. The Dowells had no children, but should anyone happen to have a photo of the dentist he would dearly love to see it.
Apparently the good doctor branched out in many directions, patenting an oil pressure gauge and several other inventions, including door hinges and a traction tractor. He also owned Patoka Furniture Company, something else the McWilliams would like to know more about.
“Dr. Dowell died in this house on New Year’s Day,” Randy explains. He was sleeping and a train whistle blew, startling him awake. He had a heart attack and passed away.
“But the house is not haunted,” he assures.
Heaven on the Fourth Airbnb, 412 East 4th Street.
With her husband, Sara Belmore, owner of Bean to Sprout Children’s Store on 4th Street, purchased another building just down the road. The lower level holds Chocolate Bliss, a second location for the truly sweet shop (the original location is on Jasper Square). The Belmonts converted the one-bedroom studio apartment located above into an Airbnb.
This quaint and cozy space features all the amenities one could want in a vacation rental. Sara chose a pastel palette to create a serene and relaxing environment. A full kitchen includes all the necessities for those who wish to dine in.
While the apartment overlooks 4th Street and is within walking distance of shopping and entertainment venues, a screened-in porch leads to a charming, secluded patio which can be accessed down the back stairs for privacy in an intimate setting, as well as outdoor dining.
In addition to the single bedroom, Heaven on the Fourth has a futon in the living room so the apartment is suitable for one or two adults or a couple/single with two children.
J.D. and Theresa Wright, 419 North Geiger Street.
Theresa Wright is living her dream, along with her husband, J.D., and two sons. The couple lived in Green County near Bloomington for about 16 years, but both are Dubois County natives. They debated between remodeling their Green County home and relocating to Dubois County, but after months of indecision, committed to moving back near family and friends. Both are graduates of Southridge High School so finding a house in Huntingburg would be optimal.
And what a house they found!
Their former house in south-central Indiana measured the more typical 2,000 square feet, while their Geiger Street home is closer to 5,000 square feet, including the basement and attic, allowing more than ample space for the family of four.
“I’ve known this home since I was a kid,” Theresa explained, “and always thought it was beautiful, but never in a million years did I think I would live here.”
The Wrights are only the fourth actual owners of this brick manse, which Theresa believes was built circa 1900 (although the interior of the fireplace is stamped 1897).
The iconic structure is well-known thanks to the stunning magnolia trees that bloom in spring.
Christian Kornrumpf was the original owner but his was not the first home to stand on the property. Leonard Bretz, a Huntingburg storekeeper, had built a gorgeous house on the site but whether it burned or why it was torn down is a mystery.
Kornrumpf married one of Bretz’s daughters, who had previously been his student (he was a teacher, jeweler, and musical instrument maker — a jack of all trades) so that ownership transition is easily explained. The most recent owner before the Wrights, Mitch Clark, is a Kornrumpf descendant.
Theresa explained her home’s footprint, built atop the basement of the previous house, is identical save the opening under the dining room, which is a crawl space.
As to decor, the Wrights are slowly making the interior their own, but want to keep many of the features that make the house so unique, such as the period wallpaper in many of the rooms, the oak trim and crown molding, the stunning pocket doors leading to the dining room and the must-have (in the early 20th century) butler’s pantry.
The Wrights have adorned the space with multiple collections, including Theresa’s grandma’s swizzle stick collection and the stoneware her uncle sent home from Japan when he was in service, and boxes of bottle caps from her dad and uncle’s home brewing days, and a giant wooden spoon and fork adorning one of the vivid red kitchen walls. The kitchen cabinetry, by the way, is a honeyed oak with a copper backsplash that really stands out.
Theresa also set up what she calls Jesus Christ’s Block Party, which started as a traditional nativity set and now includes multiple Wise Men of different sizes, three Baby Jesuses, and a couple of Marys, along with stable animals and a few kitschy reindeer thrown in for good measure.
Theresa, who holds multiple degrees, works from home as a Program Management Analyst for Precise Systems focused on contracts for government agencies such as the Department of Defense, is not planning to open her office, which is a shame because along with her lettered sports jacket (she went to state her junior year for discus throwing) she has a massive framed and a signed poster of a shirtless Patrick Swayze on the wall (keeping the room nice and hot).
The Wrights have added a special feature for the Stroll Home Tour, syncing music and Christmas lights for everyone’s enjoyment!
Chris and Ciara Roberts, 110 East 2nd Street.
The Roberts’ home, built in 1927 or ‘28 (each thought it was a different year), is completely unique in that it is a “Smart” home. “We always joke around saying it’s a 100-year-old smart house,” Chris explains. The home now features voice-controlled lights and a thermostat, as well as four controlled cameras. In other words, an old house with the newest of new features.
When they found their home two and a half years ago, both fell in love with different features. Ciara wanted a large backyard, and their home checks off that box. Chris wanted to be a hands-on re-modeler, and that box checked off as well.
For example, the bathroom still had copper water lines and a cast iron tub but no shower. Plus some of the electrical fixtures were absolutely in the wrong place. He essentially gutted it, built a vertical half wall to enclose the plumbing and replaced everything except the bathroom mirror, which is original.
He also re-plastered most of the house and is currently working on finishing out the attic to create a master bedroom.
The previous owner was an elderly woman who lived there 40-plus years but another feature that attracted Ciara was the ample cabinet space in the kitchen. “That was a really big selling point.”
Ciara, who loved shades of blue, has used the color to tie all the rooms together.
The house only had two closets, something else Chris rectified but the attic space will be a welcome addition. When talking about priorities, in addition to Ciara’s large yard, Chris wanted a basement and both got their wish. The basement is half storage and half man cave.
A charming sun porch leads to the huge fenced backyard (the fence added by the Roberts) and Chris crafted a picnic table using an old barn door he found in the garage. “They had used leftover board from the flooring to make the barn door,” Chris explains, and he wanted to make use of the lumber.
The couple also fell in love with the front porch and cleared away a lot of neglected shrubs in front to open up the view.
So there you have it — four homes worth the price of admission to tour. And by the way, proceeds are used to benefit many philanthropic endeavors in the City of Huntingburg.
The Christmas Stroll and Holiday Home Tour are presented by the Huntingburg Merchants Association.
