2. Edgewater Place Historic District - National Register Nomination

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United States Department of the Interior National Park Service / National Register of Historic Places Registration Form NPS Form 10-900 OMB No. 1024-0018 Edgewater Place Historic District Saint Joseph County, IN Name of Property County and State Section 7 page 5 _____________________________________________________________________________ Narrative Description The Edgewater Place Historic District is situated between the Saint Joseph River on the northeast and Lincoln Way, a prominent early thoroughfare leading into South Bend, on the southwest. It contains only a few blocks with its primary streets leading northwest/southeast. These are Lincoln Way, River Avenue, and Edgewater Drive. Edgewater Drive, which bends outward with the river, features homes on its southwest side fronting the drive and a narrow bank of grass and trees along the Saint Joseph River on its northeast side (photos 02, 05). A strip of the bank is set aside as a small park near the south end of the district, at Edgewater Drive’s intersection with Bronson Street and south of River Avenue (photo 12). It features a lawn area, picnic tables, and a concrete pier with metal railings and is considered a contributing site. The streets feature sidewalks and mature trees. Historic concrete streetlights with metal and glass lanterns are found in the district, mostly along Edgewater Drive and River Avenue (these are seen in photos 15 and 24). There are fifteen of these lights which are individually counted as contributing objects. Their general location is noted with an asterisk (*) next to the address in the list provided in this section. Edgewater Place is the name formally given to the district. While that name was applied to the plat recorded in 1919, development had already occurred in the south part of the district and along Lincoln Way in the late 1800s and early 1900s. At that time, Lincoln Way was known as Vistula Road but became part of the coast-to-coast Lincoln Highway through South Bend when it opened in 1913. Because of some early development, there are late 19th century and early 20th century houses located in the district along Lincoln Way and in the south part of the district, which are either vernacular or Free Classic and Queen Anne in design (photos 12, 16, 17, 20, 21). Later development is characterized by early 20th century revival styles, such as Tudor and Colonial Revival, and Craftsman/Bungalow design. These homes line Edgewater Drive, River Avenue, and Arch Street. There are approximately eighty primary resources in the district. While several garages are contributing and many match the design or style of the principal residence, most of the non-contributing buildings in the district are modern garages. Because Lincoln Way developed as an important transportation corridor, a few businesses were created in or attached to homes along the route. In some cases, this activity has rendered the building non-contributing, however a few allow the principal building to retain architectural significance and are considered contributing (left side of photo 19). A trolley line was also routed down Lincoln Way which further aided development of both residential and commercial buildings, though the latter are limited in numbers in the district. Descriptions of houses are given at east for northeast, west for southwest, etc.