Establishing an Historic Landmark - 720 West Washington St

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legal description Ex 10' E 'side Lot 8 Bartlett's Subdivision, B.O.L. 41 and E 2 B.O.L. 40 Key Number 6- 03 -18 -50 -1922 ./,, historical notes The land upon which the Bartlett House is built was first granted to Joseph Lafromboise son of Sha -we -no -qua, by the treaty made in Chicago on August 29, 1821, with the Ottawa, Chippewa, and Potawatomie Indians. Lafromboise sold part of the land to Alexis Coquillard, the founder of .South Bend,in 1830, for $800.00. As Coquillard began to have financial difficulties he conveyed the land over to the State Bank of Indiana, in 1838. The State Bank sold two lots of the land, Bank Out Lots 40 and 41, to Joseph G. Bartlett on June 18, 1850 for $210.00. He built the house on lot 8 of Bank Out Lot 41. Joseph G. Bartlett was the grandson of Josiah Bartlett, who was a signer of the Declaration of Independence and Governor of New Hampshire. Joseph was born in Newburyport, New Hampshire , on July 2, 1815, and settled in South Bend in 1837. He built a bakery at 68 Washington Street and by the 1850's his business had expanded to include a grocery, general store, and restaurant. He developed the first horse and wagon delivery service to further his business. He moved his business for a short time to a downtown location on Michigan Street, then moved it back to Washington Street, at No. 117, where he built a three story brick establishment. His business expanded rapidly during the Civil War and he eventually acquired ownership of a considerable amount of property in South Bend. He sold his business and retired in 1872. When Bartlett built this house in 1850 he wanted to erect something in keeping with his prosperity and with the taste of Eastern houses. he chose his brother -in -law, Jonathan Webb a New Hampshire contractor, to be the architect. His design had a strong New England and Greek Revival influence. The ten room house was built in two segments, the main block constructed of cream colored 4x8 inch brick, and a rear wood framed kitchen wing. The brick portion of the house contained two upstairs bedrooms, a parlor, living room, and central hallway downstairs. The original kitchen wing was torn down by Sara Bartlett in 1899 and a new addition containing a kitchen, dining room, and two upstairs bedrooms, was built in its place in 1926. Joseph Bartlett died in 1873, a year after retiring from his business. His family lived in the house until they sold it to John and Hermina Bednar in 1953. The Bednar's restored much of the original character of the house. They moved to Wisconsin in 1964 and used the house for rental purposes. The current owners are David and Lucinda Lord. source of information City Deed Records Book A Page 330 City Deed Records Book M Page 358 City Deed Records Book 0 Page 289 City Deed Records Book 510 Page 619 Howard, .A History of St. Joseph County, P. 565-566 St. Joseph Valley Register, 1/16/73 p.2 Ryan, Tawny Bartlett House Case Study, 1975.