Historical Houses
Voorhees-Jenks House
625 South Sixth Street
Built 1850, Italianate
This two-story brick structure displays a hip roof and a bracketed, dentilled cornice. The symmetrical three-bay-wide main facade has recessed bays flanking the entry bay, which is sheltered by a one-story classic portico, a 1910 replacement of an earlier porch. Most windows are double-hung with lintels and sills. A rear addition was constructed at a later date. This house was one of the residences of Daniel Voorhees, a state senator, and later was the home of Ray G. and Virginia E. Jencks. Mrs. Jencks was the first congresswoman from Indiana and served the sixth district from 1933-39.
Parker-King Ehrmann House
901 South Sixth Street
Built 1874, Italianate
This large frame house was built by Jacob A. Parker, president of the Eagle Iron Works. In 1906, a private school was founded in the house and operated there for the next several decades. Known as the King Classical School, it was coeducational through grade school, with high school restricted to girls. The school was closed in 1945 when cofounder Bertha Pratt King retired and married poet Max Ehrmann. Ehrmann died of a cerebral hemorrhage three months after the wedding. The house features remarkable architectural integrity, with the original front porch and elaborate gable-ends.
Ludovici-Cajacob House
1000 South Sixth Street
Built 1873, Italianate
An excellent example of Italianate style, this two-and-one-half story brick structure has a multi-gable roof with classic returns. It is ornately detailed and features plain and vermiculated quoins at the corners of the house and scroll-sawn brackets on the cornice. The property also contains an extensive carriage house, and on the north perimeter an elegant cast-iron fence depicting a deer hunt. The home was designed by J. A. Vrydagh and constructed by Kimball & Hunter. The original owner, John B. Ludovici, came to Terre Haute in 1850 and started a very successful grocery business. In later years, the house hosted Magdy’s Restaurant. Today it provides housing for ISU students, with offices for Sharp Flats, LLC located in the carriage house.
Cogwill-Hulman House
1327 South Sixth Street
Built 1920, Colonial Revival
Built by F. Macy Cogwill, this house was purchased in 1930 by Anton (Tony) Hulman and Mary Hulman as their place of residence. Mr. Hulman was born in 1901 in Terre Haute and attended St. Benedict’s School. In 1924, he returned to Terre Haute to join the family’s grocery business, Hulman & Company, which produced a series of baking powders, including Clabber Girl, which remains the company’s main product. Tony Hulman is best remembered for purchasing and saving the Indianapolis Motor Speedway from destruction in 1945 and for making the Indianapolis 500 the “Greatest Spectacle in Racing.”
Sage-Robinson-Nagel Mansion
141 South Sixth Street
Built 1868, Italianate
This two-and-one-half story residence is an excellent example of Italianate architecture. The home features ornate window hoods, a polygonal front window bay and scroll-sawn brackets supporting the cornice. It was built by William Sage, a successful baker and confectioner, who owned the house until 1875. Henry Robinson, a dry goods merchant, purchased it and had a substantial rear addition added. From 1958 until 2019, the mansion was the home of the Vigo County Historical Museum. Ben and Jevy Lenderman now own the house and plan to renovate it as a Bed & Breakfast.
Madison-Root House
1503 South Sixth Street
Built 1885, Queen Anne
Built by Herbert E. Madison, this house became the home of Chapman Root, owner of the Root Glass Company which created the classic Coca-Cola bottle in 1915. Arguably the most distinctive feature of the elegant home is its large two-story turret. The tower features an open balcony on the second level, which would have once overlooked the wooded expanse of Strawberry Hill to the southeast.