Jeremy Lawler was taking down his Christmas tree in February when he noticed two cars pull up and people get out to take pictures in front of his house.
“Thinking that was odd, I went outside to see what was going on,” Lawler said. “I spoke to one of the individuals who stated her grandmother was one of 13 kids who grew up in the home. We exchanged numbers and texted that evening and the days following about their family history, and have remained in contact ever since.”
He reached out to them about the Observatory Hill House Tour from noon to 5 p.m. Sunday. After a three-year hiatus because of the pandemic, the event has returned.
His house is one of 12 being showcased.
“As far as I know, 14 members of their family plan to reunite for the house tour this weekend,” said Lawler, whose home was built by Sampson and Mary Armstrong in 1910.
This year’s house tour theme is “Stories of a Neighborhood,” focusing on the unique stories of each home, Lawler said — those tales contribute to the ever-evolving story of Observatory Hill.
On the tour, guests will see homes that were built during the Civil War up through the 1970s, with others sprinkled everywhere in between.
“As we were drafting our tour booklet, our primary focus was to incorporate the many storied tales for each of the homes that will be featured,” said Lawler, president of Observatory Hill Inc. and the Observatory Hill Development Corp. “We know that, for this period in time, we are the home’s caretakers and that at some point in the future, the home will be passed on to the next person. We are the story at present. We are the current chapter.”
One home was a former bank that has a storied past of bank robberies and holdups. The homeowner has transformed this space into his living quarters and art studio, Lawler said.
There is a former school that was converted into the Fiasco Art Center — a living art space.
Once a dentist office, one of the houses is now a single-family home. There is one where a piano dealer and a founding member of the YMCA in the Mexican War Streets on the North Side lived and another where opulent parties were held. Another homeowner is transforming a carriage house into a garage and studio.
Lawler moved into the neighborhood in 2015 and to his current home in 2019. He noticed a small brass placard on the living room mantel from a 1997 house tour.
This year’s tour is led by Brian Larson, who is the committee chair. Larson and Lawler have been working with a committee of 10 people to plan the event.
“I think people love house tours like this because of an appreciation of older homes,” he said. “A lot of people watch HGTV and they like to get design ideas for their own houses. Plus, there is such great craftsmanship with these homes.”
Lawler has tried to preserve the history of his place. It’s about taking care of not only an actual building but all of the memories that were created in the home. He calls the home “eclectic.” He stenciled the entryway ceiling with a gold design by hand. In the dining room and living room, he created individual plaster castings that adorn the ceilings in both rooms to revive the original character of the home.
He kept the original door and had it restored rather than replaced.
“I did that because this is the door that every occupant of this house entered and exited,” he said.
He also built a greenhouse in the backyard, and there are lots of plants inside his house as well.
He also created a home office space and furnished the place with antiques — Lawler grew up in Iowa in a farmhouse that had a wrap-around front porch.
“A large front porch is wonderful,” he said. “When people see you on the porch, it’s an invitation for people to gather. It brings people together. It’s the essence of neighborhood.”
