This House in Indiana has 27 Rooms and Five Stories

Seiberling Mansion, Kokomo Indiana

Date added: June 04, 2024 Categories:

The construction site was part of an area previously used for various civic and social gatherings. During the country's centennial year, two distinguished Hoosiers made campaign speeches here: gubernatorial candidate Benjamin Harrison; and Governor Thomas A. Hendricks, the vice-presidential nominee. Although both were unsuccessful in that controversial election, they later became President and Vice-President, respectively, of the United States.

Monroe Seiberling, the original owner of the mansion, was a Midwest industrialist from Ohio. Many of the enterprises he was associated with, prospered as a result of the natural gas boom within the famous Trenton Oil Field. The Diamond Plate Glass Company that he organized at Kokomo, was the first of its kind west of the Alleghany Mountains utilizing natural gas in its production. Just before the turn of the century, the factory was acquired by the Pittsburgh Plate Glass Company, which still has an active industry here.

After the PPG merger, Monroe Seiberling left Kokomo for Illinois and formed the Peoria Rubber and Manufacturing Company, producing rubber tires and bicycles. His prior experience in the rubber industry was apparently limited to that of a rubber and insulated wire plant in another Indiana town. However, a nephew achieved fame as the founder of two major tire and rubber companies in Ohio, Goodyear and Seiberling.

Alton G. Seiberling, who also held the deed to the mansion at intervals, became a partner in the Peoria venture with his father. Later, due to an extensive knowledge of manufacturing costs, A.G. was appointed Vice-President and General Manager of the Haynes Automobile Company in Kokomo.

Following the Seiberlings' move to Illinois, the home was leased: first to a Chicago doctor; then a Presbyterian minister; and finally to another doctor from nearby Alexandria. Considerable local news was created when the latter made a futile attempt to raffle off the mansion.

In October 1901, the Seiberling family relinquished ownership. For short periods of time, it was owned by Richard N. Sparks; Thomas Kelly; Orange V. Darby, a pioneer dry goods merchant; and Dr. William D. Parr, a Methodist Episcopal minister. Rev. Parr was one of the founders of the Indianapolis Methodist Hospital and served on its Board of Directors. In addition, he was a member of the Board of Trustees for both DePauw and Taylor Universities, and listed in Who Was Who In America 1897-1942.

The property was transferred to Franklin D. Miller, a local producer of patent medicine, in December 1905. Eventually, his interest turned to real estate and he became Kokomo's most prominent realtor, owning much of the downtown business district. He is also credited with establishing the Memorial Park Cemetery here.

George Kingston acquired ownership of the mansion in December 1914. His invention of the Kingston Carburetor shortly after the turn of the century, lead him to a very successful career in industry and the local factory still bears the family name. During his long tenure of ownership, it was rented to Dr. Joseph C. Stone, an osteopath.

Indiana University purchased the mansion for their Kokomo Center in August of 1946, and used it for classrooms until the spring of 1965 when it was vacated for the new Kokomo Regional Campus of I. U. The property was then proposed for public sale at a price exceeding fifty thousand dollars. However, upon learning of the city and county governments' desire to have the building, it was withheld from the market; but only after the usual offers for realty development, suggestions by special interest groups, and complaints of disinterested taxpayers. An effort to donate it to the county resulted in a question of legality. Finally, on February 16^th, 1971, a ninety-nine-year lease agreement was executed by the Indiana University Board of Trustees and the Howard County Board of Commissioners, under which the Howard County Historical Society, Inc., was given three years to renovate the mansion for a county museum. Maintenance costs thereafter, to be funded by the county.

Building Description

The mansion was designed by architect Arthur LaBelle, with Ike V. Smith as contractor; and built for Monroe Seiberling. Ground was first broken for the structure in the autumn of 1889. A special frame enclosure was then erected over the building site so that construction could continue during inclement weather. Although this was removed in the spring of 1890, the home was not ready for occupancy until the following year.

The exterior design is an unusual compound of the Neo-Jacobean mode, popular on private dwellings of the day; and the less common Romanesque Revival style, typically applied to public buildings. The former is a derivative of late medieval England, expressing the domesticity of the old English cottage; while the latter is of French medieval origin, suggesting the boldness associated with early fortifications.

Inside, the mansion has five separate levels and twenty-seven rooms, comprised of the following: seven in the basement, besides a storage area beyond the stairs and an unfinished section beneath the south bay; seven at the ground floor, including what is now the men's restroom, plus the powder room behind the front stairway, the foyer, and the vestibule; seven on the second story, as well as a three-part bathroom; and six on the third level, excluding the large hall. While the attic is quite spacious, it has never been finished and, therefore, not counted.

The main stairway starts at the west side of the ground floor; whereas the back stairs begins in the northeast corner of the basement. Both end on the third story, and another one, in the east central part, continues to the attic.

The layout of the first and second floors is conventional in that they were initially used as living and sleeping quarters. The third level, however, was arranged for entertainment; complete with ballroom and bandstand.

Architecturally, the design of the interior basically conforms to the styles expressed for the outside of the building. The application of various woods in different patterns, to the inlaid floors and hand carved woodwork, made each room distinct from the others. This diversity is accentuated by the fireplaces with their mosaic tiles and plate glass mirrors.

Some of the most artistic features, though, are found on the second floor. The "Indiana Room" in the southeast corner, has woodwork around the doors and windows made from the State tulip tree, with native wild flowers carved in the facing; and in the 'sitting room' projecting on the west, the upper part of the walls are adorned with murals portraying local outdoor scenes.

The glasswork, believed to be from the original owner's local factory, is among the more unique aspects of the mansion. On the west side of the ground level, a small rectangular window in the powder room (under the stairs), and the half-moon sections at the top and sides of the large round dining room window, are of stained glass. (Another round window, on the same side, was formerly located at the stairwell of the second floor.) A transom over the doorway between the foyer and vestibule, and one second-story bath window on the east, also have stained glass. The transom at the main entrance, although similar, is actually a pane of leaded crystal. And equally usual, is the curved plate glass used in the bay windows on the south and east, and in the south door of the main living room.

The exterior of the mansion has suffered somewhat from deterioration but otherwise shows little deviation from its original appearance. The only notable alteration is that the round window on the second floor of the west side is now bricked shut. However, it formerly held a square pane of stained glass which has been found in storage.

Other changes to the outside are negligible but include the addition of a small television antenna on the west; and a fire escape ladder on the south and east. Also, the globes to the lights at the front steps (on the south) have been removed, and the doors at both the front and rear entrances have been replaced.

The basic arrangement of the interior remains unchanged, even though some of the openings have been altered. The north wall of the dining room has a doorway with paneling on the lower portion, giving the appearance of a tall "serving window" however, it is entirely plastered over in the kitchen. Then on the south dining room wall, an exterior entrance has been closed (as evidenced by an original door at the end of the porch, outside). Another door is found on the north wall of the breakfast room, but it has been completely covered on the bathroom side. Also, the east window of this bathroom has been temporarily shortened. On the second level, a doorway on the south side of the entry way to the bath is partially filled in with a mirror. The woodwork around a few other openings, including a large one leading from the third-floor hall to the ladies' lounge, shows signs of remodeling.

Although seven fireplaces are still intact, two others have been changed. The mantle and facing have been removed from the only one known on the third floor, found on the south wall of the ladies' lounge, and the inside filled with loose brick. All that remains of another that was located in the southeast corner of the second-story nursery, are the mosaic tiles at the hearth.

The murals were painted on the walls of the family sitting room while George Kingston owned the mansion. The basic layout suggests that the bathroom on the ground level may have been designed for another purpose (such as a pantry). However, both it and the second floor bath, were converted to modern restrooms by Indiana University. They also modified the east part of the basement for a recreation area; covered the floors of the ballroom, hall and ladies' lounge on the third story with vinyl-like tiles; and added blackboards and florescent lights to many of the rooms. And, of course, electricity and central heating were installed some years ago.

The woodwork is in very good condition, generally; but every mirror and many of the windows have been damaged by vandals. In addition, most of the door knobs and light fixtures, and all of the fireplace accessories, have now disappeared.