Abandoned girls school in Ohio

Madam Fredin's Eden Park School & Houses, Cincinnati Ohio

Date added: January 09, 2023 Categories: Ohio School

Looking northeast at 938-946 row house (1978)

938-946 Morris was constructed over several years as Madam Fredin's Eden Park School as they found it necessary to make more space for their students. Madam Fredin and her husband, August Fredin the French Consul in Cincinnati, contributed to the educational and cultural life in Cincinnati. Madam Fredin conducted a private school for girls in this city. It was one of six private girls schools at that time and the only one where pupils were permitted to stay with the family with French strictly spoken in the family. The courses were designed for the primary, preparatory and collegiate levels with the pupils being fitted to pass the Harvard Examinations for women. Many of the best families in Cincinnati sent their daughters to the school. Madam Fredin received many honors for her work for the French language and literature, being decorated with the Palms Academique by the French Academy. The L'Alliance Francaise was founded by August Fredin and upon the organization of a local branch of the order, Madam Fredin was honored by being selected as the first President.

The scale of the row houses ascend in stair-step fashion from west to east. 922-932 Morris, probably constructed as single-family residences, represents a uniquely: Sensitive adaptation of a symmetrical row design to a topographically difficult site; the Western one-third of the row (2 houses) drops approximately eight feet below the level of the remainder of the row.

922-932 Morris Street is a six-unit row house constructed of smooth-faced coursed ashlar limestone. 930-32 is painted green with white belt courses and window lintels. Wall and shed dormers, projecting and recessing plan, towers with steeply pitched mansard roofs, front and side approach porches are all symmetrically treated to produce an elegant unified row house. The tower of 930 has been removed; cresting over the central tower is gone. The rear construction is of brick. Most iron balconies remain.

938-946 Morris Street, though missing its easternmost "Bavarian" wing, exhibits an exuberant approach to row house design. The enormous variety of applied details, setbacks, changes in roof lines, varying porches and window treatments is unified by the restrained use of only a few materials. An overall rhythm and grace are achieved by the skillful manipulation of this vast variety of details into a unified whole. Stylistically, this row appears to fit the Victorian Gothic and Gothic Revival characteristics of a "stone castle". Street facades are constructed in a random patterned rock-faced ashlar. Window sills and belt courses are smooth-faced ashlar; window, door and masonry porch lintels are constructed of rock-faced stone segmental relieving arches, (round, elliptical or pointed). The rear facades are of, brick above a stone English basement. Hexagonal and rectangular slate tiles decorate mansard, gable and porch roofs. Some of the original iron balconies over porch roofs and projecting bays and under some windows on the second floor remain. Mansard and other roofs are steeply pitched. Corner buttress and weatherings form the tower base which was surmounted by a belvedere. Finials ornamented all of the gables.