The Joseph Kirkwood House is a historic house in the village of Bridgeport, Ohio, United States. Originally home to one of the area's oldest families, it was built in the middle of the nineteenth century in a mix of architectural styles. Named a historic site in the 1980s, it has been converted into a health care facility.
A native of Delaware, Robert Kirkwood emigrated to present-day Belmont County in 1789 after fighting in the American Revolution; he and his family were among the region's first settlers. Joseph his son erected the present house in 1846 and arranged for its expansion seven years later by the construction of a large ell to the rear.[2] Set on a foundation of sandstone, the wood-and-brick house is covered with a metal roof.[3] The house combines academic and popular architectural styles: the basic plan is that of an I-house, a vernacular construction mode, although Greek Revival styling is present, especially in the careful symmetry of the five-bay facade.[2] Nine windows fill all bays in both stories, except for the post and lintel-surrounded main entrance in the center of the first story. The fenestration on the side of the original house and on the addition is more irregular: on the second story, a single window sits under the gable, separated by large amounts of brick from a trio of windows at the rear of the ell. Chimneys are placed at both ends of the roofline on the original house, with another such structure in the ell; the roof itself is metal.[3]
In early 1986, the Kirkwood House was listed on the National Register of Historic Places; its connection to Joseph Kirkwood qualified it for designation, as did its historically significant architecture. It is one of two National Register-listed locations in Bridgeport: although located largely in Wheeling, West Virginia across the Ohio River,[1] the Wheeling Island Historic District includes the Aetnaville Bridge, which extends into Bridgeport.[4] By the time of listing, the Kirkwood House was no longer used as a typical residence, having been converted into a group home for the mentally retarded, "Thresholds to Tomorrow".[2]
References
- ^ a b "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
- ^ a b c Owen, Lorrie K., ed. Dictionary of Ohio Historic Places. Vol. 1. St. Clair Shores: Somerset, 1999, 63.
- ^ a b Kirkwood, Joseph, House, Ohio Historical Society, 2007. Accessed 2014-02-17.
- ^ Sands, Patricia A. National Register of Historic Places Inventory Nomination Form: Wheeling Island Historic District. National Park Service, 1991-09, 7.
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