This Tudor Revival-style home was built in 1915 by Stephen Gerrard, who was known as “the Cantaloupe King.” He was a truck farmer who built an empire by shipping cantaloupes from Colorado to the Midwest in refrigerated railroad cars. He went on to invent the refrigerated truck and popularize iceberg lettuce in the U.S.
Sadly, when the Great Depression hit, Gerrard’s empire collapsed and the house sank into disrepair. It was abandoned for 13 years in the 1970s and ’80s, but rescued in 1989 by the current owners. The grand old house was riddled with termites when they found it, and they estimate there were at least 100 cats living there. Their renovation efforts earned them a merit award from Better Homes and Gardens.
The Gerrard House sits on the highest point of the North Avondale Ridge. It has 15 rooms and 7,000 square feet. The walls are rock-faced limestone, and gargoyles, gables, and elaborate chimneys evoke the Tudor Revival style. Iron gates guard the entrance.
Take a look!
These interior photos are courtesy Cincinnati Magazine, which provided a supplement for the home tour.
As a gift to his wife on their anniversary, Stephen Gerrard had this “music room” added onto the house, which looked like a small chapel. Their daughter was married here. Those termites I mentioned earlier left tracks all along the carved wood on the far wall.
The kitchen was original (wish they had a picture of it!) with white subway tile that ran across the floor, up the walls, and even on the ceiling. I’ve never seen a kitchen completely encased in tile like that, but another person on the tour said he had a home built in the early 1900s with the same tile ceiling, so it must’ve been a trend for awhile (at least around here).
The final house on the tour is coming up next, and I saved the biggest and best for last–an amazing Tudor Revival-style mansion called The Mack House. I located more interior photos of that one, so you won’t want to miss it!
If You’re Hooked on Old Houses:
- Walking and Gawking in Historic North Avondale, Part 1
- Walking and Gawking in Historic North Avondale, Part 2
- 1908 Mitchell Mansion on Rose Hill
- Normandy Manor: The Levine House
- The Belvedere: Luxury Apartment Building from 1925
- The Telford Mansion
- The Spite House
- Cobble Court
- Stokesay Court
- Coco Chanel’s Parisian Apartment
- 1908 Gaslight Mansion
- Mark Twain’s Mansion
- Frank Lloyd Wright’s William P. Boswell House
- Sears Honor-Bilt Home: The Lynnhaven Model
- Sears Modern Homes: House Kits from Catalogs
- Pheasant-Hill Farm
{ 15 comments… read them below or add one }
Fancy shmancy!!
Wow that house is way to made up for me! I can’t imagine trying to be cozy around a fireplace with 3 wingbacks and a small loveseat! I do love the architecture though. I would have loved to see the kitchen with all the tile – I’ve never seen anything like that.
It was pretty fancy, but then there were signs of real family life here and there that I didn’t expect. For example, what you can’t see in the photo of the Music Room/Chapel is that off to the right, through that sunny alcove, is a kid’s drum set. Then there were some quirky things, like a mannequin off to the left side of the room beside the organ (no idea why), and a table where it looked like they played games and put puzzles together. -Julia
Wow, that interior is something else!
Fancy Schmancy indeed. I love the detail on the ceiling in the top right picture. So pretty:)
Beautiful architectural details! I love it!
I would love to see a picture of the kitchen with all of the subway tile. If you can ever take or get one please post it! What a house by the way!
I will, Steve! The kitchen was really small and pretty much as it was originally, although they squeezed a refrigerator in there and added a ceiling fan (which frankly looked ridiculous with the subway-tiled ceiling).
The Cantaloupe King was all about refrigeration, so he had an entire refrigerated room like you might find in a restaurant or grocery store where they stored their food. Somewhere along the line the walk-in ice-box was converted into a breakfast room with a built-in banquette.
Has anyone ever had a kitchen with a tiled ceiling like that? Or even seen one? I would love to track down a photo of an old kitchen similar to this one if not the actual one.
I’d love to see the kitchen. It sounds pretty nifty. I like the music room.
Pat
Love the woodwork in this house.
Try looking for pictures of biltmore house in asheville. I think I remember a tiled ceiling in it. If no in the kitchen try the indoor pool room.
This has been so much fun…I would have loved to have spent the day with you strolling these beautiful mansions. And, I even would have been a nice enough new friend to tell you that you had a chunk of chocolate on your leg! That is hilarious!
Can’t wait to see the biggest and grandest tomorrow!
I showed a house with a tile kitchen, including ceiling, about 14 years ago. The house was built in th early 30s. A great idea to be able to clean the ceiling, but it was a not particularly pleasant shade of green and I am sure whoever bought the house removed it long ago.
Janet
I love the house, its really neat, but could you imagine
being the one to have to dust! Yuck!
My college dorm was Tudor Revival and I was lucky enough my freshman year to have the room over the front entrance, with a carved bay window and a window seat. It was the perfect spot to view everything going on down on the main lawn.
ps -You have a great blog