Two Stark County houses near a planned highway widening project are among Ohio’s Most Endangered Historic Sites, according to Preservation Ohio, a grass-roots group.
The two Stark County properties are among 16 sites in 12 Ohio counties that are identified most at risk, the grass-roots group said this week at a news conference at the Ohio Statehouse in Columbus.
The Stark County sites are:
• The Correll House in Plain Township. It was built in 1856 and is in danger of demolition because of the widening of Market Avenue North (state Route 43) that is set to begin in 2017. Local preservation groups and the owner are seeking a buyer to protect the house.
• The McDowell Farmhouse in Plain Township. It is one of the oldest houses in the township. The oldest part of the Greek Revival-style home dates to 1821. President James Madison originally deeded the property in 1814. It is also threatened by the state Route 43 widening, which would come within 6 feet of the house.
The two houses are close together and near a third house, the Pontius House, that was added to the state list in 2015, said Judy Pocock of the Plain Township Historical Society.
The highway widening will “come so near the houses, who knows what will happen?” she said. “It’s really too bad.”
Her group began working on saving the houses from the widening last year, she said.
The other endangered sites are in Ashtabula, Athens, Butler, Delaware, Franklin, Hamilton, Lake, Lawrence, Lorain, Montgomery and Muskingum counties. They range from the Port Columbus Airport Terminal and Control Tower to Ohio Wesleyan University’s Peace and Justice House to Sorg’s Opera House in Middletown and the Stone Train Depot in Ashtabula.
Preservation Ohio, a nonprofit group, has identified Ohio’s most-endangered sites since 1993.
The factors that put historic sites on the list include the threat of demolition, abandonment, a neglectful owner, dilapidation, obsolete use, lack of money for repairs, an out-of-the-way location and encroaching sprawl.
Bob Downing can be reached at 330-996-3745 or bdowning@thebeaconjournal.com.