HANCOCK COUNTY — Michael Boisvenue grew up not far from the circa 1870 house in the 100 block of West Fifth Street that two Greenfield families called home throughout its history.
He visited the house with his mother during a home tour in the 1980s. Boisvenue returned in 2015, when he saw it was for sale as he made plans to move back to his hometown after working in Washington, D.C., for about 20 years. It’s been his place and his project ever since.
“I wanted to not necessarily put my own imprint on the house,” Boisvenue said. “I wanted to… take it up to where it should be and maintained properly, just get it to where it needs to be.”
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That’s exactly what Greenfield Historic Landmarks’ 2019 Preservation Awards are all about. Boisvenue joins two other homeowners, two downtown Greenfield businesses, the women’s recovery center and one of the only remaining iron bridges in Hancock County being recognized for preserving the county’s architectural heritage. The efforts will be recognized at a ceremony 2 p.m. Sunday at Lizabuth Ann’s Kitchen, the new meeting space on the grounds of the Riley Museum, 250 W. Main St.
Cathleen Huffman, Greenfield Historic Landmarks board president, said members of the organization search for significant architecture throughout the county when preparing for the awards.
“We look for people or businesses that are renovating or restoring historic structures and we want to make sure they’re appreciated,” she said.
Board members make nominations, engage in discussions and take field trips to aid in their decisions, Huffman continued.
She’s proud of this year’s recipients, which include a Residential Renovation award and three Residential Preservation awards.
“The historic homes are always popular to award,” she said.
Greenfield Historic Landmarks is also fond of the city’s historic downtown, Huffman said, home to Adaptive Re-use winner Something New at Tiffany’s Salon & Spa.
“We like the idea of them using the historic structure for a new purpose,” she said.
Huffman said Hancock County had about 30 iron bridges in the early 1980s. Now there are just two, including Continuous Preservation winner “Cry Baby Bridge,” which takes County Road 675E over Sugar Creek north of 900N.
Boisvenue’s house was once home to John B. Hinchman, a lawyer and Greenfield’s mayor from 1906 to 1910. Charles Hull, a General Motors accountant, and his wife, Lillian, a music teacher who studied under the founder of the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra, once lived in the home as well.
“Basically two families lived here before I bought it,” Boisvenue said.
Since moving in, Boisvenue has had the storm windows restored and he plans to have some of the interior windows restored as well. Inside the house, he’s done a lot of stenciling in a Victorian design. Outside, he spent this summer grinding, priming and repainting the property’s wrought iron fence.
Unfortunately he had to get rid of a large barn on the property, as it was riddled to the high beams with termites.
“I was really sad about that,” he said.
As a former Greenfield Historic Landmarks member, Boisvenue was aware of the organization’s awards and happy to learn he’d be receiving one. He said while accolades aren’t the reason he is preserving the house, he admires how they create exposure for positive endeavors occurring in the community.
Tiffany Smith has owned Something New at Tiffany’s Salon & Spa in downtown Greenfield for more than eight years. Her late grandmother owned the property that houses the business along with Lemon Lane Boutique and two apartments on the second floor. Smith’s brother-in-law, Don Lusk, bought the property in 2016 and restored it with Smith’s husband, Jerry Smith.
The salon and spa owner said it felt great to learn of Greenfield Historic Landmarks’ recognition.
“Mostly I was just proud of the two men that did it,” she added.
Her grandmother would be too, Smith continued.
“She would have just loved seeing all this,” she said.
Lusk estimates the property was built in the 1850s and said it was a home at one point throughout its history.
When he took over the property, he knocked the plaster off the walls in the apartments to expose the historical bricks beneath. He also removed a drop ceiling on the main floor to let the tin ceiling beyond shine down once more.
Lusk said he was excited to learn of the award.
“Obviously that wasn’t the purpose of doing all the restoration work we were doing there,” he said. “It just kind of worked out. I’m glad to have someone recognize the hard work that my brother-in-law and I put into it.”
Brown Township Trustee Theresa Ebbert said “Cry Baby Bridge” was built in 1887. In 2006, a metal floor replaced its wooden one and it received a fresh coat of white paint. Ebbert said the structure is also known as White Bridge for that reason as well as the Hayes Bridge after the nearby Hayes Cemetery.
News of the award came as a surprise, Ebbert said. She added it was exciting because it gave her an opportunity to learn more about the bridge, which she didn’t think of as a landmark at first.
“But it is kind of a type of landmark that’s going away, because you don’t see many of the iron or steel bridges anymore as much as you used to,” she said.
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WHAT: Greenfield Historic Landmarks 2019 Preservation Awards ceremony
WHEN: 2 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 13
WHERE: Lizabuth Ann’s Kitchen on Riley Boyhood Home and Museum grounds, 250 W. Main St., Greenfield
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Christopher Congdon
“Commercial Preservation” for Thayer Business Center, Thayer Building, 18 E. Main St., Greenfield
Michael Boisvenue
“Residential Preservation” for the circa 1870 Hinchman-Hull house in the 100 block of West Fifth Street, Greenfield
Nancy Finister
“Residential Preservation” for her home in the 200 block of North Wood Street, Greenfield
Bob Morrison
“Residential Preservation” for his home in the 700 block of West Main Street, Greenfield
Tiffany Smith
“Adaptive Re-use” for Something New at Tiffany’s Salon & Spa, 115 W. Main St., Greenfield
Brown Township Trustee Theresa Ebbert
“Continuous Preservation” for “Cry Baby Bridge,” over Sugar Creek on North 675E
Talitha Koum Recovery House
“Residential Renovation” for the women’s center at 527 E. Main St., Greenfield
Source: Greenfield Historic Landmarks
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