Dorman and St. Clair Sts., Indianapolis, Indiana. County/parish: Marion.
Added to the National Register of Historic Places February 23, 1990. NRIS 90000328.
22 contributing buildings. 1 contributing structure.
The Cottage Home Historic District (also known as the Cottage Home Conservation District) is a historic district and neighborhood located on the Near Eastside of Indianapolis, Indiana, United States. A small portion of Cottage Home is listed on the National Register of Historic Places while a larger area is listed on the state and local levels.
Known for its preponderance of "cottage-style" homes built with strong Victorian influences, Cottage Home has historically been a working class neighborhood. Numerous industrial buildings are also scattered throughout the district, providing a base of economic activity. Today, however, many of these buildings are vacant, providing a special challenge to preservation and urban renewal efforts.
After a period of decline in the mid to late twentieth century, Cottage Home is now among the most desirable urban neighborhoods in the city. Key to the area's improvement was the establishment of the Cottage Home Neighborhood Association (CHNA) in 1984, whose efforts halted the razing of residential properties by local businesses, and revived interest in restoring the district's historic housing stock. The Ruskaup-Ratcliffe house and store are the most architecturally significant buildings in the district, anchoring the district's addition to the National Register in 1990. Cottage Home was further expanded to its largest bounds at the state level in 1995 and local designation of the Ruskaup-Ratcliffe house and store followed. In 2008, the state bounds, encompassing 320 parcels and 292 properties, were designated as a Conservation District by the Indianapolis Historic Preservation Commission.
(read more...)National Park Service documentation: https://catalog.archives.gov/id/132003825