Overview

The Holmes House reflects an unusual combination of Late Victorian architectural styles. 

• Location: 1418 Park Avenue  
• Neighborhood: Elliot Park

Historic photo (Circa 1920)

Current photo (1988)

Architecture

• Architectural Style: Shingle Style, Richardsonian Romanesque
• Architect: Edgar E. Joralemon

Use

• Historic use: Residential
• Current use: Demolished in 1988

Construction

• Construction date: 1887
• Contractor: Unknown

Significance

• Area(s) of significance: Undefined
• Period of significance: Undefined
• Date of local designation: 1983
• Date of National Register designation: N/A
• Designation: Exterior

Historic profile

The Holmes House reflects an unusual combination of Late Victorian architectural styles. It was built for Dr. Henry E. Holmes in 1887. The house was designed by Edgar E. Joralemon. 
 
Joralemon helped introduce Late Victorian architectural styles to Minneapolis. He used a variety of styles in his work. He also liked to combine elements of different styles. The Queen Anne style was popular at this time, but Joralemon favored newer trends. 
 
The Holmes House is an example of the Shingle Style with some twists. Usually, Shingle Style houses were clad in wood shingles. On the Holmes House, Joralemon used clapboard siding with shingle accents. The house also had an irregular floor plan and a wraparound open porch. These features were common in Shingle Style houses. However, the porch was made of limestone and had a large stone arch near the main entrance. These details reflect the Richardsonian Romanesque style. 
 
Dr. Henry E. Holmes earned a medical degree from Harvard before moving to Minneapolis. He wanted a house that looked like an upper-class house in New England. But he also wanted the house to be functional and so he included an office in the plan. 
 
In the mid-1980s, the owner at the time began to renovate the house into a fourplex. Unfortunately, a fire broke out and destroyed the building in 1988.  

Photo credit

• Circa 1920 photo: Courtesy of Hennepin County Library and Hennepin History Museum 
• 1988 photo: Courtesy of Hennepin County Library

Work cited

• Paul Clifford Larson, “Draft National Register of Historic Places Registration Form: Henry E. Holmes House,” June 1987. 
• Star Tribune archives