By Bill Mabin, Marshall Historical Society
The lineup is set for the 56th annual Marshall Historic Home Tour on Sept. 7-8.
The Midwest’s longest-running home tour will feature six private homes representing five decades and four architectural styles. The tour also includes six local museums, the city’s hydroelectric plant, the Bogar Theatre and Trinity Episcopal Church.
Tour hours are 9am to 5pm on Saturday, Sept. 7, and 10am to 5pm on Sunday, Sept. 8. The Honolulu House Museum, 107 N. Kalamazoo Ave., again will be the focal point for home tour activities.
Two of the private residences haven’t been on the tour since the early 1990s. They are the 1868 Gothic Revival home of Craig and Debbie Carrel on North Kalamazoo Avenue and the 1880 Queen Anne home of Matt and Kayla Thompson on South Marshall Street.
Visitors also can see the progress made in the restoration of Marshall’s only Octagon-style house on South Eagle Street. The home, built in 1856, is owned by Marshall Historical Society President George Whelan and his wife Debra. Tour favorite Oakhill also is part of this year’s event. The 1858 Italianate home of Tom Franke on North Eagle Street is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and the Historic American Buildings Survey.
The 1870 Italianate home of Beth Rayner on Division Street hasn’t been on the tour since 2003. Twentieth-century architecture is shown in the 1903 Queen- Anne-style cottage of Nate Palmer on Liberty Street.
The museums on tour include the three operated by the historical society: the 1860 Honolulu House, the 1903 Marshall Historical Museum at the GAR Hall, and the 1860 Capitol Hill School Museum. The tour also includes the 1839 Governor’s Mansion operated by the Daughters of the American Revolution, the Marshall United States Postal Service Museum and the Walters Gasoline Museum.
The 1893 Marshall Power House on South Marshall Street proved a popular feature on the 2016 tour and is back on this year. The city has the third-oldest municipal hydroelectric system operating under its original ownership in the country.
The Bogar Theatre has been at its Michigan Avenue location since 1939. During home-tour hours it will present continuous showings of a 1941 Marshall Junior Chamber of Commerce movie along with film of the 1930 Marshall Centennial Parade.
Trinity Episcopal Church on East Mansion Street was completed in 1864. The historic home tour has its roots in kitchen tours started by a church women’s group in 1957.
Related home-tour events include Art at the Museum, an arts-and-crafts fair on the Honolulu House grounds; a Civil War encampment at Capitol Hill, and a Civil War Ball in front of the Honolulu House. Other community organizations will have activities during the tour days.
Advance home-tour tickets cost $20 and are available through Labor Day, Monday Sept. 2, at www.marshallhometour.org or by calling 269.781.8544. Tickets will be $25 beginning Tuesday, Sept. 3. Tickets are good for both tour days. Parking is free, and free shuttle buses will run to the tour sites.
Ryan and Theresa Underhill are home tour co-chairs this year assisted by Matt and Danielle Siebert. Theresa noted, “Ryan and I are very excited for the wide variety of historical homes we have on the tour this year. We chose Marshall for our family because we love the hospitality of the community and the amazing history of this town. We hope the tour visitors will feel the same way.” She also expressed appreciation for the support of all the volunteers who will be staffing the homes during the tour.
The Marshall Historic Home Tour began in 1964, and it has grown into the longest-running home tour in the Midwest. The Marshall Historical Society uses the home tour proceeds to maintain and enhance its three museums and to support community efforts to preserve, protect and promote Marshall’s historic heritage. More information is available here.
