Where are the Historic and Stately Homes of Greater Cincinnati (Columbus: townhomes, neighborhoods)

[cfd2rph]

Hi friends. My family and I are fixing on moving to Cincinnati. We just returned from a vacation trip to Charleston, SC and saw quite a vast collection of historic and stately homes. Obviously we won't be able to find homes in the greater Cincinnati (including KY) area built in the 1750's, but where would we be able to find a nice collection of historic homes, perhaps with brick streets, etc. We currently live in Columbus and that city has it's equivalent in German village. BTW - my family had an encounter with a ghost in Charleston, absolutely no question, so ghosts do actually exist (at least in SC). Thanks.

[Vintrest]

Cincinnati has one of the most impressive collections of historic architecture in the entire United States. Like you and your family, my spouse and I visited Cincinnati (from Texas) and were overwhelmed by the quantity and quality of the architecture in the Queen City. You are entirely correct in that most of the historic buildings are from the 1800's into the early 1900's. The oldest is the Betts House from 1804 at 416 Clark street. However, a vast collection of impressive mid-1800's historic townhomes can be found in the West End neighborhood along Dayton street. Some will say the area is unsafe but we found it quite pleasant on the Saturday morning as we walked along the nearby streets furiously snapping pictures, but common safety sense should always be used. Not far away is the Over-The-Rhine historic district, one of the largest national register districts in the country. At its center is Findlay Market, an emporium in continous existence since the mid-1800's and surrounded by historic buildings and townhomes from the same era. Nearer to the river is Mt. Adams and the Victorian flavored Columbia-Tusculum neighborhood with its "Painted Ladies" colorful homes. More hip and bohemian is the Northside-still gritty in places but also improving by the day. I especially enjoyed seeing some of the homes along Pullan Avenue and some of the side streets like Williamson Place. Even Mt. Auburn has some great historic homes on streets like McGregor. Downtown has Fountain Square and the 1860's Roebling Bridge to explore. I could go on and on but suffice to say, there's enough historic architecture remaining in Cincinnati (and even across the River in Kentucky) to satisfy the most jaded architectural buffs for days on end. If you look on the popular search engine's streetview, you can do a virtual tour of many historic Cincinnati neighborhoods. As for grand mansions, the city is dotted with them in almost all of the aforementioned neighborhoods. "Gaslight" Clifton is especially blessed with large impressive 19th century mansions. Again, there is no way you can see it all in one day or even a single weekend. This is an outsider's assessment, but like you, my wife and I love old houses and buildings. There's no place like Cincinnati for historic architecture and we are well-traveled and always seek out "old places" on our trips. Good luck! If we can ever sell our home in Texas, we too are Cincinnati bound.

[fluorescent]

I've lived in Cincinnati my whole life and "gaslight" Clifton for the past 3 years and I never get tired of the architecture. Whenever I'm out walking the side-streets I'm always staring in amazement at the houses even though I've seen them a hundred times. I grew up in a boring suburbs filled with houses built in the seventies, so I guess that's part of the reason why it still amazes me.

Check out the Architecture in parts of Hyde Park, O'Bryonville, Walnut Hills, Oakley, Mt. Lookout, Covington, Ky, and Newport, Ky as well. I'm sure that I am forgetting some (of Course there's OTR, West end, and downtown for more urban architecture) . I still have not seen all the amazing architecture that Cincinnati has to offer. Cincinnati has much more to offer than Columbus in terms of historic architecture.

[Wilson513]

You are going to have to narrow your search if you want meaningful information.

[goyguy]

My favorite streets in the city to drool at houses from are Lafayette Ave in Clifton, Rose Hill Ave in North Avondale, and Madison Rd between O'Bryonville and Walnut Hills. You'll see ornate Victorians and stone "castles" galore along those streets and the side streets that feed into them.
Railroad magnates and industrial barons built primary homes as well as "country retreats" during the late 19th Century between Cincinnati's northernmost neighborhood (Hartwell) and the adjoining community called Wyoming, and also "up the road a piece" in Glendale. There are also still some "castles" remaining in Westwood.
But Cincinnati doesn't do "quaint" the way Charleston and Columbus do. The closest to cute you'll find is the replica gaslights that illuminate side streets in Clifton, Mt Lookout, etc.

[cfd2rph]

Thanks all. This is exactly the information I was looking for. I was curious if we could find some neat historic districts in the greater Cincinnati area. The answer is a very definate yes. Now I've got to figure out how serious I am. Wilson, I know you are a wealth of knowledge and have read your posts about living in Kentucky. I may need to tap your knowledge as I spool up to speed here. Thanks again.