Huning Highlands Historic District facts for kids

Huning Highlands Historic District
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
U.S. Historic district
The Seth House
Location in New Mexico Show map of New Mexico Location in the United States Show map of the United States
Location	Huning Highlands, Albuquerque, New Mexico
NRHP reference No.	78001804
Quick facts for kids Significant dates
Added to NRHP	November 17, 1978

The Huning Highlands Historic District is a special area in Albuquerque, New Mexico. It covers the whole Huning Highlands neighborhood. This district is known for its many old houses built in the Victorian style and other styles from the early 1900s.

The area is about 0.3 square miles (0.78 km²) in size. It is bordered by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue to the north, Locust Street to the east, Iron Avenue to the south, and the Burlington Northern Santa Fe train tracks to the west. Huning Highlands was the first neighborhood built outside of Albuquerque's original town. Most of its buildings went up between the 1880s and the 1920s. This district was added to the New Mexico State Register of Cultural Properties in 1976 and the National Register of Historic Places in 1978.

History of Huning Highlands

When the Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe Railway arrived in Albuquerque in 1880, it brought a lot of excitement. People wanted to buy land and make money. Local business owners like Franz Huning, Elias S. Stover, and William Hazeldine formed a group called the New Mexico Town Company. They helped bring the railroad's main buildings to a spot about 1.5 miles (2.4 km) from the old community of Old Town.

This new area quickly grew into a busy place called New Town, which is now Downtown. Franz Huning also owned land on the sandy hills to the east. This area was called the Highlands because it was higher up. In 1880, this land was planned out as the first new neighborhood to be added to the town. It was named Huning's Highland Addition, which later became Huning Highlands.

How the Neighborhood Was Planned

A civil engineer named Walter G. Marmon designed the neighborhood. He named the main north-south streets after his own children, Walter and Edith. He named another street Arno, after Franz Huning's son. He also named a street Broadway, saying "every town should have a Broadway." The street at the very top of the gentle slope was called High Street.

Huning Highlands quickly became a very popular place to live in Albuquerque. Many important early residents of the city lived there. Unlike older Hispanic neighborhoods like Old Town, Barelas, and Atrisco, Huning Highlands was mostly built by people who had recently moved from other parts of the United States or from Europe.

Building Styles and Materials

Because of this, the houses in Huning Highlands looked different from traditional local homes. They showed styles popular in the eastern and Midwestern United States. These included Queen Anne, Italianate, and other Victorian styles. Many houses used parts that were made somewhere else and then put together. This created a mix-and-match look, though some houses followed one style more closely.

The neighborhood continued to grow between the 1880s and the 1920s. By then, almost all the land had been built on. Residents enjoyed places like Highland Park, which is one of the city's oldest public parks. They also had the Old Main Library and an electric streetcar line that started in 1911.

Changes Over Time

As Albuquerque grew, many wealthy residents moved away from the older inner-city neighborhoods. They preferred newer, more suburban areas further east. By the 1970s, Huning Highlands had become a poorer neighborhood. Many of the houses were rented out and not always well-maintained.

To help protect the neighborhood, the Huning Highlands Historic District was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1978. In 1980, the Albuquerque City Council created the city's first Historic Overlay Zone for the area. This special rule means that any changes to the important historic houses need approval from a special commission. It also offers tax benefits for people who restore their homes.

These actions really helped the neighborhood. Many historic houses were restored. A local group reported that the number of properties considered "blighted" (meaning run-down) dropped a lot. It went from 52% in 1976 to 17% in 1986, and by 2005, it was estimated to be less than 5%.

Notable Buildings in Huning Highlands

Many interesting and historic buildings are found in the Huning Highlands Historic District. Here are some of them:

Name	Image	Location	Year built	Style	Notes
AT&SF Memorial Hospital		806 Central Ave. SE 35°4′57″N 106°38′17″W / 35.08250°N 106.63806°W / 35.08250; -106.63806 (AT&SF Memorial Hospital)	1926	Mediterranean Revival	An important Albuquerque landmark.
E. J. Alger House		124 Walter St. SE	1900	Italianate
Auge Store		214 Arno St. NE	c. 1908
D. A. Bittner House		120 Walter St. SE	1901	Dutch Colonial Revival
Boatright House		220 Edith Blvd. SE	1888	Queen Anne	David Boatright was an early mayor of Albuquerque.
Charles E. Boldt House		323 Edith Blvd. SE	c. 1904	Dutch Colonial Revival
D. R. Boyd House		123 High St. SE	c. 1895	Queen Anne
G. E. Brewer House		215 Walter St. SE	1901	Queen Anne
T. I. Butts House		201 High St. NE	c. 1909	Queen Anne
Children's Home and Hospital (Regina Hall)		806 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Ave. NE	c. 1921	Prairie School
H. G. Coors House		116 Walter St. SE	c. 1920	Bungalow
P. G. Cornish House		123 Walter St. SE	c. 1900	Queen Anne
Edward Buxton Cristy House		201 Walter St. SE	1897	Queen Anne	E. B. Cristy was an architect and designed this house himself.
Duplex at 108-110 Arno SE		108-110 Arno St. SE	c. 1898	Folk Victorian
J. L. Durling House		410 Edith Blvd. SE	c. 1894	Stick
Andrew Hatch House		218 Walter St. SE	1901	Folk Victorian
Highland Hotel		202 Central Ave. SE 35°5′1″N 106°38′44″W / 35.08361°N 106.64556°W / 35.08361; -106.64556 (Highland/Hudson Hotel)	1906	Chicago School	An important Albuquerque landmark.
Mrs. Hill's Boarding House		321 Walter St. SE	c. 1890	Queen Anne
Horner House		520 Arno St. SE	1881		This is the oldest known house in the district.
House at 204 Arno SE		204 Arno St. NE	c. 1882
House at 210 High SE		210 High St. SE	c. 1895	Folk Victorian
House at 212 High SE		212 High St. SE	c. 1890	Queen Anne
House at 306 Walter SE		306 Walter St. SE	1907	Queen Anne
House at 317 Walter SE		317 Walter St. SE	c. 1890	Folk Victorian
House at 320 Edith SE		320 Edith Blvd. SE	c. 1903	Folk Victorian
House at 411 Arno St. SE		320 Edith Blvd. SE	c. 1890s	Queen Anne
Jack Korber House		301 Arno St. SE	1916	Prairie School
J. E. Learnard House		210 Walter St. SE	1898	Queen Anne
W. J. Marsh House		301 Edith Blvd. SE	c. 1895	Folk Victorian
C. L. McClanahan House		201 Arno St. SE	1910	Queen Anne
A. B. McMillan House		119 Walter St. SE	1896	Queen Anne
McQuade House		201 Walter St. NE	1901	Queen Anne
I. J. Mize House		316 Walter St. SE	c. 1900	Folk Victorian
Old Albuquerque High School		Central and Broadway NE 35°5′3″N 106°38′38″W / 35.08417°N 106.64389°W / 35.08417; -106.64389 (Old Albuquerque High School)	1914	Collegiate Gothic	Listed on the State Register in 1977. An important Albuquerque landmark.
Old Main Library		423 Central Ave. NE 35°5′2″N 106°38′33″W / 35.08389°N 106.64250°W / 35.08389; -106.64250 (Old Main Library)	1925	Pueblo Revival	Listed on the State Register in 1975. An important Albuquerque landmark.
F. J. Patchin House		207 High St. NE	1906	Dutch Colonial Revival
Seth House		322 Arno St. SE	c. 1883	Folk Victorian
C. E. Vaughn House		423 Arno St. SE	c. 1900	Queen Anne
William Whitney House		302 Walter St. SE	1907	Neoclassical
Whittlesey House		201 Highland Park Cir. SE 35°4′54″N 106°38′21″W / 35.08167°N 106.63917°W / 35.08167; -106.63917 (Whittlesey House)	1903	Norwegian Vernacular	Listed on the State Register in 1975. An important Albuquerque landmark.