Noble–Seymour–Crippen House facts for kids
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Noble–Seymour–Crippen House
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Noble–Seymour–Crippen House
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 Location in Chicago metropolitan area
Location in Illinois
Location in the United States
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| Location | 5622-5624 N. Newark Ave., Chicago, Illinois |
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| Built | 1833 |
| Architectural style | Italianate |
| NRHP reference No. | 00000950 |
Quick facts for kids Significant dates |
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| Added to NRHP | August 10, 2000 |
The Noble–Seymour–Crippen House is a special old house in Chicago. It's located at 5624 North Newark Avenue in the Norwood Park area. The oldest part of this house was built way back in 1833. Many people believe it's the oldest building still standing in Chicago today!
Contents
History of the House
The First Home (1833)
The southern part of the house was first a farmhouse. It was built by Mark Noble Sr., who came from England. This original part was made of wood and was about 25 feet by 30 feet in size.
The main door faced south, towards Talcott Road. It was built with white pine wood on a strong brick foundation. Inside, there was a fireplace in the middle of the building. There was also likely a basement. The house had windows on each side of the main door. There were probably two windows along each of the longer sides too.
New Owners and Big Changes (1868)
In 1868, a man named Thomas Hartley Seymour bought the house. He worked at the Chicago Board of Trade. Mr. Seymour had a large family and many servants. To make more space, he immediately added a new section to the north. This new part was built in the Italianate style.
He also made the older, southern part of the house taller. This allowed him to add a second floor to it. This new second floor also had round, arched windows. A small wooden summer kitchen was added to the south side of the house. The Seymour family used the first floor of the old Noble house as a big dining room. The second floor became living quarters for their servants. To make the old and new parts look good together, a decorative strip called a frieze was added below the roof of the older wing.
Inside the Italianate Addition
The new Italianate part of the house had a common layout for its time. When you entered, there was a hallway on the side with a staircase. This hall led to a parlor (a living room), a library, and a dining room. The dining room was actually the original Noble house.
The second floor of the new section had bedrooms. There was a door connecting these bedrooms to the servants' quarters in the older part of the house. In the 1890s, Mr. Seymour added a wooden porch. This porch stretched from the entrance of the old wing to the entrance of the new Italianate wing. Small covered entrances, called porticoes, were built over each door.
The Crippen Family and Modern Updates (1916)
The Seymour family lived in the house until 1916. Then, they sold it to Stuart and Charlotte Allen Crippen. Charlotte was a concert pianist, and Stuart was an actress.
During the 1920s, the Crippens made some important updates. They added indoor plumbing and electricity to the house. They also put in a second staircase in the older Noble wing. The children and grandchildren of the Crippens later sold the building. In 1987, the Norwood Park Historical Society bought it.
A Landmark for Chicago
The Noble–Seymour–Crippen House is very important to Chicago's history. It was named a Chicago Landmark on May 11, 1988. This means it's a building that Chicago wants to protect because of its special history or design. It was also added to the National Register of Historic Places on August 10, 2000. This is a list of places across the whole country that are important to history.
Since 1998, the building has been home to the Norwood Park Historical Society Museum. It also serves as a community center, where people can learn about local history.
