Walnut Park Historic District facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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Walnut Park Historic District
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Walnut Park, looking northwest toward Walnut Place
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 Location in New York
Location in the United States
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| Location | Walnut Pl. and Walnut Ave., Syracuse, New York |
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| Architect | Multiple |
| Architectural style | Colonial Revival, Late 19th And 20th Century Revivals, Georgian Revival |
| NRHP reference No. | 83001755 |
| Added to NRHP | September 15, 1983 |
The Walnut Park Historic District is a special area in Syracuse, New York. It's right next to the Syracuse University campus. This district was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1983. This means it's an important place with a lot of history.
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Discover Walnut Park
The land for Walnut Park was given to the city in 1870. This gift came from a well-known person named George F. Comstock. Walnut Park is a long park, stretching for three city blocks.
On its west side, you'll find Walnut Place. Walnut Avenue borders the park on its east side. Streets like Harrison, Adams, Marshall, and Waverly Avenue cross the park from north to south.
The park first had many shade trees. But in the 1950s, a sickness called Dutch Elm disease destroyed them. New trees were planted in 1972. These trees have grown big now. They help the park feel like it did a long time ago.
How the Neighborhood Began
The area around Walnut Park was first built by some of Syracuse's most important families. George Comstock, who gave the land for the park, was a community leader and banker. He was very careful about who he sold building lots to.
Famous Homes and Their Stories
The house at 304 Walnut Place was built in 1899. It belonged to George H. Bond. He was a district attorney and started a law firm that still exists today. The house mixes styles, showing both the Queen Anne and Georgian Revival designs. Syracuse University later owned it. It is now home to the Alpha Tau Omega fraternity.
The house at 701 Walnut Place is now the Chancellor's residence for Syracuse University. It was built in 1901 for a lawyer named William Nottingham. Architects from New York City designed this house in the Jacobethan Revival style. Inside, the library walls are covered in leather. The living room ceiling has cool Gothic designs. A fancy carved staircase leads upstairs. There's even a ballroom on the third floor!
Next door, at 703 Walnut Avenue, is a large, castle-like house. It was built in 1905 for Horace Wilkinson. He was the owner of Crucible Steel. The inside has amazing wooden details. Former U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt once stayed here for a month. This house was home to the Phi Delta Theta Fraternity for many years. Now, it belongs to the Delta Kappa Epsilon Fraternity. Famous TV personality Dick Clark was a member of this fraternity.
Other important people from Syracuse also built homes here. These included the Reverend Huntington, A. E. Nettleton (who owned a shoe company), and the Denison family.
Fraternity and Sorority Row
In 1915, the Alpha Phi sorority bought a house at 308 Walnut Place. Around 1921, several other houses became homes for sororities or fraternities. This included houses at 208 and 210 Walnut Place, and 901 Walnut Avenue.
In 1923, the Delta Delta Delta sorority bought the house at 300 Walnut Place. The Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity had their house built at 310 Walnut Place around 1925. The Gamma Phi Beta sorority moved into 803 Walnut Avenue. In 1928, the Kappa Alpha Theta sorority had a local architect design their Tudor-style house at 306 Walnut Place.
By 1937, the house at 907 Walnut Avenue became the Kappa Delta sorority house. Over the years, more fraternities and sororities moved in. This made the area famous as Syracuse University's "Fraternity/Sorority Row."
The Walnut Park Block Party
Walnut Park used to be the place for Syracuse University's "block party." This was a big event to celebrate spring. It featured live music and entertainment outdoors.
However, in 1993, there were worries about too many people and too much drinking. So, the university moved the party. It now takes place indoors, where it's easier to manage.
Walnut Park Historic District Contributing Properties
| Landmark name | Image | Date Built | Style | Location | Description | |
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| 1 | Syracuse University; "Cultural Center" |  |
c. 1900 | Georgian Revival | 104 Walnut Place | 2.5 stories; tan brick; shingled dormer; hip roof; interior lion's head molding; oak woodwork; now a vacant lot |
| 2 | Syracuse University; "Counseling Center" |  |
c. 1900 | Georgian Revival | 200 Walnut Place | 2.5 stories; clapboard siding; three dormers; steep hip roof; interior oak woodwork; fraternity since 1970; at time of listing known as Kappa Phi Delta fraternity |
| 3 | Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity |  |
c. 1900 | Georgian Revival | 206 Walnut Place | 2.5 stories; brick; open porch; Doric columns; dormer; hip roof; at listing known as Syracuse University: "Erie Cottage" |
| 4 | Alpha Epsilon Pi fraternity |  |
c. 1900 | Colonial Revival | 208 Walnut Place | 2.5 stories; steep hip roof; Keck stained glass; renovated c. 1930; at listing known as Beta Theta Pi fraternity |
| 5 | Phi Delta Theta fraternity |  |
c. 1897 | Georgian Revival | 210 Walnut Place | 2.5 stories; brick; hip roof; renovated c. 1920; originally residence of Bishop Huntington. Had been Pi Beta Phi chapter house. |
| 6 | Delta Delta Delta sorority |  |
1903 | 300 Walnut Place | 3 stories; tan brick; low hip roof; originally Denison family house | |
| 7 | Alpha Tau Omega fraternity |  |
1899 | Queen Anne/Georgian Revival | 304 Walnut Place | 2.5 stories; clapboard and shingle; gable roof; originally George Bond residence; at listing known as Syracuse University: "Blackwell Cottage" |
| 8 | Kappa Alpha Theta sorority |  |
1928 | Tudor Revival | 306 Walnut Place | 2.5 stories; brick and stucco; gable roof; designed by Marjorie Wright |
| 9 | Alpha Phi sorority |  |
1898 | Colonial Revival | 308 Walnut Place | 3 stories; brick and shingle; Flemish gable roof; stained glass windows; designed by J&R Lamb |
| 10 | Syracuse University: "Slutzker Center for International Services" |  |
c. 1925 | Georgian Revival | 310 Walnut Place | 2.5 stories; Flemish bond brick; originally Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity house; at listing known as "Student Government Building" |
| 11 | Syracuse University: "Chancellor's Residence" |  |
1901 | Jacobethan Revival | 701 Walnut Avenue | 2.5 stories; brick and stone; interior Gothic tracery ceiling and leather lined library walls |
| 12 | Delta Kappa Epsilon fraternity |  |
1903 | Chateauesque | 703 Walnut Avenue | 3 stories; stone; steep gable roof; parapet; battlements; turret; porte-cochere; originally belonged to Horace Wilkinson; residence of Phi Delta Theta fraternity until early 1992; at listing known as Delta Kappa Epsilon fraternity |
| 13 | Delta Phi Epsilon sorority |  |
1905 | 705 Walnut Avenue | 2 stories; tan brick; red hip roof; stained glass windows; porte-cochere; originally owned by A.E. Nettleton | |
| 14 | Delta Tau Delta fraternity |  |
c. 1915 | Second Empire | 801 Walnut Avenue | 2 stories; tan brick |
| 15 | Gamma Phi Beta sorority |  |
c. 1930 | Colonial Revival | 803 Walnut Avenue | 2.5 stories; Flemish bond brick |
| 16 | Delta Gamma sorority |  |
1907 | Tudor Revival | 901 Walnut Avenue | 2.5 stories; gable roof |
| 17 | Tau Epsilon Phi fraternity | 1900 | Tudor Revival | Walnut Avenue | 2.5 stories; shingled siding; turret; gable roof |
