Doan House | |
 Front of the house | |
   | |
| Location | 822Fife Avenue,Wilmington,Ohio |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 39°26′40″N83°48′45″W / 39.44444°N 83.81250°W /39.44444; -83.81250 |
| Area | Less than 1 acre (0.40 ha) |
| Built | 1840 (1840) |
| Architect | James Wilson |
| Architectural style | Federal,Italianate |
| NRHP reference No. | 79001792[1] |
| Added to NRHP | June 20, 1979 |
TheDoan House is a historic residence in the city ofWilmington,Ohio,United States. Constructed in the middle of the nineteenth century for a local medical official, it was for many years the home of one of the city's prominent lawyers. The house's prominent location at the city's edge and its distinctive architecture have made it a local landmark, and it has been designated ahistoric site.
The Doan House was constructed in 1840 as the home of James Wilson,[2]: 149 who with his wife Eleanor was the superintendent of the Clinton County Infirmary from 1836 until 1840.[3]: 355 In 1869, the property was purchased byAzariah Doan, a prominent Wilmington lawyer andCivil War veteran. During the time that the Doans owned the house, they modernized it by adding numerousItalianate features to the originalFederal-style components. For much of its history, the Doan House was a prominent travellers' landmark, as it was the city's easternmost house and the first or last portion of the city to be reached by those travelling into or out of the city's eastern side.[2]: 149
Azariah Doan was born at Wilmington in 1824 and distinguished himself in childhood as a diligent student. At the age of twenty-two, he wasadmitted to the bar, and he split the following fifteen years between private practice and service as a deputy clerk andprosecutor forClinton County. Upon the outbreak of the Civil War, he volunteered for military service and was appointed an officer of the79th Ohio Volunteer Infantry,[3]: 575 of which he was thecolonel during the final year of the war.[3]: 118 Upon the conclusion of the war, Doan returned to his native city, where within months he ran successfully as aRepublican for theOhio Senate; following two years of service inColumbus, he returned home and practiced law privately until election as acommon pleas court judge in 1875. In private life, Doan was married for seven years to the former Amanda Stratton, who died of cholera, and later for many years to the former Martha Taylor, who bore him six children. Despite his military service, Doan was a leader in a localMonthly Meeting ofFriends; he was also aMason and a post commander for theGrand Army of the Republic. He died in 1911.[3]: 576
Built on a stonefoundation, the Doan House featuresstuccoed walls and anasbestos roof.[4] Built according to a design by James Wilson,[1] its earliest resident, the house is built in the Federal style. Later modifications included the construction of a thoroughlyItalianate front porch and the installation of a circulardormer window. Today, the latter feature is the house's most distinctive element; it is Wilmington's only residence with a circular dormer window.[2]: 149 Wilmington is not the only city in the region in which such features are rare; a circular dormer window tops the facade of theBarney Kelley House inWashington Court House to the northeast, making it that city's only residence with such a window.[2]: 410
In 1979, the Doan House was listed on theNational Register of Historic Places, qualifying because of its historic architecture and its place as the home of Judge Doan. It was the city's third building to be listed on the National Register; theRombach Place near downtown was listed on the same day, andCollege Hall on theWilmington College campus preceded both buildings by six years.[1]
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