Dixon–Markle House
Encyclopedia
The Dixon–Markle House is located at the corner of East Cooper Avenue and South Aspen Street in Aspen
, Colorado, United States. It is a wood frame
house erected in the 1880s. In 1987 it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places
along with other properties in the city.
It is believed to have been the house of a successful miner during the silver-mining boom years
that established Aspen. A complex application of the Queen Anne
architectural style
, it features an unusual projecting bay on its northeast corner. It has remained relatively intact from the time of its construction.
rising within two blocks to the southwest and south. On the lot's north bound is a small iron fence, with a stone walk leading to the sidewalk.
The building itself is a two-and-a-half-story rectangular structure sided with clapboard
and topped with a wood-shingled
hipped roof
gable
d on the north (front) elevation. That two-bay
facade
has a full-length shed-roofed porch on the ground floor with turned posts, balustrade and a spindled frieze
. At the northeast corner is a square-shaped two-story projecting bay topped with a gabled dormer window.
On the east facade the porch roof is continued with a belt course
of dark wood shingles, flared slightly and set off with molded
surrounds. Near the south end of the facade on the first story is another slight projecting bay with a hipped roof. Its two windows are one-over-one double-hung sash
, like all those on the house. There is a single window above. On the rear the shingled course ends in a steeply pitched pent-roofed porch with similar treatment to the front.
Aspen, Colorado
The City of Aspen is a Home Rule Municipality that is the county seat and the most populous city of Pitkin County, Colorado, United States. The United States Census Bureau estimates that the city population was 5,804 in 2005...
, Colorado, United States. It is a wood frame
Timber framing
Timber framing , or half-timbering, also called in North America "post-and-beam" construction, is the method of creating structures using heavy squared off and carefully fitted and joined timbers with joints secured by large wooden pegs . It is commonplace in large barns...
house erected in the 1880s. In 1987 it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
along with other properties in the city.
It is believed to have been the house of a successful miner during the silver-mining boom years
Colorado Silver Boom
The Colorado Silver Boom was a dramatic expansionist period of silver mining activity in the U.S. state of Colorado in the late 19th century. The boom started in 1879 with the discovery of silver at Leadville...
that established Aspen. A complex application of the Queen Anne
Queen Anne Style architecture
The Queen Anne Style in Britain means either the English Baroque architectural style roughly of the reign of Queen Anne , or a revived form that was popular in the last quarter of the 19th century and the early decades of the 20th century...
architectural style
Architectural style
Architectural styles classify architecture in terms of the use of form, techniques, materials, time period, region and other stylistic influences. It overlaps with, and emerges from the study of the evolution and history of architecture...
, it features an unusual projecting bay on its northeast corner. It has remained relatively intact from the time of its construction.
Building
The house is located on the southwest corner of the intersection, one block west of Rubey Park, which buffers the commercial eastern portion of Aspen from its residential West End. Surrounding buildings are all multiple-unit dwellings. A detached garage faces an unnamed alley connecting South Aspen and South Garmisch streets south of the property. The terrain is level, with the slopes of Aspen MountainAspen Mountain (Colorado)
Aspen Mountain is a mountain in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado in the United States. One of the foothills of the Elk Mountains, it is located just south of the town of Aspen, which is situated at the foot of the mountain at the southeast end of the valley of the Roaring Fork River in Pitkin County...
rising within two blocks to the southwest and south. On the lot's north bound is a small iron fence, with a stone walk leading to the sidewalk.
The building itself is a two-and-a-half-story rectangular structure sided with clapboard
Clapboard (architecture)
Clapboard, also known as bevel siding or lap siding or weather-board , is a board used typically for exterior horizontal siding that has one edge thicker than the other and where the board above laps over the one below...
and topped with a wood-shingled
Wood shingle
Wood shingles are roof shingles made of cut wood, used for roofing material. Such roofing material made from split wood is referred to as "shakes"....
hipped roof
Hip roof
A hip roof, or hipped roof, is a type of roof where all sides slope downwards to the walls, usually with a fairly gentle slope. Thus it is a house with no gables or other vertical sides to the roof. A square hip roof is shaped like a pyramid. Hip roofs on the houses could have two triangular side...
gable
Gable
A gable is the generally triangular portion of a wall between the edges of a sloping roof. The shape of the gable and how it is detailed depends on the structural system being used and aesthetic concerns. Thus the type of roof enclosing the volume dictates the shape of the gable...
d on the north (front) elevation. That two-bay
Bay (architecture)
A bay is a unit of form in architecture. This unit is defined as the zone between the outer edges of an engaged column, pilaster, or post; or within a window frame, doorframe, or vertical 'bas relief' wall form.-Defining elements:...
facade
Facade
A facade or façade is generally one exterior side of a building, usually, but not always, the front. The word comes from the French language, literally meaning "frontage" or "face"....
has a full-length shed-roofed porch on the ground floor with turned posts, balustrade and a spindled frieze
Frieze
thumb|267px|Frieze of the [[Tower of the Winds]], AthensIn architecture the frieze is the wide central section part of an entablature and may be plain in the Ionic or Doric order, or decorated with bas-reliefs. Even when neither columns nor pilasters are expressed, on an astylar wall it lies upon...
. At the northeast corner is a square-shaped two-story projecting bay topped with a gabled dormer window.
On the east facade the porch roof is continued with a belt course
Course (architecture)
A course is a continuous horizontal layer of similarly-sized building material one unit high, usually in a wall. The term is almost always used in conjunction with unit masonry such as brick, cut stone, or concrete masonry units .-Styles:...
of dark wood shingles, flared slightly and set off with molded
Molding (decorative)
Molding or moulding is a strip of material with various profiles used to cover transitions between surfaces or for decoration. It is traditionally made from solid milled wood or plaster but may be made from plastic or reformed wood...
surrounds. Near the south end of the facade on the first story is another slight projecting bay with a hipped roof. Its two windows are one-over-one double-hung sash
Sash window
A sash window or hung sash window is made of one or more movable panels or "sashes" that form a frame to hold panes of glass, which are often separated from other panes by narrow muntins...
, like all those on the house. There is a single window above. On the rear the shingled course ends in a steeply pitched pent-roofed porch with similar treatment to the front.