Noble-Seymour-Crippen House
Encyclopedia
The Noble-Seymour-Crippen House, also known as the Norwood Park Historical Society Museum, is a mansion
located at 5624 North Newark Avenue in Chicago
's Norwood Park
community area
. Its southern wing, built in 1833, is widely considered the oldest existing building in Chicago.
The southern wing of the mansion was originally used as a farmhouse
by Mark Noble, Sr., an English immigrant. In 1868, Thomas Hartley Seymour of the Chicago Board of Trade
purchased the house and surrounding land, adding an Italianate style
northern wing to accommodate his large family and their servants. The family lived at the site until 1916, when they sold it to Stuart and Charlotte Allen Crippen, a concert pianist and an actress. During the 1920s, the Crippens installed indoor plumbing and electricity and added a second stairway to the Noble wing. The Crippen children and grandchildren sold the building to the Norwood Park Historical Society in 1987.
The Noble-Seymour-Crippen House received Chicago Landmark
status on May 11, 1988. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places
on August 10, 2000. Since 1998, the building has served as a museum and community center.
Mansion
A mansion is a very large dwelling house. U.S. real estate brokers define a mansion as a dwelling of over . A traditional European mansion was defined as a house which contained a ballroom and tens of bedrooms...
located at 5624 North Newark Avenue in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
's Norwood Park
Norwood Park, Chicago
Norwood Park is one of 77 well-defined Chicago, Illinois community areas. It encompasses the smaller neighborhoods of Big Oaks, Norwood Park East, Norwood Park West, Old Norwood Park, Oriole Park, and Union Ridge....
community area
Community areas of Chicago
Community areas in Chicago refers to the work of the Social Science Research Committee at University of Chicago which has unofficially divided the City of Chicago into 77 community areas. These areas are well-defined and static...
. Its southern wing, built in 1833, is widely considered the oldest existing building in Chicago.
The southern wing of the mansion was originally used as a farmhouse
Farmhouse
Farmhouse is a general term for the main house of a farm. It is a type of building or house which serves a residential purpose in a rural or agricultural setting. Most often, the surrounding environment will be a farm. Many farm houses are shaped like a T...
by Mark Noble, Sr., an English immigrant. In 1868, Thomas Hartley Seymour of the Chicago Board of Trade
Chicago Board of Trade
The Chicago Board of Trade , established in 1848, is the world's oldest futures and options exchange. More than 50 different options and futures contracts are traded by over 3,600 CBOT members through open outcry and eTrading. Volumes at the exchange in 2003 were a record breaking 454 million...
purchased the house and surrounding land, adding an Italianate style
Italianate architecture
The Italianate style of architecture was a distinct 19th-century phase in the history of Classical architecture. In the Italianate style, the models and architectural vocabulary of 16th-century Italian Renaissance architecture, which had served as inspiration for both Palladianism and...
northern wing to accommodate his large family and their servants. The family lived at the site until 1916, when they sold it to Stuart and Charlotte Allen Crippen, a concert pianist and an actress. During the 1920s, the Crippens installed indoor plumbing and electricity and added a second stairway to the Noble wing. The Crippen children and grandchildren sold the building to the Norwood Park Historical Society in 1987.
The Noble-Seymour-Crippen House received Chicago Landmark
Chicago Landmark
Chicago Landmark is a designation of the Mayor of Chicago and the Chicago City Council for historic buildings and other sites in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Listed sites are selected after meeting a combination of criteria, including historical, economic, architectural, artistic, cultural,...
status on May 11, 1988. It was added to 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...
on August 10, 2000. Since 1998, the building has served as a museum and community center.