The Utah Heritage Foundation's long-anticipated 22nd annual Historic Homes Tour has finally arrived. It takes place next weekend - Saturday and Sunday, May 15 and 16.
This is the only event that allows the public to tour beautifully restored historic homes in Salt Lake City. Each year it attracts architects, interior designers, homeowners, history buffs, antique lovers - and many others.Guided tours will be given in each home. And participants will enjoy a visual smorgasbord of architectural styles, interior designs - and glimpses of a few works in the process of being restored.
In the spotlight this year are 22 homes - 14 in the City Creek neighborhood and seven in the University Area Historic District.
- The City Creek area was designated a historic district in 1978 because it was one of the first areas settled by the Mormon pioneers.
In 1857, the area at the mouth of the canyon was deeded to Brigham Young, who used the creek to power a lumber and flour mill. By the 1860s and 1870s, Young began to sell plats in this area to friends and family members. It soon became the home of many prominent LDS Church leaders.
The residential area contains a variety of architectural styles. Homes built in the 1880s reflect the early Victorian architectural style. Homes built in the 1890s reveal elements of Victorian Italianate and Eastlake Victorian.
Some of the homes built in City Creek Canyon between 1900 and 1910 continued with the Victorian style. But many others were taken from house pattern books. However, between 1910 to the late 1920s, homes were influenced by Tudor Revival and Prairie styles.
The Nelson Beatie house (116 Fourth Ave.) was built in 1926 by a grandson of Brigham Young. This charming one-story English Cottage Revival home is typical of the houses built in Salt Lake City during the late 1920s. The exterior is accentuated by warm red brick and multipaned windows. The front of the home is dominated by the projecting graduated chimney in the center of the gable facade.
Another home featured in this year's tour is the Valentine S. Snow house (282 Canyon Road). Completed in 1905, it's an excellent example of the small pattern-book design popular at the turn of the century. The columned porch contains elements of the Greek Revival style. The home has several roof lines with projected gables.
The William G. Sadleir house (204 Canyon Road) is one of the unique homes in the City Creek Historic District. Italianate in form, it contains a variety of eclectic elements.
This two-story, red-brick home features a wrap-around porch with cornice and frieze. Other interesting architectural features include a sandstone foundation, a stained-glass transom over the picture window and a distinctive pyramid roof.
The City Creek Canyon homes being spotlighted in this year's tour are located at 114 and 116 Fourth Ave.; 204, 217, 218, 231, 233, 236, 248, 278, 282, 288 and 485 N. Canyon Road; and the Meditation Chapel in Memory Grove.
- Architecturally, the University Historic District has excellent examples of popular housing styles from the late 19th century to the mid-20th century. Of the 675 buildings in this district, about 65 percent were built before 1920.
Home building in this area increased considerably shortly after the completion of the transcontinental railroad in 1869.
The largest building boom came at the turn of the century. Between 1900 and 1915, the population in Salt Lake City doubled. Also, the moving of the University of Utah in 1902 to its present location caused an increase of building activity in this area.
Addresses of tour homes in the University District are 123 S. 1200 East; 1172 E., 1211 E., 1257 E., 1260 E. and 1265 E. 100 South; and Deseret Savings Bank House, 67 S. 1200 East.
Tour hours on May 15 and 16 are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tickets cost $14 per person ($12 for UHF members) and are available at the Utah Heritage Foundation office. Two free tickets will be given to anyone making a $25 new-membership contribution during the tour.
A preview gala is set 7-10 p.m. on Friday, May 14. Guests will be served light refreshments, treated to music and a tour of the Meditation Chapel and Ottinger Hall, as well as selected residences. Cost is $20 per person, which includes both the gala and a ticket to the historic homes tour.
Proceeds from this tour make up nearly 12 percent of the UHF's annual operating budget. Founded in 1966, UHF is Utah's only statewide, private, membership-based organization dedicated to identifying and preserving the state's unique historic architectural resources.
For tour tickets and other information, call 533-0858 or stop by the Utah Heritage Foundation headquarters, 355 N. Quince St. (140 West).