{"nrhp_refnum":"75001462","name":"Laundon, Thomas W., House","other_names":["Vair,J. Stuart,House"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"307 West Ave.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Elyria","county":"Lorain County","state":"OH","lat":41.36514093300008,"lon":-82.11072048199998,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1975-10-21","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Commerce","Exploration/Settlement","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A two-story stuccoed masonry house at 307 West Avenue in Elyria, Lorain County, Ohio, in the Tuscan Renaissance Revival style. It has two frame wings, the older dated by tradition to 1837 and the other added between 1905 and 1912.","why_significant":"The house was owned by three important figures in Elyria's history: Heman Ely (the city's founder), merchant Thomas W. Laundon, and utility executive Harrison Williams. It is also a relatively unusual example of the symmetrical Tuscan Renaissance Revival style in northern Ohio, and it is described as a distinct environmental asset in its location.","narrative":"Standing at 307 West Avenue in Elyria, this two-story stuccoed masonry house is built in the Tuscan Renaissance Revival style. The main block has five bays, a hipped roof with an iron railing, a wide bracketed cornice, and an east porch with four round sandstone Tuscan columns. Two frame wings flank the rear: the older one, traditionally dated 1837, and a second added between 1905 and 1912. Heman Ely, founder of Elyria, owned the property at two different periods. Merchant Thomas W. Laundon bought it in 1860 and evidently built the Tuscan portion. Later owners included E. E. Williams, who bought it in 1905, and his son Harrison Williams, a utility executive. The symmetrical, restrained style is described as far less common in Ohio than the Italian Villa. When documented in 1975 the house was vacant, and the last owner's will called for its demolition.","period_of_significance":"1800-1899","architect_builder":null,"architectural_style":"Tuscan Renaissance Revival","criteria":[],"status_note":"In May 1975 the property was vacant, and the last owner's will specified that the house be demolished. A 1985 state letter lists it with a change of ownership, not as demolished.","vacant_flag":true,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:53:09.168557-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_OH/75001462.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/75001462/ebabc5c3d5-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/75001462/ebabc5c3d5-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Nyttend","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Thomas_W._Laundon_House.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Nyttend</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Thomas_W._Laundon_House.jpg"},"district":{"nrhp_refnum":"00001663","name":"Elyria Downtown-West Avenue Historic District","url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/districts/ohio/elyria-downtown-west-avenue-historic-district-00001663/"},"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/71989813","wikipedia":null,"wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q138497178"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/ohio/lorain-county/laundon-thomas-w-house-75001462/"}