{"nrhp_refnum":"82001404","name":"Harper, Rice, House","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"403 E. Washington St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Sandusky","county":"Erie County","state":"OH","lat":41.45685049300005,"lon":-82.70580201299998,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1982-10-20","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Transportation"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A two-story limestone-brick house with stucco finish at 403 E. Washington St. at Franklin St. in Sandusky, Erie County, Ohio, begun about 1849 and enlarged about 1869. It is a vernacular L-plan dwelling built by the Mad River & Lake Erie Railroad.","why_significant":"The house was built by the Mad River & Lake Erie Railroad on land acquired from the original proprietors in 1844. Rice Harper, an important Sandusky figure, added the southwest section about 1869. The Harper family and descendants lived there from 1851 to 1949. Harper led early efforts to beautify the downtown parks and held many public offices over some 50 years.","narrative":"Located on a corner lot at Washington and Franklin Streets in Sandusky, this two-story house of limestone and brick under stucco began as a railroad-built dwelling around 1849. The Mad River & Lake Erie Railroad had acquired the land from the original proprietors in 1844, and the earliest part of the house is now the northeast wing. Rice Harper added the southwest section about 1869. Harper's family and descendants lived here from 1851 to 1949. Harper was a prominent Sandusky resident who led the first efforts to beautify the downtown parks and held many public offices during more than 50 years of local influence. The vernacular L-shaped house has a gable roof with a cut-work bargeboard, a stepped gable on the northeast wing, double eave brackets, two-over-two windows with stone lintels and sills, and a front door with side lights and transom. The 1924 tornado damaged the northeast wing. An iron fence encloses the back yard. The building now contains apartments.","period_of_significance":null,"architect_builder":null,"architectural_style":"Vernacular","criteria":[],"status_note":"Used as apartments; interior condition good and exterior very good. The northeast wing was damaged in the 1924 tornado and altered, and early side porches were removed and the front porch replaced.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:53:14.328408-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_OH/82001404.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/82001404/ebf382021d-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/82001404/ebf382021d-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Nyttend","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Rice_Harper_House.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Nyttend</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Rice_Harper_House.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/71985034","wikipedia":null,"wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q137777000"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/ohio/erie-county/harper-rice-house-82001404/"}