{"nrhp_refnum":"84000976","name":"Building at 1505-1509 Oak Avenue","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"1505-1509 Oak Ave.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Evanston","county":"Cook County","state":"IL","lat":42.04541674800004,"lon":-87.68685365299996,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1984-03-15","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Community Planning and Development","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["state"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A red brick and limestone half-courtyard apartment building at 1505-1509 Oak Avenue in Evanston, Cook County, Illinois, built in 1925 and designed by Samuel N. Crowen.","why_significant":"The nomination presents it as the finest of several half-courtyard apartment buildings in Evanston that use Classical motifs. Its clarity, formality and design excellence give it distinction. It also shows the versatility and excellence of architect Samuel Crowen, who designed other Evanston apartment buildings.","narrative":"Built in 1925 on the east side of Oak Avenue in Evanston, this red brick and limestone apartment building follows a half-courtyard plan and draws on Classical design. Its Oak Avenue front is six bays wide, with two-story Corinthian pilasters between floor-to-ceiling French windows in the central four bays. Limestone quoining marks the corners, and limestone bands separate the English basement, the first two stories and the third floor. The central entrance has fluted Corinthian pilasters and a broken pediment around an urn. The courtyard is formal, with entries between brick columns and a wrought iron fence, and the classical facade repeats on the south and west sides of the court. Inside are 21 apartments of one to three bedrooms plus a garden apartment, some with maid's rooms. It was listed as the finest Classical example among Evanston's half-courtyard apartment buildings and as a good illustration of architect Samuel Crowen's skill.","period_of_significance":null,"architect_builder":"Samuel N. Crowen","architectural_style":"Classical (disciplined classicism) half-courtyard apartment building","criteria":[],"status_note":"The building contains 21 one-to-three bedroom apartments plus one garden apartment, with a seven-space garage at the rear.","vacant_flag":null,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:55:35.234933-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/40/8908/28890840/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_IL/84000976.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/84000976/3ee51b73cd-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/84000976/3ee51b73cd-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"Thshriver","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Building_at_1505-1509_Oak_3.JPG\" rel=\"noopener\">Thshriver</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 3.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Building_at_1505-1509_Oak_3.JPG"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/28890840","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Building_at_1505%E2%80%931509_Oak_Avenue","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q96374084"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/illinois/cook-county/building-at-1505-1509-oak-avenue-84000976/"}