{"nrhp_refnum":"97000374","name":"Speaker, Charles, House","other_names":["Schneider, John W., House"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"912 Holgate Ave.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Defiance","county":"Defiance County","state":"OH","lat":41.28267479800007,"lon":-84.37431252799996,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1997-04-25","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A single-family house at 912 Holgate Avenue in Defiance, Ohio, built in 1870 by Charles Speaker. It is a wood-frame Second Empire building on about three-quarters of an acre above the Maumee River.","why_significant":"The nomination argues the house is an early and locally significant example of Second Empire architecture, reflecting Defiance's growing prosperity in the early 1870s. It is one of only five Defiance homes in that style and the most intact. Its mansard roof, bracketed cornice, original openings and interior features are cited.","narrative":"Built in 1870 by Charles Speaker, this wood-frame house at 912 Holgate Avenue in Defiance, Ohio, is a Second Empire residence set on a bluff about 250 feet from the Maumee River. Weatherboard siding, an arched mansard roof with dormers on every side, decorative gable treatments and bracketed eaves define the exterior. Inside, an oak staircase with an octagonal newel post, a pressed tin ceiling, a hand-etched marble mantle, crown moldings and a full basement with coal room and fruit cellar survive. Alterations include an enclosed rear entry in the 1940s, a modified front porch and the loss of a barn, torn down around 1975. The house is recognized for its architecture. It is one of only five Defiance homes in the style and the most intact, and it reflects the city's growth from a canal-era trading town into a manufacturing center after 1860.","period_of_significance":"1870","architect_builder":"Unknown (built in 1870 by Charles Speaker, per narrative)","architectural_style":"Late Victorian: Second Empire","criteria":["C"],"status_note":"Still used as a single dwelling; the interior and original basement plan are described as well preserved, though the rear porch was enclosed in the 1940s and the barn was demolished around 1975.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:52:06.836726-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_OH/97000374.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/97000374/6eaa9772be-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/97000374/6eaa9772be-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Nyttend","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Charles_Speaker_House.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Nyttend</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Charles_Speaker_House.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/71988010","wikipedia":null,"wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q137755869"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/ohio/defiance-county/speaker-charles-house-97000374/"}