Edgecliff Area Historic Group
Why it's listed
Overlooking the Ohio River on the southeast side of the former Edgecliff College campus in Cincinnati, this group of stone mansions and outbuildings was built between about 1870 and 1890. Emery Hall, completed in 1881 to designs by Samuel Hannaford, was the home of Thomas and Mary Emery, whose wealth and philanthropy shaped Cincinnati and led Mary Emery to plan the town of Mariemont. Maxwelton was the residence of Lawrence Maxwell, a U.S. Solicitor General and long-time May Festival president, and contains a music room with a water-powered organ. The Ferris House, a carriage house, two greenhouses and the nearby Thomas P. Egan House complete the group. All are built of rockfaced Bedford stone with varied decorative detail, and the interiors of the main houses remain largely unaltered. The Sisters of Mercy began using the Emery and Maxwell estates for the college in 1935.
Machine-generated summary. This summary was generated by a language model from the official nomination document and has not been reviewed line by line by an editor. It may contain errors. Check the source document before relying on any detail. Source: nomination document (PDF) · catalog entry. Generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29).
| Period of significance | 1800-1899 |
|---|---|
| Styles | Victorian, rockfaced Bedford stone construction with some Gothic Revival influence |
| Areas of significance | Architecture, Social History |
| Acreage | 3 |
| Boundary source | NPS cultural-resource GIS polygon |
| Full listing page | Edgecliff Area Historic Group (property record) |
What listing means for this property
This is a historic district. Buildings within its boundary are either contributing (they add to the district's significance) or non-contributing. Owners of contributing income-producing buildings can claim the 20% federal rehabilitation tax credit; homeowners should look at state credits. National Register districts impose no design review by themselves; a local historic district ordinance, if one exists, does (the difference explained).
General information, not legal or tax advice. Rules change; confirm with your State Historic Preservation Office or a qualified adviser.