Jennings Apartments

Rising six stories on Cleveland's near west side, this yellow brick apartment house at 2711 West Fourteenth Street was completed in 1898, the date carved into its masonry. Timber supports the floors and roof, and the walls feature wood-framed windows, bay windows on the south side, an arched main entrance and a corbelled parapet. Its plain, functional design reflects the commercial style, a approach more often seen in warehouses and factories. John N. Richardson, a Scottish-born architect who had earlier worked in the prominent Cleveland firm Cudell and Richardson, designed it. The building also marks a change in city living. Before 1900 most Clevelanders lived in private homes, and few apartment houses appeared in the business directory, but by 1910 the listing held 750. This was among the earliest high-rise apartment buildings in Cleveland and has served as an apartment house since it was built. Although worn by deterioration, its architectural details and overall form remain intact.