Wood County Home and Infirmary
Also known as: Wood County Historical Museum; Adam Phillips Park
Why it's listed
North of Bowling Green, a cluster of brick and wooden buildings once served as the Wood County poorhouse. The county bought 160 acres in 1867, and the first building, by local builder A. Ordway, opened in December 1868. The main Infirmary grew into a three-wing, 2½-story brick structure, with the west wing showing Italianate details and the central and east wings, built in 1898, designed by Toledo architect Edward O. Fallis. A vernacular Greek Revival lunatic house followed in 1885, along with barns, a power house, an ice house, a laundry and hog houses that made the farm largely self-sufficient. Natural gas was first found in the county on these grounds in 1884. Superintendent Frank Brandeberry built the distinctive glacial stone wall and concrete picket fence around 1920. The institution closed in 1971 and now houses the Wood County Museum within Adam Phillips Park. It is valued as one of few intact examples of Ohio's county home system.
Significance in brief: The nomination argues it is one of few intact examples of the county home system once common across Ohio and was a model institution of its day. The center and east wings were designed by Toledo architect Edward O. Fallis, described as a father of the cottage-system county home. The complex also shows an unusual integration of style and function, and natural gas was first found in Wood County on its grounds in 1884.
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) · National Archives catalog entry. NRHP reference 79001981, listed April 16, 1979. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | N of Bowling Green at 13660 County Home Rd., Bowling Green |
|---|---|
| County | Wood County |
| Listed | April 16, 1979 |
| Reference number | 79001981 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | 1868-present |
| Architect / builder | A. Ordway/E.O. Fallis, in part |
| Architectural style | Italianate influence on the west wing; vernacular Greek Revival for the 1885 lunatic house |
| Areas of significance | Architecture, Social History |
| Level of significance | State |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | The Infirmary was abandoned in 1971 when a new county facility was built. Since 1972 the Park Commission and Historical Society have run it; the Wood County Museum opened in 1975 and part of the grounds is Adam Phillips Park. Condition is listed as good to fair and altered. |
| Acreage | 8.8 |
| Coordinates | 41.35073, -83.61719 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
National Register listing is honorary for a privately owned home: it does not by itself restrict what an owner may do with their own money, and it does not require public access. Restrictions come from local landmark or historic-district ordinances, which are separate (how they differ).
Owner-occupied houses are not eligible for the 20% federal rehabilitation tax credit, which applies to income-producing buildings, but many states offer credits for homeowners. Listing also opens the door to preservation easements and to buying a plaque. Start with what listing means for homeowners, renovating a listed house and selling one.
General information, not legal or tax advice. Rules change; confirm with your State Historic Preservation Office or a qualified adviser.
Sources and further reading
- National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places database (snapshot May 2026), reference 79001981.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q17039816
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.