24th Street 0324 Site Inventory Form State Inventory No. ® New ❑ Supplemental
State Historical Society of Iowa ❑ Part of a district with known boundaries (enter inventory no.)_
(December 1, 1999) Relationship: ❑ Contributing ❑ Noncontributing
❑ Contributes to a potential district with et unknown boundaries
National Register Status:(any that apply) Listed ❑ De-listed ❑ NHL ❑ DOE
9-Digit SHPO Review& Compliance Number
❑ Non-Extant (enter year)
1. Name of Property
historic name John P. and Lena Biver Cottage
other names/site number
2. Location
street& number 324 24th Street
city or town Dubuque ❑ vicinity, county Dubuque
Legal Description:(If Rural)Township Name Township No. Range No. Section Quarter of Quarter
(If Urban) Subdivision Block(s) _ Lot(s)see below
3. State/Federal Agency Certification [Skip this Section]
4. National Park Service Certification [Skip this Section]
5. Classification
Category of Property(check only one box) Number of Resources within Property
® building(s) If Non-Eligible Property If Eligible Property, enter number of:
❑ district Enter number of: Contributing Noncontributing
❑ site 0 buildings 1 0 buildings
❑ structure _ sites _ _ sites
❑ object _ structures _ _ structures
objects objects
0 Total 1 0 Total
Name of related project report or multiple property study(Enter"N/A"if the property is not part of a multiple property examination).
Title Historical Architectural Data Base Number
6. Function or Use
Historic Functions (Enter categories from instructions) Current Functions (Enter categories from instructions)
01-Domestic-01A Single Dwelling 01-Domestic-01A Single Dwelling
7. Description
Architectural Classification (Enter categories from instructions) Materials (Enter categories from instructions)
9-Other-story-and-a-half gable front cottage foundation Stone
walls
roof Asphalt
other
Narrative Description ( l SEE CONTINUATION SHEETS, WHICH MUST BE COMPLETED)
8. Statement of Significance
Applicable National Register Criteria(Mark"x"representing your opinion of eligibility after applying relevant National Register criteria)
❑ Yes ❑ No ® More Research Recommended A Property is associated with significant events.
❑Yes ❑ No ® More Research Recommended B Property is associated with the lives of significant persons.
❑Yes 0 No ❑ More Research Recommended C Property has distinctive architectural characteristics.
❑ Yes ❑ No 0 More Research Recommended D Property yields significant information in archaeology or history.
County Dubuque Address 324 24th Street Site Number —
City Dubuque District Number —
Criteria Considerations
❑A Owned by a religious institution or used ❑ E A reconstructed building, object, or structure.
for religious purposes. ❑ F A commemorative property.
❑ B Removed from its original location. ❑ G Less than 50 years of age or achieved significance within the past
❑C A birthplace or grave. 50 years.
❑ D A cemetery
Areas of Significance (Enter categories from instructions) Significant Dates
Construction date
_ 1903 ® check if circa or estimated date
Other dates
Significant Person Architect/Builder
(Complete if National Register Criterion B is marked above) Architect
N/A N/A
Builder
Unknown
Narrative Statement of Significance (® SEE CONTINUATION SHEETS, WHICH MUST BE COMPLETED)
9. Major Bibliographical References
Bibliography ®See continuation sheet for citations of the books,articles, and other sources used in preparing this form
10.Geographic Data
UTM References(OPTIONAL)
Zone Easting ;': Northing Zone Easting Northing
1 _ 2
3 4
❑See continuation sheet for additional UTM references or comments
11. Form Prepared By
name/title James E. Jacobsen
organization History Pays! Historic Preservation Consulting Firm date Dec. 11, 2008
street& number 4411 Ingersoll Avenue telephone 515-274-3625
city or town Des Moines state IA zip code 50312
ADDITIONAL DOCUMENTATION (Submit the following items with the completed form)
FOR ALL PROPERTIES
1. Map:showing the property's location in a town/city or township.
2. Site plan:showing position of buildings and structures on the site in relation to public road(s).
3. Photographs: representative black and white photos. If the photos are taken as part of a survey for which the Society is to
be curator of the negatives or color slides, a photo/catalog sheet needs to be included with the negatives/slides and the
following needs to be provided below on this particular inventory site:
Roll/slide sheet# _ Frame/slot# _ Date Taken
Roll/slide sheet# _ Frame/slot# _ Date Taken
Roll/slide sheet# _ Frame/slot# _ Date Taken _
❑ See continuation sheet or attached photo&slide catalog sheet for list of photo roll or slide entries.
❑ Photos/illustrations without negatives are also in this site inventory file.
FOR CERTAIN KINDS OF PROPERTIES, INCLUDE THE FOLLOWING AS WELL
1. Farmstead&District:(List of structures and buildings,known or estimated year built,and contributing or non-contributing status)
2. Barn:
a. A sketch of the frame/truss configuration in the form of drawing a typical middle bent of the barn.
b. A photograph of the loft showing the frame configuration along one side.
c. A sketch floor plan of the interior space arrangements along with the barn's exterior dimensions in feet.
State Historic Preservation Office(SHPO) Use Only Below This Line
Concur with above survey opinion on National Register eligibility:❑ Yes❑ No ❑ More Research Recommended
❑ This is a locally designated property or part of a locally designated district.
Comments:
Evaluated by(name/title): Date:
.._........... . ._
Iowa Department of Cultural Affairs
State Historical Society of Iowa Site Number —
Iowa Site Inventory Form Related District Number _
Continuation Sheet
Page 1
John P. and Lena Biver Cottage Dubuque
Name of Property County
324 24`"Street Dubuque
Address City
7. Narrative Description:
This is a story-and-a-half gable front cottage design. The hip roof continues over the recessed full-
width front porch and there is a hip roofed front dormer. There is an east side three-sided bay (eight
feet in length, and three feet)d a second hip roofed dormer. The rectangular core measures 20 feet
wide and 28 feet in depth. The porch measures 18 feet in width and five feet in depth. A rear addition
is offset to align with the west side wall (15 feet wide, 13 feet deep) and there is a side porch to the
east that squares off that section of the plan (same length, four feet in depth). A rear wing in the
southwest corner measures 10 feet in width and seven feet in depth. A frame garage was already 35
years old as of the early 1950s. There is a full basement with a five-feet high ceiling. A brick chimney
is centered on the ridgeline and plan.
The hip-roofed porch has been enclosed and has an east side entrance. The upper front story has two
separated windows and there is one west side window and a half-sized upper window above it. The
rear wing has a west-facing window. Single upstairs rear windows are on the back of the core house
(east side), and the addition, upstairs west side. A ground level window is also on the addition,east
side and the rear wing has a centered window.
A large side gable pole barn or shop is at the back of this property and is presumably associated with
it. It has a large flat south entry metal canopy and large overhead door. It was used most recently by
"3 in 1 Construction."
Building Permit/Alteration Record
Date Owner Contractor Description/value
June 1, 1957 Henry Fenyon Addn. to garage $50
October 1957 Assessor reports
enlarged garage, from
12 feet by 16 feet, to 21
feet in length
December 5, 1958 Assessor reports new
oil furnace
January 3, 1966 Henry Fenyon Burke Alumatic Co. Re-roof $300, Assessor
notes new roof in Aug.
November 19, 1980 Glen Wersinger S&S Construction Enclose front porch with
windows $926
April 28, 1988 Variance for det. gar.
One foot from east and
south property lines
June 6, 1988 Glen Wersinger Pat Marshall 16 feet by 22 feet
garage, $3,582
August 26, 1988 Clarence Shaffer Steve Schnee Re-roof$5,000
April 21, 1993 Mary Wersinger Disco Bldg. Impvts. Roof and siding, $4,379
September 2, 2000 Assessor reports
bathroom remodel
Iowa Department of Cultural Affairs
State Historical Society of Iowa Site Number —
Iowa Site Inventory Form Related District Number
Continuation Sheet
Page 2
John P. and Lena Biver Cottage Dubuque
Name of Property County
324 24th Street Dubuque
Address City
8. Narrative Statement of Significance:
The Assessor dates this cottage to 1912 and its original address was 107 Sanford Avenue. Mrs.
Elizabeth Biver, a widow, lives at this address as of 1894, which obviously pre-dates this house. Peter
Biver is a carpenter at the CM&St.P. shops. It would appear that the Biver family built this residence
and that it was owner-occupied for most of its history.
The original address apparently was based upon the subdivision number, 107, which was platted
August 16, 1884 (filing date). The east end of a elongated rectangular parcel that paralleled the south
side of Sanford Avenue was made buildable by the selling off of railroad right-of-way in late August
1885. The resulting revised plat was filed only on May 10, 1898, so that date would have allowed for
the construction of this cottage.
John Ulrich was an early owner of the larger parcel and it was he who granted the right-of-way. The
Irma M. Biver Estate owned the property until 1964 but the abstract was not clear as to when the family
acquired the land.
Building Ownership/Occupancy History
Date Occupant Occupation Ownership Notes
1900
1904
1909
1910 John P. and Lena Biver Carp.
CM&St.P.
1913
1915-16
1918
1920 John P. and Madeline Carp. John is aged 49, born in Germany, emigrated
Biver CM&St.P. in 188_, naturalized 1889, Madeline is aged
47, to US in 1903, is a citizen, six children at
home
1925 John P. and Madeline
Biver
1929 John P. and Madeline
Biver
1937 John P. and Madeline
Biver
1941 John P. and Madeline
Biver
1945 Irma Biver
1952 Edward L. Dall
1955 J. Henry Kenyon
1960 J. Henry Kenyon
1964 Irma M. Biver Estate (Augusta B. Kelly) sells
Iowa Department of Cultural Affairs
State Historical Society of Iowa Site Number
—
Iowa Site Inventory Form Related District Number _
Continuation Sheet
Page 3
John P. and Lena Biver Cottage Dubuque
Name of Property County
324 24th Street Dubuque
Address City
property to Joseph Henry and Mary L. Kenyon
June 20, Death of J. H. Kenyon
1973
October Widow Mary L. Kenyon sells prop. to Glen A.
19, 1973 and Mary V. Wersinger. The couple divorce in
1990 and Mary V. Wersinger, who retained the
property, died May 13, 2002
July 15, Court officer deed issued to Lisa Bachhofer,
2002 who marries as L. K. Jaworski, survives a
mortgage foreclosure effort in 2006.
9. Major Bibliographical References:
Atlas of Dubuque County,Iowa. Clinton:Harrison and Warner, 1874
Atlas of Dubuque County,Iowa. Davenport: Iowa Publishing Company, 1906
Atlas of Dubuque Iowa. Peoria:Austin Engineering Company,n.d.
Atlas of Dubuque County,Iowa. Rockford:W.W.Hixson,n.d.
Bee Branch Creek Restoration Alignment Study:Project No. 20959-39471. Dubuque:CDS in association with WHKS&
Company,October 2004
"Birds Eye View of the City of Dubuque Iowa, 1872." Augustus Koch Engraver
Dubuque City Council Minutes,Volumes 29(1899)to 36(1906)
Jacobsen,James E. Dubuque-The Key City: The Architectural And Historical Resources of Dubuque,Iowa, 1837-1955:
Phase IV Edition. Des Moines:History Pays Historic Preservation Consulting Firm,November 24,2003
. Dubuque-The Key City: The Architectural And Historical Resources of Dubuque, Iowa, 1837-1955: Phase I
Historical and Architectural Survey Report. Des Moines:History Pays Historic Preservation Consulting Firm,January 15,
2002
. Dubuque-The Key City: The Architectural And Historical Resources of Dubuque, Iowa, 1837-1955:Phase II
Historical and Architectural Survey Report. Des Moines: History Pays Historic Preservation Consulting Firm,January 15,
2002
. Iowa Historic Site Inventory Form:Rhomberg Avenue and Kniest Street Historic District. _,Des Moines:
History Pays Historic Preservation Consulting Firm,January 15,2002
. Iowa Historic Site Inventory Form:East 22nd Street and Washington Street Historic District. ,Des
Moines:History Pays Historic Preservation Consulting Firm,July 22,2000
Iowa Department of Cultural Affairs
State Historical Society of Iowa Site Number
Iowa Site Inventory Form Related District Number _
Continuation Sheet
Page 4
John P. and Lena Biver Cottage Dubuque
Name of Property County
324 24th Street Dubuque
Address City
Map of the City of Dubuque. Davenport: Iowa Publishing Company, 1906
Newspapers(as cited in the text)
Perspective Map of the City of Dubuque. Milwaukee: American Publishing Company, 1889
Plan of Dubuque,Dubuque County. Chicago: Charles Skober and Company, 1875
Plat Book of Dubuque County,Iowa. Davenport:Northwest Publishing Company, 1892
Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps, Dubuque,Iowa:
1884, 1891, 1901, 1909, 1909/24, 1909/50, 1909/56, 1909/62
11 Additional Documentation:
Legal Description:
Lot 2-1-107 L. H. Langworthy's Addition
Map:
Photographs: