Main Street 1640
Site Inventory Form
State Inventory No. 31-02240
New Supplemental
State Historical Society of Iowa
Part of a district with known boundaries (enter inventory no.)
Relationship:ContributingNoncontributing
(December 1, 1999)
Contributes to a potential district with yet 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 Frank M Robinson House
other names/site number Robinson-Lacy House
2. Location
street & number 1640 Main
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 Number of Resources within Property
(Check only one box)
building(s) If Non-Eligible Property If Eligible Property, enter number of:
district Enter number of: Contributing Noncontributing
site 0 buildings 2 0 buildings
structure sites sites
object structures structures
objects objects
0 Total 2 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
The Architectural and Historical Resources of Dubuque, 1833-1955N/A
6. Function or Use
Historic Functions Current Functions
(Enter categories from instructions)(Enter categories from instructions)
01-Domestic/01A01single dwelling residence 7-Funerary/07C02-Funeral Home
7. Description
Architectural Classification Materials
(Enter categories from instructions)(Enter categories from instructions)
nd
05-Late Victorian/05C-2 Empire foundation Stone
walls brick
roof Asphalt
other
Narrative Description
( 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 No More Research Recommended C
Property has distinctive architectural characteristics.
Yes No More Research Recommended D
Property yields significant information in archaeology or history.
31-02240
Dubuque1640 Main
County Address Site Number
Dubuque
City 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 Significant Dates
(Enter categories from instructions)
Construction date
Architecture1878
check if circa or estimated date
Other dates
Significant Person Architect/Builder
(Complete if National Register Criterion B is marked above)
Architect
N/A Unknown
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 June 15, 2004
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 # 7464 Frame/slot # 36 Date Taken Sept. 2003
Roll/slide sheet # Frame/slot # Date Taken
Roll/slide sheet # Frame/slot # Date Taken
photo & slide catalog sheet
See continuation sheet or attached 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
31-02240
Site Number
Iowa Site Inventory Form
Related District Number
Continuation Sheet
Page 1
Frank M Robinson House Dubuque
Name of Property County
1640 Main Dubuque
Address City
7. Narrative Description:
This property is located in the Jackson Park Historic District. Style/Year: 1878, Second Empire style
(true mansard roof with dormers, oculus windows, metal cresting).
Designer/Builder: Fridolin Heer, architect.
Physical Description: two-story brick irregular plan with elongated rectangular core, west three-sided
bay (right half of façade), and broad north side wing, all capped by a broad and distinctive pressed
metal frieze and bracketed cornice. The attic dormers are of note because the dormer bases are
recessed into the mansard roof plane while the upper portions project vertically and have broken
pediment caps. The brickwork is very plain with no embellishments. The lintels are likely cast given
their complexity, with circular motifs, sills and spring stones. It is indeed probable that the sills and
lintels are cast iron, the sills being extraordinary given the use of upper and lower brackets. What is
likely the original porch retains its balustrades, square pillars, decorative trim work and most important,
an elaborate separate cresting frame that sits atop the porch. Raised stone foundation and water table.
The house orients to the park to the south and maps show both a bay/wing and a rounded southeast
corner porch on that side of the plan. The stone foundation contains 10,000 cubic feet of stone and the
brick walls are 26 inches thick and include a four-inch wide void or airspace. The Mahogany and
walnut woodwork was carved/ milled in Boston. The house has duplicate hot air and steam heating
systems.
Alterations: pre-1940 funeral home single story side addition to the north, including a two-car porte
cochere, parapet front, stucco exterior. The addition continues the same water table line across its
front. At least one north side window was infilled and apparently a number of others were reshaped
and shortened. Permits note re-roofing in 1998, conversion of dwelling into a mortuary 1939 ($20,000),
south side handicap ramp 1987.
Landscaping/Setting: the house was originally on a large lot and the addition infilled that open space,
the lot occupies the north end of the same block in which Jackson Park is located, the house fronts
west. Garage on east end of lot.
8. Narrative Statement of Significance:
Special Significance; Frank M. Robinson house-Sommer termed this the Lacey House.
Known as the Robinson-Lacey House
Original Owner/Builder: Frank Robinson, “handsome brick dwelling…Main near Jackson Park…modern
improvements, elegantly finished, $6,000” (Herald, January 3, 1879). The Times placed the house on
th
Main at the corner of 17, a brick house costing $25,000 (Times, December 11, 1878). The excavation
work for the cellar for the house started in mid-May 1878, described as “Frank Robison’s new residence
north of Jackson Park” (Herald, May 12, 1878).
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Frank M Robinson House Dubuque
Name of Property County
1640 Main Dubuque
Address City
Building History: The Jackson Park Walking Tour confirms the building date and Robinson connection.
Judge Benjamin Lacey, son-in-law of Robinson, was a later occupant. Hoffman Mortuary bought the
house in 1936.
The area is not mapped in 1884, house not present on 1872 birds eye view. John Vachon
photographed the addition in April 1940. No sewer data found.
9. Major Bibliographical References:
Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps, 1884, 1891, 1909/36
Dubuque City Directories, 1902, 1915, 1925, 1934
Bruce Kriviskey, Dubuque, Iowa--Architectural Survey 1978/1979, Atlas of City Wide and District
Survey Maps, Dubuque; n.p., c.1979
Dubuque County Assessor’s Data
Newspapers and other primary sources as noted in the text above.
Historical photographs, Center For Dubuque History, Loras College
10. Additional Documentation:
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