801 Court Street

Architecture:

Style: Colonial Revival/Romanesque Styles

Description: This is a richly designed brick and shingle example of late Victorian architecture with evidence of the Romanesque style. It is a two-story wood frame structure with brick wall cladding on the first story, wood shingle on the second story, and a cut stone foundation. The roofline is hipped from several directions, has a small flat top, and contains brackets in the eaves. The hipped dormer facing Court Street contains a pair of small two sided bay windows. One story curved bays are located on both east and west sides. The inset porch is supported by brick arches with quoins. Additional decorative features include three unique second story windows, one diamond shaped, the second a small two sided bay, and the third an oblong wagon wheel surrounded by woodwork.

Significant Period:

Construction Date: 1900

Architect/Builder: Unknown

Context: The history of this dwelling is strongly associated with the Lincoln and Lizzie (Northup) Avery family. They were the first owners and lived in the home for forty years. Both were graduates of the University of Michigan and had four children, Florence, Elizabeth, Lincoln, and Alexander. Lincoln Avery was a prominent lawyer. He first practiced in the partnership Avery Brothers & Walsh. In 1892 he was elected to the office of Prosecuting Attorney, then in 1898 to the office of City Attorney of Port Huron, at which time he was also a member of the state board of education. He was the Federal Collector of Customs for the Huron district from 1901 until October 2, 1908. At that time, Lincoln was removed from office by President Roosevelt. Newspaper accounts indicate his subordinate, Charles A. Bailey, was charged with levying political assessments on members of the customs force. A Treasury Department examination subsequently determined the office accounts were in satisfactory order. Lincoln returned to private practice alone. He became chairman of the Truesdell Marble and Granite Company in 1907, after the widow Helen Truesdell (825 Court St.) died in 1906, a post he held until at least 1920. He was elected delegate to the 1912 Republican national convention in Chicago. In 1930 Lincoln joined the partnership Avery and Covington and was Vice President of J. A. Davidson Company. Lincoln was a member of the Grace Episcopal church, a Mason, and Knight Templar.