Stickley House fundraiser Aug. 28
The former home of Gustav Stickley has a new lease on life as the non-profit group University Neighborhood Preservation Association (UNPA) begins restoration of this historic structure. The house at 438 Columbus Avenue in Syracuse, which has been owned by the L. & J.G. Stickley Co. since 1996, was formally donated to UNPA earlier this month. The gift is part of a long-range plan to restore and preserve the legacy of Gustav Stickley, the American Arts and Crafts movement, and highlight the importance Central New York has played in the design and manufacture of quality furnishings.
Last week, the new non-profit Gustav Stickley House Foundation, Inc. , headed by David Rudd was established to aid in the restoration, preservation and interpretation of the home and will principally function as a fundraising body to benefit the historic house. Architectural plans for the restoration are being prepared by Crawford & Stearns, Architects and Preservation Planners, of Syracuse. Their extensive research has helped provide significant information for masonry and roofing repair, window and trim preservation, and reconstruction of the original front porch. The first phase of the project has already received considerable grant money from the State Office of Parks, Recreation & Historic Preservation and the State Division of Housing and Community Renewal as well as several smaller donations from local foundations. These contributions will help ensure the historic integrity of the home. A significant amount of additional money still needs to be raised to complete the project in its entirety. Ultimately, the Onondaga Historical Association will take over management of the building and complete the final interior phase of restoration. Completion of the project is anticipated to occur in 2019.
Gustav Stickley (1858-1942) established his furniture factory by 1900 in the Syracuse suburb of Eastwood. His sturdy and unadorned Craftsman oak furniture was so successful that Stickley moved his corporate office to New York City in 1905. Shortly after his family relocated to Craftsman Farms in Morris Plains, New Jersey. While Gustav was an incredibly gifted entrepreneur, he was unable to change with the times and forced to file for bankruptcy in 1915. Gustav returned to his Syracuse home on Columbus Avenue that was sold to his daughter Barbara Stickley Wiles in 1919. He continued to live there until his death in 1942. The Wiles family sold the house in the 1950s and it was subdivided into five apartments. In 1996 the L. & J.G. Stickley Company purchased the home to save the interiors form being dismantled.
The late Queen Anne style home was originally purchased by Stickley in 1900 for his family residence. Following a fire on Christmas Eve 1901, Stickley redesigned the First and Second floors with the first-ever Craftsman interior. The house is an icon of American architecture and illustrates the shift in the aesthetic from the 19th century Victorian style to a more modern sensibility. While changes to the structure have occurred over the years, the house contains the relatively intact original Arts & Crafts interior from 1902. The house is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and is designate as a Protected Site under the Syracuse local preservation law.
The Gustav Stickley House Foundation will hold its first official fundraising event on August 28th at another Stickley-related property in Skaneateles, NY.