The E. H. Gibbs House (also known as "The Elms at Ridge Place" and "Griffith Hall"), was built in 1903 in

Oskaloosa, Iowa Oskaloosa is a city in, and the county seat of, Mahaska County, Iowa, United States. In the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, Oskaloosa was a national center of bituminous coal mining. The population was 11,558 in the 2020 U.S. Cens ...

. It was designed by Frank E. Wetherell in

Classical Revival Neoclassical architecture is an architectural style produced by the Neoclassical movement that began in the mid-18th century in Italy and France. It became one of the most prominent architectural styles in the Western world. The prevailing style ...

architecture. It was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

in 1991.

Owner

E. H. Gibbs settled in town in 1869 and became a prominent member of the community. He was a banker, real estate developer, founder of an insurance company, and a developer of a coal mine. He helped to bring the railroad to town, and founded the ''Oskaloosa Times'' and served as its first editor.

Builder

Gibbs hired Oskaloosa architect Wetherell to design the house, which was completed in 1903. It was the third large commission Wetherell had received in a three-year period; the other two being St. James Episcopal Church and the Oskaloosa Public Library. Known contemporaneously as "The Elms at Ridge Place," the two-story brick house replaced a frame house at the same location, which had been the family farm. The E. H. Gibbs house architecture demonstrated Wetherell's continued interest in neoclassical detailing, but was his first executed in brick. Wetherell relocated to

Des Moines, Iowa Des Moines () is the capital and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Iowa. It is also the county seat of Polk County. A small part of the city extends into Warren County. It was incorporated on September 22, 1851, as Fort Des Moines, ...

three years after the house was completed.

Later use

The Gibbs family gave the house to neighboring

William Penn University William Penn University is a private university in Oskaloosa, Iowa. It was founded by members of the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers) in 1873 as Penn College. In 1933, the name was changed to William Penn College, and finally to William Pe ...

, where it was renamed Griffith Hall. It was used for offices and music rooms. The house was listed on the

on December 13, 1991. The building has subsequently been torn down.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gibbs, E. H., House Houses on the National Register of Historic Places in Iowa Neoclassical architecture in Iowa Houses completed in 1903 Houses in Mahaska County, Iowa National Register of Historic Places in Mahaska County, Iowa William Penn University