The Park-to-Park Residential Historic District in

Fort Madison, Iowa Fort Madison is a city and a county seat of Lee County, Iowa, United States along with Keokuk. Of Iowa's 99 counties, Lee County is the only one with two county seats. The population was 10,270 at the time of the 2020 census. Located along the ...

, United States, 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 2014. The

historic district A historic district or heritage district is a section of a city which contains older buildings considered valuable for historical or architectural reasons. In some countries or jurisdictions, historic districts receive legal protection from c ...

is located to the north of the Downtown Commercial Historic District, generally between Central Park on the west and Old Settler's Park on the east. Both parks are

contributing sites In the law regulating historic districts in the United States, a contributing property or contributing resource is any building, object, or structure which adds to the historical integrity or architectural qualities that make the historic distric ...

. For the most part the district is made up of single family homes built in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Some of these homes were built as rental properties, while others became so in later years. The Albright House and the

Chief Justice Joseph M. Beck House Chief Justice Joseph M. Beck House is a historic building located in Fort Madison, Iowa, United States. It was individually listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1984. In 2014 it was included as a contributing property in the Park ...

are

contributing properties In the law regulating historic districts in the United States, a contributing property or contributing resource is any building, object, or structure which adds to the historical integrity or architectural qualities that make the historic distri ...

, and they are also individually listed on the National Register. There are also duplexes and a few small scale apartment buildings in the district. The Historic Park to Park District is a seven-block-long, three block wide section of homes that represent the Gothic, Victorian, and Tudor era. With a rich variety of architectural styles like Gothic Revival, Italianate, Second Empire, Eastlake Stick, Richardson Romanesque, Queen Anne, and Tudor. With two of the six parks within the District. Given its location adjacent to the

central business district A central business district (CBD) is the commercial and business centre of a city. It contains commercial space and offices, and in larger cities will often be described as a financial district. Geographically, it often coincides with the "city ...

there are no historic commercial buildings located in its boundaries. Institutions in the district include buildings erected by local governments and churches. The Lee County Courthouse (1842) and jail (c. 1850) are located across the street from the downtown area. A combination building houses the Fort Madison City Hall and a fire station (1873). The former St. Joseph's Catholic Church complex (various buildings from the 1850s to the 1920s) is located near Old Settler's Park, while St. Mary of the Assumption Catholic Church (1871),

rectory A clergy house is the residence, or former residence, of one or more priests or ministers of religion. Residences of this type can have a variety of names, such as manse, parsonage, rectory or vicarage. Function A clergy house is typically ow ...

(1876) and

convent A convent is a community of monks, nuns, religious brothers or, sisters or priests. Alternatively, ''convent'' means the building used by the community. The word is particularly used in the Catholic Church, Lutheran churches, and the Anglican ...

(1911) are located just west of Central Park. First United Methodist Church is associated with two sets of buildings in the district. Its original church built in 1888 now houses Joy Baptist Church. Their present church building was built in 1923. The present First Christian Church (1958) replaced an earlier church (1903) on the same property. Other denominations are represented by Union Presbyterian Church (1885) and Parsonage (c. 1890), St. John's Evangelical Church (1864) and Parsonage (1893), and St. Luke's Episcopal Church that was built as Hope Episcopal in 1857.

References

Fort Madison, Iowa Historic districts in Lee County, Iowa National Register of Historic Places in Lee County, Iowa Historic districts on the National Register of Historic Places in Iowa {{LeeCountyIA-NRHP-stub