The John Armstrong House is a private residential structure located at 707 Monroe Street in the city of Lapeer in Lapeer County,

Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...

. It was designated as a Michigan State Historic Site and also added to 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 ...

on July 26, 1985.

Description

Built in 1887–1888, the 2½-story house was built in the architectural mix of Queen Anne and Late Victorian style. The house features an irregular floor plan with a variety of window shapes. It was constructed with a combination of stone, brick, and wood for the various features. The interior design of the structure has remained unchanged since its original construction, including a second floor

cistern A cistern (Middle English ', from Latin ', from ', "box", from Greek ', "basket") is a waterproof receptacle for holding liquids, usually water. Cisterns are often built to catch and store rainwater. Cisterns are distinguished from wells by t ...

. Between 1888 and 1892, a two-story addition was built on the back. In 1917, the

dormer A dormer is a roofed structure, often containing a window, that projects vertically beyond the plane of a pitched roof. A dormer window (also called ''dormer'') is a form of roof window. Dormers are commonly used to increase the usable space ...

on the third floor was removed after a fire. In 1941, the porches were altered, and one was removed.

History

The house was built for prominent local businessman Joseph Armstrong, who moved to the United States from Ireland in 1871. In 1872, he moved to Lapeer in part due to the expanding railroad in the area. He opened a dry goods store that he operated for the next 37 years before retiring. He purchased the site of his home in 1886 and contracted a local carpenter, Robert T. Bacon, to construct the house and other smaller structures on the property within the next two years. Following Joseph Armstrong's death, the property passed to his son, Jay Armstrong. Jay died in 1956. His wife, Evelyn, lived alone in the house until her death in 1981 when the house was sold.

References

{{National Register of Historic Places Houses on the National Register of Historic Places in Michigan Michigan State Historic Sites Houses in Lapeer County, Michigan Houses completed in 1888 Victorian architecture in Michigan Queen Anne architecture in Michigan National Register of Historic Places in Lapeer County, Michigan