861-863 W. HIGHLAND AVENUE

HISTORIC SIGNIFICANCE

861-863 W. Highland Avenue was built in 1909 for Henry Platt as income property. It was designed by notable Elgin architect William Wright Abell who designed over 100 architecturally significant buildings in Elgin between 1891 and 1915. It was also built by notable contractor Henry Jensen and Sam Smith. Luckily for us, Jensen made incredibly detailed hand-drawn renderings and plans for many of the structures he built beginning in 1898. These are available at the Elgin History Museum as well as scanned on the Illinois Digital Archives. Both buildings are considered significant due to their association with W. W. Abell and Henry Jensen.

ARCHITECTURAL SIGNIFICANCE

This stucco duplex is a pristine example of the Prairie style, which enjoyed popularity from the 1900’s well into the 1920s. The style is defined by a low-pitched hipped roof with wide eaves on a predominantly two-story structure with one-story wings or porches, massive porch supports, and façade detailing emphasizing the horizontal line. In addition to the Prairie style elements, a whimsical element is provided by lion’s head downspout for the porch guttering.

TIMELINE OF PREVIOUS OWNERS