Howard W. Darling Residence
PLAY AUDIOHoward Darling, a pioneer of the Wichita lumber business, built this home in 1906. He introduced cypress lumber to the Wichita market with his Louisiana Red Cypress Company and also organized the Arkansas River Valley Lumber Company. Mr. Darling was very involved in civic functions in Wichita and was a long-time Trustee of Fairmount College (now Wichita State University). Swipe to see interior shots of the home. This property was part of the early development of the College Hill neighborhood and cost $30,000 to build. The entire second floor of the home is finished, appropriately, in cypress wood. You can see that the décor spanned the Victorian, Art Nouveau, and Craftsman styles as the house evolved over time. Currently, the building is now occupied by the non-profit cancer support organization, Victory in the Valley.
St James Episcopal
PLAY AUDIOIn the summer of 1920, the newly formed St. James Episcopal congregation purchased land at Douglas and Circle. Before construction could begin, an injunction was filed against Reverend Otis E. Gray by area homeowners. Fearing it would lower their property value, the homeowners stipulated that the area had to be used for homesteads and was not zoned for a church. The church had difficulty finding a spot that would be agreeable to the College Hill Neighborhood. More than once, they had been thwarted by similar land use arguments. But Reverend Gray promised a "Fine New Building," and the church was officially incorporated in May 1921. Lorentz Schmidt, area architect, designed the plans for this combination of Gothic and Tudor styles, which you can see echoed in his other East Douglas buildings such as Hillcrest Homes and East High.Photo credit: Wichita Beacon, Sunday, December 3, 1922, page B-7
College Hill Neighborhood
PLAY AUDIOAlthough Wichitans initially built their homes in the central part of the city, the College Hill neighborhood became a desired location for prominent homes in the 1880s. Because it was located two miles east of Douglas and Lawrence (now Broadway) and slightly higher elevation, it was protected from floods from the Arkansas River. The neighborhood consisted of approximately a square mile, platted from several farms and was bordered by Hillside, Oliver, Central and Kellogg. Initial plans included a “Central College,” between Fairmount College (now WSU) and Wichita University (located on Lincoln Street; closed in 1893). Central College was never built, but the neighborhood flourished despite this. Now, College Hill has more than a dozen homes on the National Register of Historic Homes, including the Henry J. Allen House designed by Frank Lloyd Wright. What is now College Hill Park was the location of the Wichita Country Club in 1901-1912. It was developed as a park during the Depression. For more information, see collegehillneighborhood.com/history.html
Hillcrest
PLAY AUDIOThe Hillcrest Homes opened to great fanfare in September, 1927. The Wichita Eagle gushed that it was "a marvelous city within a city." It was "the latest, the most modern, the very ultimate in urban housing." The building was organized as a co-operative organization – where those who bought into the building became owners of their units and owned a respective share of the building itself. This new type of housing was being popularized in New York City and Chicago, and was brought to Wichita by land owner Herbert Hoffman and architect Lorentz Schmidt. These new lease-for-life units housed 97 families.Hillcrest was built for $1.2 million dollars, half of which was set aside for stock to prospective owners who would sign a lease for 95 years. By the time construction started, a third of the apartments had already been sold. Amenities included a roof garden, ballroom, lounge, modern garage, flower shop, barber, manicurist, coffee shop, ladies parlor, and children’s playground. It was reported that when Hillcrest opened, it was the largest co-operative apartment building in the world. Over the years, many prominent Wichitans have called Hillcrest home. Its Tudor revival styling, popular in the 1920s, echoes other contemporary buildings that Schmidt designed for this area.
Crown Uptown Theatre
PLAY AUDIOIn 1910, the only business at Douglas and Hillside was Charley Andrews Drug Store and the neighborhood population was about 500. By 1928, the neighborhood had grown to 5,000 and was very trendy.The Uptown Theater opened to great acclaim on July 16, 1928. It seated 1,500 and was designed by Boller Bros. architects from Kansas City in the "atmospheric theater" style popularized in the 1920s. "The theater gives the illusion of a huge garden and a star-sprinkled sky across which float wispy, silver clouds," according to an Eagle-Beacon article. The opening night feature was the first major "talkie" movie from Hollywood, The Jazz Singer, starring Al Jolson. Movies with their own soundtrack were a novelty at the time but quickly caught on as audio equipment improved. The Uptown Theater featured the most modern theater equipment until the 1960s and 1970s. It was sold in 1977, but not before many of its distinguishing architectural features were removed. Ted Morris refurbished the theater for re-opening in 1978. It functioned as a dinner theater for many years until his death, and several owners since then have operated it as a dinner theater.Source: Wichita Eagle-Beacon
The Colors of Carthalite
PLAY AUDIO(Look across the street for this building.)The Cement Stone and Supply Company of Wichita went into business making imitation limestone in the early 1900s. Between 1927 and 1940, they provided a decorative trimming stone, which they dubbed "Carthalite," as a play on the Carthage limestone out of Missouri. It was made by mixing powdered mineral-oxide pigments in with the concrete. Using a mold, they would build colorfully intricate geometrical designs into the façade of several buildings around Wichita. In fact, Wichita is one of the only places you can find Carthalite in the country. One of the best examples of Carthalite can be found at the building on the Northeast corner of Douglas and Hillside. Harry Dockum, pioneer of the local drug-store chain, built Dockum Drug Store Building Number 5 in 1927. The contractor was Robert J. McKee. Other examples of Carthalite in Wichita include North High and the Minisa Bridge, also pictured (buffalo detail). Source: American Bungalow Magazine
White Castle
PLAY AUDIOAmong Wichita's history of entrepreneurship stands White Castle, the world's first hamburger chain. Founded in Wichita in 1916, fry cook Walter Anderson borrowed $80 to open his first hamburger stand at 800 E. Douglas. After expanding to four stands, he partnered with real estate and insurance agent Billy Ingram to build the first stand under the name of White Castle at 110 West 1st St. (now 1st and Broadway) in 1921 for $700. Their iconic white buildings looked like small castles. Their popular hamburgers were small 5-cent sliders, sold singly or according to their singular slogan: Buy em by the Sack. By 1921, there were 8 White Castle stands in Wichita selling about 8,000 hamburgers to 2,000 customers daily. Lloyd Hay later designed modular steel buildings for the chain, the first of which was constructed at Douglas and Hillside in 1928. By 1934, there were 123 White Castles in 16 cities. Billy Ingram bought Anderson's shares in the business and moved it to Columbus, Ohio in 1934. Three White Castles remained in Wichita under the ownership of AJ King for a number of years.
Mueller Flowers
PLAY AUDIO(The building referenced is across the street from you, in the lot where Two Bros. BBQ now stands.)One of Wichitas first florists, Charles Mueller began business in Wichita in 1888. After a dissolved business relationship with the only other florist in town, Charles established the Mueller Floral Company in 1888. When Charles died in 1932, his son Harrie took over and ran the company until his retirement in 1955. In 1961, they moved to 3123 East Douglas as pictured. That building has since been razed. Currently, Muellers is still in business and located at 3555 East Douglas. Charles Mueller was a prominent leader in the community, helping to found the YMCA and later served as the organization's first secretary. He was also a founding member of St. Paul's Methodist Church. After serving on the Board of Education for many years, his legacy lives on as the namesake of Mueller Elementary School. Source: Wichita Eagle
Bellaire Apartments
PLAY AUDIO(Look across the street for this building.)Newly widowed, Mrs. Annetta Skaer built the apartment block you see across the street in 1928-29. Her home in the middle was built in 1919, and she constructed the Bellaire Apartments around the house to both sides, with 18 apartments in each wing. The apartments were open for tours Sunday, March 10, 1929, and featured the latest word in appliances and fittings. Among the notable features of the apartments were new General Electric refrigerators, an uncommon feature of homes at the time – at the start of the 1930s, only 8% of U.S. homes had a mechanical refrigerator! Another modern device provided to tenants was a telephone-activated security system. Visitors could call up to a resident using the house phone system, and from their apartment the resident could unlock the door for them with the press of a button. The apartments remained in the Skaer family until 1977, when the house and complex were sold to Carol and Floyd Thomas. After Floyd's death in 2007, Carol retired and sold the complex to a private individual. Sources: Wichita Eagle & College Hill Commoner
East Douglas Transportation
PLAY AUDIOAccording to the Wichita Beacon, it once took half a day to travel to the College Hill area. In 1928, a long-time resident of the area claimed that the first building near College and Hillside was constructed in 1887. The area really began to boom in the 1920s, with the construction of the Hillcrest Homes and other businesses like the Uptown Theater, many people were drawn to this side of town. What made it all possible? Reliable transportation, such as that provided by streetcars. While some owned horses, buggies, and later motor cars of their own, many others needed a way to get around town. Swipe to see examples of streetcars through the years, many of which passed right along Douglas where you now stand. Horse-drawn cars on dirt streets were mainly from the Wichita & Suburban Railway Company era. Electric tram-style cars came into vogue as electricity went mainstream; notice the aerial connections to electric lines atop some cars. The photo of a couple is dated 1892, and depicts Charles Limbarger and his new wife on their honeymoon trip. The car they're standing on was from the Wichita Electric Street Railway Company, another streetcar company that came to prominence in the early decades of the 20th century.
Watkins Aircraft Company
PLAY AUDIO(Look across the street for this building.)Everett Watkins worked in a blacksmith shop until he was blinded in one eye by a stray ember. He then tried his hand at entrepreneurial ventures such as banking and the aircraft industry. He established the Watkins Aircraft company in 1929 at 2300 E Douglas, the same year as the stock market crash, and the Depression greatly affected his business. Only six planes were built before the company failed, and those were low wing monoplanes called the Skylark. While Watkins was the fifth Wichita-based aviation company to receive an approval certificate from the Department of Commerce, his business ultimately failed due to the effects of the Depression and this building was sold in 1931 to new owners. Of the six Skylarks built by Watkins, one remains and is on display at the Kansas Aviation Museum. Pieces of the plane were discovered in an old boxcar on a farm in Milan, Kansas. With the help of museum volunteers, it was restored more than 80 years after its last flight.
East High School & Roosevelt Intermediate School
PLAY AUDIOOriginally built in 1923, Wichita High School was built on the same campus as the Roosevelt Intermediate School. The first day of school was October 8, 1923, and the initial enrollment was 1,654 students. It was known as the "million dollar high school," a notable sum during that time period! Roosevelt Intermediate School was built using the cornerstones of the original Washington Elementary School, further tying the history of Wichita's schools together. It has been variously known as Roosevelt Intermediate, Roosevelt Junior High, and Roosevelt Middle School through the years. When Wichita North High was finished in 1929, this building became Wichita East High. While it was not the first location of a high school in Wichita, it has been the most enduring.The architect, Lorentz Schmidt, employed the Collegiate Gothic style, with elements drawn from English Tudor and Gothic buildings which were quite popular in the 1920s. In 1976, a library media center and cafeteria was built for the two schools to share, and in 1990 East High took over the Roosevelt building. Swipe to see pictures of 1920s-30s era student life, including a giant ball game for field day and a jalopy that clearly belonged to an East High Ace. Those sassy sayings written all over the car are the predecessor to our modern bumper stickers, proving the lasting power of teen trends through many generations. Common sayings included "chicken – here’s your roost" and "four wheels, no brakes."More about Wichita Public School buildings
