Progress! The Beckenbach Residence and St. George's Lithuanian Church

Photograph by Tim Barrett

Almost a year ago, I noticed that the Diocese of Cleveland was selling off a great 5,000 square foot 1870s house and a 1920s church, both sited on a parcel that amounted to almost three acres. In April, I wrote about the church and the house, with a more detailed look into the house in June.

I'd forgotten the matter. Recently, I saw that the property had been sold, in December, for a mere $35,000. This didn't give me much hope - it seemed awfully close to the value of the land less the cost of demolishing the historic house and church. Then I looked deeper, and saw what the new owners, Community Greenhouse Partners, had planned for the site.


Courtesy of Community Greenhouse Partners

Community Greenhouse Partners will be converting the church into offices and greenhouse space. Detailed plans may be found here.

I spoke with Community Greenhouse Partners executive director Timothy Smith, expressing my concerns about the significance of the house. He said,

"We absolutely plan on keeping the house. Our current plans are to keep it mothballed, as it needs significant work, but we're currently considering two plans, both of which involve having groups move into the space and having them rehab it in exchange for rent -- one is an intentional community of college grads doing community outreach, the other is a permaculture education organization."

Thes plans inspire hope in me, and suggest that there are plenty of unconventional uses for a property like this.

Inside the Beckenbach residence

or: The St. George's Lithuanian Church rectory


Photograph by Tim Barrett

A little while ago, I expounded the virtues of one of the properties being offered for sale by the Diocese of Cleveland - St. George's Lithuanian Church and rectory. The property, at 6527 Superior Avenue in Cleveland, consists of 2.75 acre lot with three buildings. The main structure is a 40,000 square foot church and school, built in 1920 to plans by architect J. Ellsworth Potter. There is also a 4+ car garage and a rectory.

The rectory, known as the Beckenbach residence, was built for Henry and Catherine Beckenbach between 1874 and 1881. It remained in their family until it was sold to the Diocese of Cleveland in 1917. The 5,000 square foot house appeared to have good lines. I tried to make the case that I doubted there would ever be another house in the city this old available at this price point with all of the land originally associated with it. Given my use of this exterior photograph, my case may have been less than persuasive.

I assumed that the interior was in decent condition, as it had been in use by the church until recently, but I assumed that it had likely changed considerably over the years. Imagine my surprise when Tim Barrett told me that he had had a chance to see the house last June, before it was boarded up.


Photograph by Tim Barrett

Note the beautiful front door in the first picture. This image illustrates the door as seen from the inside of the house.


Photograph by Tim Barrett

A beautifully detailed railing curves out into the main hallway, leading one up to the second floor.


Photograph by Tim Barrett

This is one of three fireplaces that serve the house. Note the detail in the marble.


Photograph by Tim Barrett

A pair of pocket doors feature a faux walnut burl finish. The dark wood trim, probably walnut, continues through the rest of the house. You might notice a dropped ceiling in this photograph - I suspect that once this is removed, elaborate crown mouldings will be revealed.

Overall, the interior of this house is in much better condition than I might have expected. Get rid of the carpet and the ugly dropped ceilings, add some paint, and the interior of the house might again be stunning.



Yes, the present aesthetics of the exterior of the house do leave a bit to be desired. However, it doesn't appear that much damage was done to the it in the installation of the imitation brick shingles. It should be easy enough to remove, revealing the wood siding underneath. The house would benefit from the removal of the front porch, which was added in the 1910s. The side porches should remain, as they appear original, though the form of the one on the east side may have been changed over time.

Securing the property seems to have been a concern, given the presence of the window bars. My suggestion would be to commission a local artist, perhaps Brinsley Tyrrell to create wrought iron window bars that were more suited to the house.

The Beckenbach residence is directly across the street from what I've called the best frame Italianate house in the city. Look at some of the photographs of that house and imagine what a pair these two could be, telling some small part of the narrative of the history of this neighborhood.

This house and church are still being offered for sale at $175,000. They are both landmarks within this neighborhood that cannot afford to be lost.

St. George's Lithuanian Church or: the Beckenbach residence

The Diocese of Cleveland has closed many churches in the greater Cleveland area in recent years. As you may have heard, they are now listed for sale. One of the more interesting properties, as I see it, is this one, St. George's Lithuanian Church and School, at 6527 Superior Avenue, in Cleveland, Ohio.

For $175,000, you get the church/school, rectory, and a 4+ car garage which sit on a 2.73 acre lot. According to the Cleveland Architects Database, the church was designed by architect J. Ellsworth Potter, in 1920. Potter specialized in churches, and built several in the Cleveland area, including Sacred Heart of Jesus Church on East 71st Street. The website for the church provides some history of the congregation. It indicates that it was the oldest functioning Lithuanian Parish in North America.

The church / school structure features a sanctuary on the upper level and classrooms on the lower levels. It's an interesting building with some nice architectural details, but isn't so ornate that it would be difficult to use for something other than a church. This website has several historical photos of the exterior of the church, including some made during the construction, which might help illustrate the history of this structure.



The rectory, to my eyes, is just as interesting as the church. The Italianate-style structure was built between 1874 and 1881 by Henry and Catherine Beckenbach. It remained in the family until 1917, when it was purchased by the Diocese of Cleveland. It is a wood framed structure with asphalt shingles that resemble brick covering the exterior. It is 4600 square feet, with seven bedrooms.



The front porch, shown in the first photo of the house, was added later, probably in the 1920s. The 1912 Sanborn fire insurance map shows a small porch, about half the width of the front house. This porch would have been of a similar style to that of the side porch. The map also illustrates a two story barn to the rear of the house and a henhouse.



I'm also reasonably confident that the small side porch shown here was originally similar to the one shown in the photo immediately preceding this one. Further, it appears to retain many of the original 2 over 2 windows.



This house has real potential. Look at its neighbor, just across the street for some ideas as to what might this one might look like with a bit of work. This represents a rare opportunity to obtain a house of this age with the full parcel of land that it was originally built on. The house appears to have been used until relatively recently, so is likely in reasonably solid condition. I suspect that the house hasn't been subjected to the numerous renovations over the years that a privately owned house might have had. As such, it should retain quite a bit of historic detail.


View St. George's Church and the Beckenbach residence in a larger map

This map illustrates the property in question and the extant buildings. The church is green, the house yellow, and the garage blue. The biggest problem, as I see it, is creating a plan that allows for practical reuse of both the house and the church. It might be a bit easier with the adjoining parcel on Superior, which is privately owned.

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These are two great properties on a good chunk of land. They're solid structures, each from its own period, with its own stories. The siting of the two isn't exactly sympathetic to each other, but I know that someone out there can come up with a great way to use both of them, together.