National Register of Historic Places

Haskell Playhouse

Alton, Madison County, Illinois
Listed
July 29, 1974
Type
Building
Period
Industrial
Ref No.
74000768

About this property

The Haskell Playhouse is a children's playhouse located in Haskell Park in Alton, Illinois. Dr. William Abraham Haskell, a physician and one of the wealthiest residents of Alton, commissioned the playhouse as a present for his daughter Lucy's fifth birthday in 1885. Architect Lucas Pfeiffenberger designed the playhouse in the Queen Anne style. The house's design features a raised front porch with a projecting entrance, diagonal stickwork on the porch and first floor, and fishscale shingles on the second-story gable ends. An ornamental iron fence with a small spire tops the house's hipped roof. Lucy Haskell died of diphtheria four years after her playhouse was built, and by 1916 her mother Florence (Hayner) Haskell was the only surviving Haskell still living in Alton. Florence demolished the family's home that year but kept the playhouse as a memorial to her daughter; she donated the land to the city to serve as a memorial park. The playhouse was added to the National Register of Historic Places on July 30, 1974.

Location

Alton, Madison County, Illinois
38.89893, -90.17588

Categories

ARCHITECTURE
National Register nomination ›
Sources

Property data from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).

Description adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

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Native Heritage
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Settlement
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Nearby Historic Sites

Trumbull, Lyman, House
Industrial
0.1 mi
Middletown Historic District (Boundary Increase)
Listed
0.2 mi
Middletown Historic District
Listed
0.2 mi
Guertler House
Industrial
0.4 mi
Mount Lookout
Industrial
0.6 mi

Nearby Battles

Battle of the Sink Hole
1815Early Republic
2.7 mi

Questions about this property

When was Haskell Playhouse listed on the National Register?

Haskell Playhouse was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on July 29, 1974.

What type of historic resource is Haskell Playhouse?

Haskell Playhouse is classified as a building in the National Register of Historic Places.

What is the period of significance for Haskell Playhouse?

The period of significance for Haskell Playhouse is recorded as the industrial era.

Can I research the history near Haskell Playhouse?

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