West-Harris House

The West-Harris house is an ell-shaped, two-story, Colonial Revival-style structure with a large attic and a central chimney. It features a full-width, hip-roofed front porch and large Palladian windows on the gable ends of the home.^{[9] : 5}

The original two-room log section (main portion of the single-family dwelling) was built about 1826. It was enlarged about 1895. Additions to the home included a stair hall, a two-story rear kitchen ell, a rear porch, and an attic. Renovations used post-and-beam construction in the original section of the home and wood-frame construction for the additions. The original log exterior was covered in wood siding during renovations and its interior was covered in plaster. The structure rests on a brick foundation and has a shingle roof (original shake shingles were later replaced with asphalt shingles.)^[9] Two rooms of the home retain the original log construction, ca. 1826. Original logs are visible from the basement level of the home.^[7]

The main facade to the south is two-and-a-half stories high. The first floor includes a central door with double-hung sash windows flanking each side. The second-floor sash windows are installed above the first-floor windows. The attic has two dormer windows. The home's corners have simple, classically inspired pilasters that are fluted at the second level. The west facade's notable features include a large Palladian window on the gable end of the main house. The east facade is similar to the west facade with the exception of a large bay window that has been added. The north facade has a centered door on the first floor of the main structure with a window centered above it on the second floor. Its gable end has three windows, one on the first and two on the second floor. A one-story porch, possibly a screened sleeping porch, was removed sometime after 1895.^[9]

The main portion of the home includes two rooms on each floor surrounding a central chimney. A stair hall constructed across the north side of the home provides access on the west end to the kitchen ell and the basement beneath it. A door on the east end of hall leads to a rear porch. The front rooms of the home's main section and two small rooms over the kitchen ell also connect to the stair hall. The second level has two bedrooms, with two bathrooms built at each end of the stair hall. Access to the attic is through pull-down stairs in the hallway.^[10]

The kitchen ell contains a large work area and a small room adjacent to the kitchen on the first floor. The second floor contains two small rooms.^[10]

A one-story rectangular outbuilding that is believed to have served as an ice house and/or summer kitchen is constructed of rubble stone masonry and has a simple gable roof.^[10]

Although moved buildings are not typically eligible for a listing on the National Register of Historic Places, the application made in 1999 requested an exception to be made for this structure. The major reasons cited for the exception request was due to Addison and India Harris's ownership of the home. There are no other extant structures related to them during the time they were most prominent in Indianapolis and the home's move was necessary to protect it from demolition at its original site.^[11] The West-Harris home was listed on the National Register in 1999.^[1]