Park, S., 628: R. Dexter Walker House

Location: 628 S. Park, Kalamazoo
Survey ID: R-43
Designation: R. Dexter Walker House
Date: 1857
Style: Greek Revival

The following material is from the 1973 Initial Inventory of Historic Sites and Buildings in Kalamazoo and was made available for use here by the Historic Preservation Coordinator of the City of Kalamazoo. See Introduction to an Initial Inventory for details about how the survey was conducted.

This fine example of the “Greek Revival” temple retains a great deal of its original appearance. Its present condition is a testimony to the skill of its builder, a young Canadian brick maker, Richard Dexter Walker. Walker bought his lot in the old Kalamazoo Literary Institute addition and began to make bricks from the clay he dug from his cellar. The bricks went into the walls of his home, and by the Spring of 1858, the local tax assessor added “Brick house” to the description of the lot–a designation rarely used in the records of the 1850’s. The 1860 Census-taker recorded Walker as 27 years old, and gave him an estate of $5,000. His wife, Phoebe, and four young children lived with him.

The house itself is somewhat narrower than many of the Greek “temples” built around the country in the middle of the 19th century. Still, its roof pitch and the symmetrical rows of windows hint at the lines and the columns of the temple prototype.

Maps:

1853 – nothing
1861 – house

Kalamazoo Tax Records:

U. S. Population Census Rolls:

1860 Dexter Walker, 27, brick maker, 4,000 real, 1,000 personal, b. Canada, Phoebe Walker, 26, b. NY; 4 children, 6, 4, 2, and 3 months.

Kalamazoo Gazette December 2, 1962 “Kalamazoo Landmarks”

Kalamazoo City Directory:

This report was converted from a typewritten document to a digital text document in September 2004. Other than punctuation and spelling corrections, and the addition of BOLD type site address and names, no changes were made. Minor formatting changes were made for use on this website, but the text was not altered. Original survey dated 1973.