Maple Avenue, east side

Located on the east side of Maple Avenue and shaded by large Maple trees, the Elijah J. Crawford House is surrounded by nineteenth and twentieth century domestic architecture.

  • Record ID: 135
  • Address: Maple Avenue, east side
  • Current Owner: Mielke, Dorence W.
  • Name of Building:
  • Historic Name: Elijah J. Crawford House
  • Download PDF of Original Record

Notable Features

A 1 story addition capped with a shed roof has been added to the rear. A three-sided, hip-roofed bay enhances the rear portion of the south elevation. Windows
vary in size: one-over-one sash are featured on the sunporch and six-over-one sash throughout the rest of the house. The center chimney is constructed of brick.
Outbuildings include a one-car wooden garage and a concrete block garage.

Historical or Architectural Importance

The Elijah Crawford House is a 1 1/2 story, Colonial Revival style structure built in 1926. Its ridge-to-street asphalt-shingled , gambrel roof features a full facade shed
dormer with two sets of six-over-one paired windows. The facade exhibits a full frontal, shed-roofed sunporch with central entrance door. Resting on cut stone foundation, the balloon frame is covered in alumimnn siding.
Elijah J. Crawford (1879-1934), a native of Hudson Falls, New York, and a contractor by trade, erected this building in 1926. He purchased this lot from the First Ecclesiastical Society with the understanding “the grantee will use this lot to erect a house, garage, woodhouse and if desired, a hennery” (DLR 36: 190) . In 1932 the property was sold to the Mielke family, who still retain ownership today.
The Elijah J. Crawford House is a fine example of early-twentieth-century domestic architecture erected after WWI when Durham and the rest of the United States were
experiencing a period of prosperity, resulting in a building boom. The availability of the automobile allowed many Americans to migrate to the country, suburbia, and
small towns like Durham where they built new homes using traditional colonial styles.