Station Agents Cottage  

Station Agent House on Knoll moved to Lake Street

House Under the Pines The oldest house in Culver , "Neighbor" Cromley believes, is the one moved from under the pine trees near the railroad depot.

It was there in the fall of '54, he recalls. "It was the first house I noticed when I came down here," he says. "It was wild here then. That house is the only one left of those that were here in those days."

"Cape" Wiseman lived there as a boy, in the old "pine trees" house.

At the age of ten, Tim Wolfe recollects, he rode a mule past the little old house. "It looked jus about the way it does today," he says. "It was old then, and it was built like an old-time barn, with a heavy hewn frame."

The house, when it stood on its little knoll near the railroad station, was a landmark. And so were the twin pines there. The house stood between or under the big old trees, bath of which are still standing. They are tall ones, and used to dwarf the house, which was built low anyway.

The station agents lived there and W. T. Parish moved the house, reset it, and put a canopy over the front entrance, some time in the period of 1920-25. The back part of the present house, now located on a lot on the east side of Lake Street, is newer than the front, so it appears. The back part was there, however, before the house was moved.

The Arthur Simpson family lived in the house for a while. - One Township Yesterday's - Corwin. If Corwin was correct in that it was where Arthur Simpson lived - the address is 452 Lake Street by the 1930 census - he was listed as a clerk b. 1895 in England and was naturalized in 1905. The house value was listed at $2500 with him was his wife Ruth C. and a daughter Elizabeth.

David Burns in summer of 1984 done his version of this house on the knoll, how accurate it is is known.

Tho the address of 452 lake street does not exist the nearest address is 444 N Lake Street and it is said that part of the house is built of old timber beams suggesting that it could be the 'House under the Pines'.

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1907 - Feb. 10 - Will Remodel Cottage

The Vandalia Railroad will spend upwards of $1,000 this spring in rebuilding the station agents cottage on the lake shore.

The building is one of the first erected here, and has been vacant for nearly a year.

When the work is completed it will be a modern cottage in every respect with additional room, a porch fronting the lake, plumbing, etc. and will make a charming little house for Agent Lennon and his wife.

1917 - Mar 29 - W. T. Parish is the new station agent for Culver. He comes from Rockville, Ind., and is a married man. His family will remove here about May 1, when Mr. Lenon vacates the cottage owned by the railroad company

1917 Apr 25 - Mrs. Parish and 6-year old daughter arrived last week and took possession of the cottage which the Pennsylvania railroad gives to its agent

1923 - Jan. 24 - Removal of Landmark

W. T. Parish has bought the the cottage on the railroad land and will remove it to his lot in the Dillon & Medbourn addition north of the Keen gallery.

It will be remodeled and modernized into a comfortable renting property.

The building was on of the first in the original town, erected about 1866, when there were but eleven houses in side the corportation.

Its first occupant was Dr. Wiseman Sr.

1923 - Mar 7 - Railroad Improvements Among Spring Projects

The ground occupied until recently by the cottage owned by the railraod, near the depot, is being cleared.

1946 - Jan 16 - The second of the two large cedar trees on the depot plaza, both old landmarks, was cut down last week as a safety precaution when it was found that the base of the 100-foot tree was rotten two-thirds of the way through.