King House, 333 Dennis Street, Italianate Style, 1865
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King House, 333 Dennis Street
Built in 1865, the King House tells two linked stories: the rise of Adrian during its railroad-era prosperity and the changing architectural tastes of the families who lived there. Its Italianate form, later Classical Revival porch additions, and its well-preserved Victorian interior highlight both the city’s growth and the house’s long community life. The King House at 333 Dennis Street remains one of Adrian’s foremost examples of Italianate architecture. Its square plan, overhanging eaves, and closely spaced brackets all reflect the style, while the frieze board below the brackets adds a distinctive repeating ring design. Most notably, the house still retains its third-floor cupola. Although many Italianate residences once included cupolas, also known as belvederes, few survived, making this feature one of the house’s most important architectural assets. |
The King House features a sumptuous array of motifs in the plaster cornice, including a band of egg and dart, topped by dental molding above and leaf and dart below.
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A plaster center medallion encircles the beautiful chandelier.
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Visitors to the house will see many original and interesting features in the main living room, most distinctively the highly ornate plaster moulding, called a cornice, around the edges of the ceiling. A plaster center medallion encircles the beautiful chandelier. These painstakingly created plaster pieces could be formed on site or constructed in combination with off-site molds. The King House features a sumptuous array of motifs in the plaster cornice, including a band of egg and dart, topped by dental molding above and leaf and dart below. The leaf and dart pattern, featuring repeating water leaves separated by darts, was a favorite of Greek and Roman architecture and was revived in the Renaissance period. The overall effect is a majestic invocation of ancient temple design. The leaves continue in the center medallion, which is in the flowing style of the Renaissance interpretation of the Greek acanthus leaves. In keeping with the intended purpose of the medallion to surround a light fixture, the Lackeys hung a chandelier repurposed from a Chicago hotel. The fireplace and other ornate features complement the design of the interior and testify to the prosperity and artistic sophistication of 19th-century Michigan.
The home’s original owner, William F. King, worked as a jeweler and watchmaker in Adrian during the Victorian era. As a prominent 19th-century businessman, he ranks among the many figures who made the Maple City tick during its golden era. Born in Scotland in 1832, King came directly to Adrian at a friend’s invitation upon moving to the United States in 1856. For his first decade and a half in Adrian he worked as a partner at various jewelry businesses with businessmen such as James J. Newell and James Thompson. He then opened his own jewelry store in 1871, managing it until 1913. Thus, William F. King was associated with the jewelry business in Adrian for 57 years. Like many other wealthy men, King involved himself heavily in the Masonic lodge in Adrian, and served as mayor of Adrian from 1907 to 1908.
William F. King arrived in Adrian at a propitious time; the city was then entering its boom years, thanks to the many railroad lines passing through Adrian. When the Michigan Southern Railroad decided to locate its train car repair and manufacturing shops in Adrian, it provided many new jobs, adding even more to the city’s prosperity. William F. King purchased a lot on Dennis Street for his new home in 1862 for $700. When he built his house three years later in 1865, Adrian was Michigan’s third largest city, with likely over 7,000 people. Along with the King House, many of Adrian’s large-scale Italianate homes were built around this time, such as the Wood House on State Street and the Bidwell mansion on Church Street. Thus, King would have built his house to match the styles then in vogue among the upper-class businessmen of his city.
William King only lived at 333 Dennis for two or three years; by 1868, he had sold the house for $5,000 to James C. Turner and relocated to 503 South Winter Street, where he died in 1919. Since King’s time, the house at 333 Dennis has primarily served as the residence of three prominent families—the Clapps, the Remuses and the Lackeys. Otis A. Clapp and his wife Gertrude bought the King residence in 1880, moving there from the family farm in Raisin Township northwest of Adrian. Clapp, who worked as a stock buyer for much of his life, also held a membership in the local chapter of the Knights Templar, descended from the medieval Christian organization of the same name. Otis lived at 333 Dennis until the death of Gertrude Clapp in 1918, after which he moved back to the farm and passed away a year later.
As a man of means, Otis Clapp was responsible for a major alteration to the appearance of the King House. While the Italianate style had been considered up-to-date in the 1860s, by the late 1890s architects and homeowners began to add classically-themed pillars and columns on a number of older homes in Adrian. In 1905, Clapp updated the exterior architecture of his house on Dennis Street by adding a large wraparound veranda with a roof supported on Tuscan columns. Although most of this porch no longer survives, one can still view portions of it in the side porch and the portico at the front entrance. Thus, the King House illustrates the shift in architectural preferences that took place around the turn of the century, from the older Victorian-era styles such as the Italianate to the Classical and Colonial Revival styles.
Several notable residents have occupied the King House since the time of Otis Clapp. Louis and Rose Remus occupied the King House longer than the Clapps, living there for 41 years from 1919 to 1960, although they did not purchase it until 1925 and likely rented it first. Louis
Remus was another prominent community figure, operating the Adrian Community Market at the corner of College Avenue and Church Street for more than 25 years. Like William King, the Remuses were active in local institutions, including First Baptist Church. Louis belonged to the Madison Grange, while Rose was a lifelong member of the Adrian Women’s Club and the Order of the Eastern Star.
Following the death of Rose Remus in 1958 and Louis Remus in 1960, the King House went through several residents, including the Ludwig Graham family and the Helen Handy family. Abraham Realty bought the house in 1966 and converted it into an apartment complex with several rental units. When current owners Michael and Betsey Lackey purchased the King House around 1989, it was in poor shape. Years of loving restoration work by the Lackeys have transformed it once again into an architectural gem and a showpiece of Adrian’s Dennis and State Streets Historic District.
From the original design features built by William King to the exterior columns added by Otis Clapp and the magnificent interior features restored by Michael and Betsey Lackey, the King House bears the distinctive imprint of each of its notable owners. Its construction, alteration, later deterioration and eventual renovation mirror the history of the town of Adrian with its early prosperity, modernization, decline and historical rebirth.
Essay © Paul Plassman and Tom Crosby 2026
Sources
Adrian Daily Telegram archives
Lenawee Historical Museum archives
King House abstract provided by Betsey Lackey
The home’s original owner, William F. King, worked as a jeweler and watchmaker in Adrian during the Victorian era. As a prominent 19th-century businessman, he ranks among the many figures who made the Maple City tick during its golden era. Born in Scotland in 1832, King came directly to Adrian at a friend’s invitation upon moving to the United States in 1856. For his first decade and a half in Adrian he worked as a partner at various jewelry businesses with businessmen such as James J. Newell and James Thompson. He then opened his own jewelry store in 1871, managing it until 1913. Thus, William F. King was associated with the jewelry business in Adrian for 57 years. Like many other wealthy men, King involved himself heavily in the Masonic lodge in Adrian, and served as mayor of Adrian from 1907 to 1908.
William F. King arrived in Adrian at a propitious time; the city was then entering its boom years, thanks to the many railroad lines passing through Adrian. When the Michigan Southern Railroad decided to locate its train car repair and manufacturing shops in Adrian, it provided many new jobs, adding even more to the city’s prosperity. William F. King purchased a lot on Dennis Street for his new home in 1862 for $700. When he built his house three years later in 1865, Adrian was Michigan’s third largest city, with likely over 7,000 people. Along with the King House, many of Adrian’s large-scale Italianate homes were built around this time, such as the Wood House on State Street and the Bidwell mansion on Church Street. Thus, King would have built his house to match the styles then in vogue among the upper-class businessmen of his city.
William King only lived at 333 Dennis for two or three years; by 1868, he had sold the house for $5,000 to James C. Turner and relocated to 503 South Winter Street, where he died in 1919. Since King’s time, the house at 333 Dennis has primarily served as the residence of three prominent families—the Clapps, the Remuses and the Lackeys. Otis A. Clapp and his wife Gertrude bought the King residence in 1880, moving there from the family farm in Raisin Township northwest of Adrian. Clapp, who worked as a stock buyer for much of his life, also held a membership in the local chapter of the Knights Templar, descended from the medieval Christian organization of the same name. Otis lived at 333 Dennis until the death of Gertrude Clapp in 1918, after which he moved back to the farm and passed away a year later.
As a man of means, Otis Clapp was responsible for a major alteration to the appearance of the King House. While the Italianate style had been considered up-to-date in the 1860s, by the late 1890s architects and homeowners began to add classically-themed pillars and columns on a number of older homes in Adrian. In 1905, Clapp updated the exterior architecture of his house on Dennis Street by adding a large wraparound veranda with a roof supported on Tuscan columns. Although most of this porch no longer survives, one can still view portions of it in the side porch and the portico at the front entrance. Thus, the King House illustrates the shift in architectural preferences that took place around the turn of the century, from the older Victorian-era styles such as the Italianate to the Classical and Colonial Revival styles.
Several notable residents have occupied the King House since the time of Otis Clapp. Louis and Rose Remus occupied the King House longer than the Clapps, living there for 41 years from 1919 to 1960, although they did not purchase it until 1925 and likely rented it first. Louis
Remus was another prominent community figure, operating the Adrian Community Market at the corner of College Avenue and Church Street for more than 25 years. Like William King, the Remuses were active in local institutions, including First Baptist Church. Louis belonged to the Madison Grange, while Rose was a lifelong member of the Adrian Women’s Club and the Order of the Eastern Star.
Following the death of Rose Remus in 1958 and Louis Remus in 1960, the King House went through several residents, including the Ludwig Graham family and the Helen Handy family. Abraham Realty bought the house in 1966 and converted it into an apartment complex with several rental units. When current owners Michael and Betsey Lackey purchased the King House around 1989, it was in poor shape. Years of loving restoration work by the Lackeys have transformed it once again into an architectural gem and a showpiece of Adrian’s Dennis and State Streets Historic District.
From the original design features built by William King to the exterior columns added by Otis Clapp and the magnificent interior features restored by Michael and Betsey Lackey, the King House bears the distinctive imprint of each of its notable owners. Its construction, alteration, later deterioration and eventual renovation mirror the history of the town of Adrian with its early prosperity, modernization, decline and historical rebirth.
Essay © Paul Plassman and Tom Crosby 2026
Sources
Adrian Daily Telegram archives
Lenawee Historical Museum archives
King House abstract provided by Betsey Lackey