Pruden-Smith House at 438 Dennis Street in Adrian. It's an 1852 Italianate-style home with an 1895 Eastlake porch. Originally a single-family home, it is now a duplex with the main home on the left and a smaller apartment on the right.
Over its long history, the Pruden-Smith House at 438 Dennis has evolved along with Adrian's changing architectural preferences. Many of Adrian’s historic homes are fine examples of a particular style, be it Gothic Revival, Craftsman or one of several others. Yet rarely does a single Adrian home exemplify two styles in one structure as gracefully as does the Pruden-Smith house. The original, Italianate structure was built in approximately 1852. Then, 43 years later in 1895, parts of the façade were remodeled in a very rococo, Queen Anne style known as Eastlake.
Daniel Crane Pruden, a blacksmith, and his wife married in 1851 and, shortly afterwards, built this home. Maps of Adrian from 1852 already show the structure, pointing to 1851 or 1852 as the likely date of construction. A few years earlier, D. C. Pruden had moved to Adrian just as railroad stops began buoying Adrian’s wealth and opened his blacksmith shop on nearby Winter Street. Judging from the elaborate facade of his home, his business was lucrative.
The Italianate style was popular in the U.S. from the 1840s to the 1880s, taking its cue from Italy’s Renaissance estates as interpreted in 19th century English architecture. In the U.S., Italianate style homes typically feature moderately pitched roofs on square or L-shaped structures. The key feature of the style are elaborately carved brackets under the roofline eaves, and such large telltale brackets remain under the roof of the Pruden-Smith House. An 1852 map of Adrian shows the porch extending halfway across the house on its northerly recessed portion. This original porch, which no longer remains, likely resembled that of its neighbor to the south at 444 Dennis. The porch probably lacked a railing, and the posts were probably square and relatively simple.
D. C. appears to have been something of a gentleman blacksmith, championing the town’s leisure and cultural activities. Throughout the 1870s, the Daily Telegram made several references to D. C.’s enthusiasm for croquet, and he regularly engaged the wealthy Dennis Street denizens in matches, including games with George Larwill, the editor of the Telegram, in doubles with their spouses. There was even talk in the newspapers of starting a more competitive croquet team in Adrian that would challenge teams in neighboring cities. D. C. also regularly appeared on committees for the arts, including sitting on a board for selecting choral groups for competitions. His brother Moses Pruden shared in his brother’s musical patronage. Moses lived on Dennis street and crafted Melodeons, which are portable organ instruments.
By the 1880s, there are scant references to D. C. Pruden. At this point, newspaper articles mention that Pruden was renting some portion of the house as an apartment. By the 1880s he had removed to Toledo, Ohio, where he died in 1888. His widow continued to own the home into the early 1890s. Then, the house appears to have been sold to a series of doctors and dentists in the late 1880s, who possibly utilized the apartment on the north side of the house as their offices.
Daniel Crane Pruden, a blacksmith, and his wife married in 1851 and, shortly afterwards, built this home. Maps of Adrian from 1852 already show the structure, pointing to 1851 or 1852 as the likely date of construction. A few years earlier, D. C. Pruden had moved to Adrian just as railroad stops began buoying Adrian’s wealth and opened his blacksmith shop on nearby Winter Street. Judging from the elaborate facade of his home, his business was lucrative.
The Italianate style was popular in the U.S. from the 1840s to the 1880s, taking its cue from Italy’s Renaissance estates as interpreted in 19th century English architecture. In the U.S., Italianate style homes typically feature moderately pitched roofs on square or L-shaped structures. The key feature of the style are elaborately carved brackets under the roofline eaves, and such large telltale brackets remain under the roof of the Pruden-Smith House. An 1852 map of Adrian shows the porch extending halfway across the house on its northerly recessed portion. This original porch, which no longer remains, likely resembled that of its neighbor to the south at 444 Dennis. The porch probably lacked a railing, and the posts were probably square and relatively simple.
D. C. appears to have been something of a gentleman blacksmith, championing the town’s leisure and cultural activities. Throughout the 1870s, the Daily Telegram made several references to D. C.’s enthusiasm for croquet, and he regularly engaged the wealthy Dennis Street denizens in matches, including games with George Larwill, the editor of the Telegram, in doubles with their spouses. There was even talk in the newspapers of starting a more competitive croquet team in Adrian that would challenge teams in neighboring cities. D. C. also regularly appeared on committees for the arts, including sitting on a board for selecting choral groups for competitions. His brother Moses Pruden shared in his brother’s musical patronage. Moses lived on Dennis street and crafted Melodeons, which are portable organ instruments.
By the 1880s, there are scant references to D. C. Pruden. At this point, newspaper articles mention that Pruden was renting some portion of the house as an apartment. By the 1880s he had removed to Toledo, Ohio, where he died in 1888. His widow continued to own the home into the early 1890s. Then, the house appears to have been sold to a series of doctors and dentists in the late 1880s, who possibly utilized the apartment on the north side of the house as their offices.
The arched double doors reflect the original Italianate style....
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....while the large, rectangular bay with beveled window is part of the Queen Anne renovation.
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By 1895, the house was 40 years old and had become stylistically dated. Adrian had also undergone an industrial boom, first with the presence of the railroad, and then by becoming a technological and manufacturing hub with companies such as Gilliland Electric and Page Woven Wire Fence Company. It was at this point that its new owner, Dr. Denslow, was inspired to remodel the home.
Dr. Denslow was a medical doctor who had recently moved to Adrian. In the Telegram, he advertised the miraculous power of his use of electro-magnetism to cure many ailments (the paper omits any reference to satisfied patients).
Dr. Denslow was a medical doctor who had recently moved to Adrian. In the Telegram, he advertised the miraculous power of his use of electro-magnetism to cure many ailments (the paper omits any reference to satisfied patients).
Directly across the street from the Pruden-Smith, the Presbyterian Parsonage was being constructed in the Queen Anne style under the architectural guidance of C. F. Matthes in 1895. Newspaper articles of the day reported a good deal of local interest in this $10,000 parsonage (a huge sum), and one of its notable features is an elaborate, Eastlake style porch. Dr. Denslow, with clear views of the structure from across the street, seems to have taken a keen interest in the house as well. The Parsonage was finished in early November of 1895, and a few weeks later, the Daily Telegram announced that a large renovation had been completed at the Pruden-Smith House, so much so that it was almost “unrecognizable." The scant weeks between the completion of the Parsonage and the Pruden-Smith renovations likely point to overlapping dates of construction. It is quite possible that passersby on Dennis street in October of 1895 witnessed a contest of dueling Eastlake porches being erected across the street from one another. It would seem that as soon as Dr. Denslow saw the first designs of the Parsonage porch, he began erecting his own not to be outdone!
The Eastlake style of porch now featured on the Pruden-Smith House is a decorative style inspired by Charles Eastlake of the U.K., and his influential 1868 book Hints on Household Taste in Furniture, Upholstery and Other Details. Eastlake opposed the heavy and expensive decorations in baroque furniture of his day, favoring lithe, angled and notched home décor that was meant to be more affordable and easy to clean. American interpreters borrowed Eastlake’s ideas, but industrialized the process for building them and making them even more elaborate. The result included the stick-and-ball details and turned spindles that can be seen on the Pruden-Smith porch. Eastlake himself found the busy decorations used in America to be a bastardization of his recommendations—he called such Americanized Eastlake details "extravagant and bizarre." Today these details are a companion to high Queen Anne architecture, giving the style its captivating appearance.
The wonderful interplay of ornate brackets and Eastlake porch achieves an almost kaleidoscopic effect!
The Pruden-Smith House was acquired by Worthy Smith upon his marriage in 1908. Smith was a businessman from Blissfield and became an executive at the Page Woven Wire Fence Company. Smith participated in much of Adrian’s public life, including serving as Exalted Ruler of the Elks Club. He seems to have formalized the transformation of the home into a duplex.
Today, the Pruden-Smith House remains a happy marriage of Italianate and Eastlake-Queen Anne styles. The elaborate corbels and cross-gabled roof speaks to its origins in the Italianate style. Its porch and bay window on the south side are part of the 1895 Queen Anne renovation. Inside, the same combination of Italianate and Queen Anne repeat. The staircase hall remains Italianate, with an octagonal newel post, curved railings and arched double entry doors. The parlors preserve their late Queen Anne/Classical Revival style, with rectangular pockets doors, dental moldings, and beveled windows. The woodwork throughout is extremely varied; you will find cherry on the staircase, quartersawn sycamore with its gentle flecks in the main parlor, and quarter sawn oak in the second parlor and dining room.
Like Adrian itself, the Pruden-Smith House at 438 Dennis has changed, but the clues of its rich and varied history remain.
Essay © Tom Crosby, 2025
Today, the Pruden-Smith House remains a happy marriage of Italianate and Eastlake-Queen Anne styles. The elaborate corbels and cross-gabled roof speaks to its origins in the Italianate style. Its porch and bay window on the south side are part of the 1895 Queen Anne renovation. Inside, the same combination of Italianate and Queen Anne repeat. The staircase hall remains Italianate, with an octagonal newel post, curved railings and arched double entry doors. The parlors preserve their late Queen Anne/Classical Revival style, with rectangular pockets doors, dental moldings, and beveled windows. The woodwork throughout is extremely varied; you will find cherry on the staircase, quartersawn sycamore with its gentle flecks in the main parlor, and quarter sawn oak in the second parlor and dining room.
Like Adrian itself, the Pruden-Smith House at 438 Dennis has changed, but the clues of its rich and varied history remain.
Essay © Tom Crosby, 2025
