Historic Tyler on Tour, 2005
The Edmonds Home
Bonny and Don Edmonds
922 South College
The Edmonds charming English Tudor "Cotswold cottage" has offered many opportunities for preservation and restoration for these "old house junkies." They admired the house for years before purchasing it in 2003. Mr. Edmonds always loved rock homes and both appreciated the Tudor qualities such as the high-pitched roof, half-timber construction and asymmetrical floor plan.
The English Tudor style was particularly popular in the 1920's when the house was built by and for Mr. and Mrs. Allen Campbell between 1928 and 1932. When the Campbells moved to Mineola in 1952, Mr. and Mrs. Will Mann Richardson bought the home where they lived until 1960. Though the Richardsons retained the cottage, it was rented out many times over the next few years. In the 1970's, the Richardson's children re-occupied the home: James first in 1974 and then Trudy in 1976. Ms. Trudy Richardson lived in the home until 2003. She was building a new home in the Azalea District and it was nearly complete. Almost simultaneously, a twenty-ton tree fell on the south side of the cottage. In 2003, complete with the tree through the roof, the Edmonds bought the home.
The floor plan of the house is original with only minor modifications. The entrance hall floor retains its original stone. Similarly, the floor in the living room is the original random plank oak. The walls of the house are early sheetrock that have been beautifully treated by the Edmonds. The wood trim, chair rail, beams and baseboards in the living room and dining are made of cherry wood and are original to the house. At various points in its long life, the cottage has had windows replaced or modified, but the Edmonds have restored them to either casement type windows or diamond paned leaded glass windows.
The Edmonds updated the home and designed a more contemporary kitchen. They reoriented the stairway to the basement, created a new laundry space and carved out a unique kitchen home for their cats. The Edmonds added crown molding throughout the home, replaced tiles on the mantelpiece, added light fixtures and painted all rooms. All of the Edmonds's additions and restorations have been consciously made to be in keeping with the era of the home. The upstairs room, once an isolated space, has been re-worked by removing a wall and adding an open railing. The best view from the house is in this den hideaway, as you can see the Edmonds beautiful garden and the lush gardens of all of their Lindsey/Dobbs neighbors.
The exterior of the home is clad in flagstone from Arkansas. It differs in color and texture from that of the Lindsey creek project executed in iron ore by the WPA in the 1930's. At one point in time, the cottage was lavishly landscaped as evidenced by the many long retaining walls, large trees and garden ornament. Mr. Edmonds has worked tirelessly to restore the garden and has added his own special touches in the process. The new greenhouse filled with his cactus collection and the new water feature by the terrace are evidence of his hard work. At some point in the cottage garden's history, there were two enormous rock picnic tables for outdoor living, but only one survives in the northeast corner. The Garage apartment, now a studio for the talented Mr. Edmonds, was an office for Mr. Campbell.
The Edmonds, long-time lovers of old houses, have brought fresh air to this English cottage. While restoring and maintaining this historical house the Edmonds have created a beautiful, eclectic, cozy home.
The property now has both Tyler Historic Landmark and National Register designation markers.
