Rostad House

The Queen Anne style home built before 1903 on this prestigious corner has long been a West Side neighborhood landmark. Its complex floorplan, varied siding, pedimented entry, and two-story bay are vintage Queen Anne. For more than half a century, Clarence Rostad and his wife, Clara, made their home in the comfortable residence.

They began renting the property from its original owner, C. N. Brown, in 1905. James Conlon, proprietor of the Conlon Mercantile and Rostad’s onetime employer, bought the property in 1914. That same year a defective flue caused a fire on the second story. Rostad was badly singed and very narrowly escaped.

Chemicals used by the fire department caused almost as much damage as the fire itself. After renting the home for fifteen years, the Rostads became its third owners in 1920. Clarence died in 1956, but Clara remained here until 1959. Except for enclosure of the front porch, this family home has changed little since the early 1900s and thus has earned significant status among its West Side neighbors.