The Broadmoors Walking Tour

In 1923, the James-Bauer Realty Company positioned Broadmoor as direct competition to the rapidly growing Ridgewood neighborhood. They engaged Cleveland landscape architect Louis Brandt to develop the plan, which called for 107 lots facing one of two boulevards. A walking tour guided by Paul and Merideth Pitts will be held on Saturday, July 20, 2024 in the area known as the Broadmoors, just off Fountain Boulevard, where many families built English style homes within the first few years of neighborhood’s development. Tickets for this event have sold out. To stay abreast of future events visit Upcoming Events | The Westcott House 
 
Hub Springfield: Were any of the design elements of the Broadmoor influenced by what was already at Ridgewood? 
 
Kevin Rose: The Ridgewood development had a profound influence on future real estate developments in Springfield, although the architectural styles are really being set by individual architects and builders. Architects like William K. Shilling, and builders like Tom McDonnell and Graham Woodhouse were often designing and constructing houses in both developments simultaneously. 
  
Hub Springfield: Did Brandt's design help inspire the English style homes which were part of its early development? 
 
Kevin Rose: The trend of the English cottage was sweeping across the country in the 1920s, which was likely a result of American’s deep interest in Western Europe during World War I. While the concept of design review did not yet exist, Walter Bauer knew that the development’s early houses would set the tone. As such, he hired architects like William K. Shilling to design quant houses in what they called the English style, and even created their own construction firm to ensure that they would have full control over the design and quality of key houses in the neighborhood. 
  
Hub Springfield: Did the Broadmoors influence adjacent parts of Springfield?  
 
Kevin Rose: Yes and no. Walter Bauer was a leading developer in the 1920s, and his work had a significant impact on the feel and makeup of the city both in his era and for future generations. Not all of this was positive. Bauer legally segregated many of his neighborhoods and the effects of these policies are still being felt in the community today. 
 
Kevin Rose is a historian, curator, and community advocate in Springfield, Ohio. He has served for the past twenty years as Historian at the Turner Foundation, a family foundation focused on the revitalization of one of America’s hardest urban centers. Rose oversees the foundation’s work in historic preservation, cultural tourism, and creative placemaking. Rose has researched and written over forty tours himself, from bicycle tours of Yellow Springs’ modern architecture to poetry walks for children. In 2014, Kevin and his wife Marta Wojcik founded the Westcott Center for Architecture + Design as a regional resource for placemaking strategies.