Title
Ordinance - Third and Final Reading of an Ordinance Approving a Historic Landmark Overlay District Classification for the Ralph S. Man Homestead Located at 604 W. Broad Street; Art Wright, City Historic Preservation Officer, on Behalf of the City of Mansfield, Property Owner (ZC#20-002)
Requested Action
To consider the proposed Historic Landmark Overlay District classification.
Recommendation
The Historic Landmark Commission held a public hearing on February 13, 2020, and voted 7-0 to recommend approval of the request.
The Planning and Zoning Commission held a public hearing on March 16, 2020 and voted 6 to 0 to recommend approval.
Staff recommends approval.
Description/History
The City is requesting a Historic Landmark Overlay District classification for the Ralph S. Man Homestead at 604 W. Broad Street. This designation will allow the Commission to review future exterior alterations to the structure and protect the property’s historic significance.
Approximately 1.433 acres has been set aside for the Homestead. The remaining property belongs to the adjacent City dog park and will be outside of the Historic Overlay District boundary. The property is currently zoned PR and will be used as a museum and education center.
The City purchased the property in 2013, including the Man House, the historic barn and other structures, for a public park. The house was initially constructed by Ralph Sandiford Man, one of the City's founders. As the oldest documented house in Mansfield, and the residence of a person of great importance in the City's history, the R.S. Man House has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Additionally, the Man House is listed as a high priority on the City's Historic Resources Survey.
Due to its importance, the City Council directed that the house be preserved and that restoration efforts be made with a view of converting the house and the original log barn into a museum and education center. Man Homestead will offer visitors an opportunity to learn about early life in Mansfield, from Ralph Man's original log cabin inside the house to the original barn, which was constructed in the fashion of the time.
TMA-CHA Architects and Phoenix 1 Restoration and Construction have developed plans to restore the house to its 1930s appearance. The severely damaged 1946 shed and the 1970s garage and carport, which are non-contributing additions, will be removed. The 1865 wood barn will also be restored. The plan also includes the relocation of two log cabins, one owned by the City and one by the Mansfield Historical Society, to the property.
Historic Details:
The Mansfield Resources Survey Update, 1998, lists the Ralph S. Man Homestead as a High priority. The property is described in the National Register nomination as follows:
Built between ca. 1865 and ca. 1868, the Ralph Man House incorporates a one-room log house into its present l½-story wood and brick form. The house is a good local example of an early dwelling enlarged and remodeled from a frontier cabin into a comfortable upper middle-class residence. Located at the west end of the original town of Mansfield, just outside the original town plat, the house is Mansfield's oldest known surviving building and was constructed by Ralph Sandiford Man, one Mansfield's founders, for himself, his wife Julia and their two children; subsequent interior remodeling and expansions were made between 1870 and the 1930s. The 1½-story wood and brick dwelling faces south onto West Broad Street and is about six blocks west of the historic commercial district of Mansfield. The house incorporates a symmetrical facade with a cross gabled roof pierced by dormer windows on the front facade. A centrally placed entry sheltered by a flat roof porch features a glass and wood door, set within a Greek Revival influenced surround with fixed pane side lights and transom. At the northwest corner (rear) is a ca. 1930 one-story shed roof section containing the service porch and a bathroom. A four space garage/carport added in 1974 is at the northeast (rear) of the house; neither of the rear additions is visible from the street.
Designation Considerations:
The Historic Landmark Overlay District designation should be considered in light of the following:
1. Recognition as a Recorded Texas Historic Landmark, a National Historic Landmark, or entered into the National Register of Historic Places.
The house was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in May, 2003.
2. Embodiment of distinguishing characteristics of an architectural type or specimen.
The Ralph and Julia Man House is an unusual example of a vernacular central hall plan house type in Mansfield. The house also conveys understanding of how Mansfield changed from a frontier settlement to a prosperous farm service community and how the needs of a growing family fostered conversion of a one-room cabin into a substantial middle-class residence. The house also relates the lifestyle and relative wealth and social standing of Ralph Man, and is the only surviving resource associated with Man. The house is worthy of preservation as a local landmark that through its residential function and long association with the Man family documents development patterns in Mansfield and provides interpretation of local social and architectural trends between ca. 1865 and 1906.
3. Identification with a person or persons who significantly contributed to the culture or development of the City.
Ralph Sandiford Man (1825-1906), a South Carolina native who came to Texas in the 1850s, was one of the founders of Mansfield. The town was named for Man and his brother-in-law and business partner Julian Feild. The two men operated a steam-powered grist mill that supplied grain to the Confederacy during the Civil War (1861-1865) and later to U.S. troops at Fort Belknap and Fort Griffin.
Man Homestead Master Plan:
The property is subject to the Man House Master Plan approved by the City Council. The master plan includes the following elements:
Restoration of the Man House and the 1865 barn with crushed granite walkways meeting ADA standards (Nos. 1 and 2 on the map);
Relocation of historic log cabins to the Homestead, with space for other historic structures as approved by the Museum (No. 6 on the map);
An information center and restrooms to be located in the public park adjacent to the Homestead boundary. These structures will not be part of the Historic Landmark Overlay District (Nos. 3 and 4 on the map);
An amphitheater for educational demonstrations and programs, designed to blend with the terrain between the house and the barn (No. 5 on the map);
Removal of the 1946 shed; and
Removal of the 1970s garage and carport.
General Information:
Existing Use: Single-family residence
Proposed Use: Museum
Existing Zoning: SF-7.5/12, Single-Family Residential District
Surrounding Land Use & Zoning:
North - City dog park, PR and SF-12/22
South - Single-family residential, SF-7.5/12
East - Single-family residential, SF-12/22
West - City dog park, PR
Prepared By
Art Wright
Planner II/HPO/Gas Well Coordinator
817-276-4226