Building date: 1850's
Original use:
Corner structures: Limestone quoins
Mortar application and content:
Types and uses of stones:
Types and choice of windows:
Structures with similar masonry details:
Masons who worked on building:
Unique features:
Map views courtesy Google Maps. Address is Google Earth confirmed; 42°02'14.18"N 88°17'27.16"W. Current owner of record, Alvarado as of the 2019 Tax Roll.
Township of Elgin and Kane County Maps.
The Greek revival style structure was built in the 1850's for Edson A. Kimball (1820-1899), a cousin of Samuel and William Kimball, who were among the first settlers of Elgin.
The cobblestone house 328 Mountain Street in Elgin, Ill. was named the top Elgin Landmark by the Elgin Bicentennial Commission in 1975. The home is located at the highest point on the west side of the river, hence the name of the street, "Mountain". It was built in the 1850’s for Edson A. Kimball, a cousin of Samuel and William Kimball, who were among the first settlers of Elgin. Edson was born on July 3, 1820 in Vermont and married Ellen M. Willard who was born in 1824 in Canada. Edson ran a hardware store at the southeast corner of Chicago and State Street. Edson was also a member of the first city council in 1854.
The Willards had three children: Leonidas, Royal and Luella. Ellen died at the age of 38 on August 9, 1862. Edson remarried two years later. They had one daughter, Carrie, who died in 1899. The home was converted into two apartments in 1930 by the Solyom Family to help cover the mortgage costs during the Great Depression. It was originally lit by gas jet lamps. Running water was not introduced until 1921. The home features included a built-in pie cooler that doubled as a freezer in the winter and a spacious fruit cellar. Over the years owners and residents have heard stories about one hundred dollar bills encased in the walls, but no one has ever found anything.
It is of the Greek Revival style, with limestone lintels and quoins and is built of fieldstones. Of Greek revival style, its characteristics include a front gabled and wing with a low pitched roof, cornice lines that are emphasized with a wide band of trim, narrow sidelights with transom around the door as well as the eaves returns. Courtesy of the Elgin Area Historical Society. Richard Palmer blog.
 | Current photographs with audio and text description of historic and architectural significance, courtesy Historic Elgin website. There is a gallery of seven photographs of the structure on this webpage. Photography courtesy Historic Elgin.com. |
- "Cobblestone Masonry", 1966, Carl Schmidt: Name reference, Hayward House
- Page 210, Page 252
 328 Mountain.jpg ¹ | 328mountain-44.jpg ¹ |  IMG_4308.jpg ¹ |  IMG_5200.jpg ¹ |
| Thirty-two exterior and interior photographs courtesy of Dan Miller in his flickr account. |
¹ Photography courtesy Dan Miller.
