Crane, Ross, House - Athens, GA
N 33° 57.496 W 083° 22.857
17S E 279992 N 3760083
Home to Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity, UGA.
Waymark Code: WMNMD
Location: Georgia, United States
Date Posted: 08/27/2006
Views: 9
The Ross Crane House is located at 247 Pulaski Street (Tax Parcel No. 17-1-A2-E-007).
This two-story brick dwelling built in the Greek Revival style possesses a four-over-four room, central hall plan. A full facade Doric porch with square tapered columns shelters a Greek Revival entrance, embellished by fluted pilasters with entablature and a transom with corner and sidelights. Above the central entrance, a doorway of similar configuration opens onto a balcony with a distinctive diamond-patterned railing. Stone lintels cap the windows and accent the stone foundation. Added in the 1930s, two side wing additions adjoin the main building.
Ross Crane, a native of New Jersey, arrived in Georgia in the 1830s and purchased the two-acre site from Esther Finley in 1839. About 1842-1843, Crane built this dwelling. He subsequently constructed several other significant buildings in Athens, such as the Hamilton House and the First Presbyterian Church. A public auction was held after Crane and his wife died, and William E. Alexander acquired the house in December 1870. In 1877 Simon Marks bought the home, and eventually his heirs transferred ownership to the Athens Lodge, Order of Elks around 1920. The Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity purchased the property in 1929 and completed interior alterations so that the house might serve as a dormitory and facility for its social organization.
The Ross Crane House was documented by the Historic American Buildings Survey (GA-1111), is listed on the National Register of Historic Places (June 18, 1979), and has been locally designated as a Historic Landmark (January 8, 1991).
Street address: 247 Pulaski St. Athens, GA
County / Borough / Parish: Clarke
Year listed: 1979
Historic (Areas of) Significance: Architecture/Engineering
Periods of significance: 1825-1849
Historic function: Domestic: Single Dwelling
Current function: Education, Social: Clubhouse, College, Educational Related Housing
Privately owned?: yes
Primary Web Site: [Web Link]
Secondary Website 1: [Web Link]
Season start / Season finish: Not listed
Hours of operation: Not listed
Secondary Website 2: Not listed
National Historic Landmark Link: Not listed
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