Steven McQuillin has made a full career of preserving historic buildings. His restoration work began in Mansfield in the 1970s.
By Tom Brennan
This story is part of a series by the Mansfield In Bloom Project.
At age 66, he is back in town with two projects underway and a third dream initiative on his mind.
McQuillin is not a Mansfield native, but first came to the city as a regional historic preservation officer headquartered at the Mansfield campus of The Ohio State University. During that time, he was active with the planned construction/expansion of the Mansfield-Richland Public Library.
“I take pride in knowing that I worked to convince library officials to preserve a portion of the old building as they launched plans to build a new facility,” McQuillin said.
That initial building, which is a Carnegie library, was opened in 1908. The expanded facility was modernized and dedicated in 1989.
McQuillin added that he also helped with restoration plans on Oak Hill Cottage, the historic hilltop mansion of John Robinson, superintendent of the Sandusky, Mansfield and Newark Railroad. The house was built in 1847 in the style of Gothic Revival architecture.
Oak Hill, which has been on the National Register of Historic Places since 1969, is owned by the Richland County Historical Society and has been open for public tours since 1983.
During that initial stint in Mansfield, McQuillin said he also authored Mansfield’s current historic preservation ordinance that was approved in 1980.
After leaving Mansfield, McQuillin moved farther north with historic preservation work in Cleveland. He assisted with projects such as the Terminal Tower and the successful Warehouse District. He also handled some preservation efforts in nearby Elyria, including work on the municipal building and the high school. His work also took him to preservation projects at Oberlin College.
He talks about historic preservation like some folks might describe their religion. He doesn’t comprehend why others don’t comprehend.
“I just don’t understand why we continue to build new when there are so many old structures that served so well in the past and that can be restored for more productive use”, he said, adding “Newer is not always better.”
McQuillin lives in Hayesville. His home and office are located in the Vermillion Institute, an old college building that he restored. The college is defunct, and the building was vacant for some 80 years.
McQuillin describes this project as his most elaborate, admitting that he probably spent too much money on it. The ornate structure is open to the public for tours twice each year.
Hayesville is only a short drive from Mansfield. That convenience, along with his love for finding and resurrecting scarred but majestic structures in rebounding industrial towns brought him back to the place where he started. He now has two preservation projects underway in Mansfield – both historic old homes. He says they are clearly hobbies and not money-making enterprises.
The Hedrick House was started first. It is a brick gothic style home on West Fifth Street along the northern edge of the downtown. Work has been underway for more than a year and McQuillin expects to finish there this year. The work is being aided by state tax credits. The house will feature two apartments when done. He is also considering building a garage that resembles a former carriage house on the site. The house was built in 1860 and was soon sold to Ann Hedrick. She lived there for a long time and operated a meat market on the property. After her death, there were several other owners, including George Shuler, whose relative wrote a book about her experiences there. Mary Eileen Shuler Levison wrote the book, entitled “The Corner of Fifth and Walnut”. It was published in 1995.
The iconic house has been vacant since the 1970s. It is known for its Gothic Revival design, including eye-catching gingerbread trim along the roof line. McQuillin called the trim work “bargeboard”. He said he personally worked to help restore this trim work last year, burning up a saw on the tedious chore.
The second house is called the Allonas House and it is located about three blocks north of the Hedrick House. It is very near Oak Hill Cottage, just off Springmill Street. It was the home of Joseph Allonas, the owner of the Aultman Taylor Company, a manufacturer of horse-drawn farm implements during the middle of the 19th Century. The company was once the community’s leading employer.
McQuillin is near completion of acquiring the property from the Richland Land Bank. His first priority this year will be a new roof on the house. He hopes to add a tower to the roof line and may convert the house into two apartments. He emphasized that encouraging people to live downtown or near the downtown is a major part of the overall growth plan.
His third, and most ambitious, Mansfield project is still a vision. It is not a restoration, but a reconstruction of a historic downtown building – the courthouse that was demolished in 1969. McQuillin wants to build a 26-unit apartment building that looks just like the old courthouse. It would not be as large, but it would stand as tall with a 75-foot tower. The overall proportions of the building would be the same. It would be built with modern materials with sandstone trim.
The structure would stand where the old courthouse was built in 1870, at the southeast corner of Park Avenue East and South Diamond Street. That would put it on the front lawn of the current county building that was built to replace this old courthouse. It would cost about $5 million.
McQuillin gets pumped up when describing the project, but he recognizes he has some convincing to do with city and county officials. He has already begun work on that effort to convince, emphasizing the excitement and energy the project would create.
“I think this project would be a tribute to our past and would add interest to our downtown. I am going to talk with all of the downtown stakeholders and I hope to make progress on the idea this year,” he said.
McQuillin’s overall goal is to inspire others to save and restore historic old properties in Mansfield. He knows the center of the community’s retail market was once there before new stores were built on the Miracle Mile on Mansfield’s west side and now in neighboring Ontario. He recognizes that much has already been done to preserve historic buildings downtown by local developer John Fernyak, but he is hoping for more from others. He looks at his career with unmistaken pride but does not boast.
“I guess it is accurate to say that there are some buildings in these places that would not be there without me,” he concluded quietly.
Tom Brennan is the retired editor of the News Journal and current chairman of the Mansfield in Bloom steering committee. Mansfield in Bloom is in its third year, working as a catalyst to improve aspects of Mansfield that include physical appearance, environmental practices, historic preservation and physical activities. If you wish to participate in Mansfield in Bloom, contact Roberta Perry at Roberta@chooserichland.com or 419-755-7234.