CENTURY HOMES Announces Award Recipients
CENTURY HOMES Announces Award Recipients - Recognizing Homes. Preserving History. Celebrating Families.
BY PAULA LANTZ, Tippecanoe Historical Society
Tipp City has long been known for its beautiful neighborhoods, historic homes and strong sense of community. This year, the Tippecanoe Historical Society celebrates an important part of that heritage by recognizing applicants to its CENTURY HOMES program.
The program honors Tipp City homes that have stood for 100 years or more, recognizing not only the structures themselves but also the generations of families who have cared for them and contributed to the community's character.
Every home has a story to tell, and Tipp City’s century-old homes provide a remarkable link between the community we know today and the people who lived here generations ago.
The CENTURY HOMES award recipients are:
234 S. Third St. (1920): Carly and Gabe Jones
242 N. Second St. (1920): M. G. Ziessler
16 E. German St. (1920): Heather Bailey and Frank Scenna
228 W. Broadway (1900): Scott and Sarah Hoover
150 S. Hyatt St. (1900): Mayor Logan Rogers
175 S. Tippecanoe St. (1850): Glenn and Patty Ash
119 S. Second St. (1920): Dennis and Barbara Studebaker
510 Horton Ave. (1920): Roberta and Calvin Jones
135 W. Plum St. (1920): Jenny Wood
522 W. Broadway (1917): Brian and Amber Taylor
563 S. Hyatt St. (1853): Brian and Collin Brown
The oldest home among this group dates to 1850, while several were constructed around 1920. Together, the homes represent more than a century of changing architectural styles, neighborhoods, families and everyday life in Tipp City.
Each qualifying property receives an official CENTURY HOMES cast-aluminum plaque, suitable for mounting on the outside of the home. The plaque provides a visible reminder that the house is part of Tipp City’s history and has endured for at least a century.
Award recipients also become part of the CENTURY HOMES Registry, helping the Tippecanoe Historical Society create a lasting record of the community’s historic homes and the people associated with them.
The program is about recognition rather than restoration. A home does not have to be returned to its original appearance to participate. Homes change over the decades as families live in them, remodel them and adapt them to new generations. CENTURY HOMES honors the home just as it stands today.
Could Your Home Be Next?
Tipp City residents who wonder whether their own home has reached the century mark can begin with a surprisingly simple tool: ask AI.
Try asking:
“When was the home at [your address], Tipp City, Ohio, constructed?”
If the answer indicates that the home is 100 years old or older—or even close to that age—
the homeowner is encouraged to complete a CENTURY HOMES application and return it to the Tippecanoe Historical Society.
AI is simply a starting point. The Tippecanoe Historical Society will research available historical information to confirm the home’s age and eligibility and will then contact the homeowner.
Application forms are available at the Tippecanoe Historical Society, 20 N. Third St., on Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. 937-667-4092.
The program also provides an opportunity to preserve more than a construction date. Photographs, family stories and information about previous owners can help create a fuller history of a property. Those records can become valuable resources for future residents, descendants and local historians.
Featured Home: 563 South Hyatt Street
At 563 South Hyatt Street, the answers span more than 170 years. Built around 1853, this remarkable home has quietly stood through some of the most significant moments in American history while generations of families created memories within its walls.
When this house was new, Franklin Pierce was President of the United States. The Miami & Erie Canal was the lifeline of Tippecanoe City, and the Civil War was still years away. Horses and wagons traveled dusty roads where automobiles now pass, and nearby farms stretched across much of the landscape.
As history unfolded, this home remained a silent witness.
It stood through the Civil War and Abraham Lincoln's assassination. It saw the arrival of the railroad, the invention of the telephone and electric light, and the first automobiles making their way through Tipp City. It was here when the Wright brothers achieved powered flight just a few miles away in Dayton. It weathered the Great Depression, celebrated the end of two World Wars, witnessed Americans walk on the moon, and entered the digital age of computers and the internet.
Closer to home, this house has watched Hyattsville become part of Tipp City. It has seen dirt roads paved, farms transformed into neighborhoods, and countless children grow up and raise families of their own. Through every season and every generation, it has remained a familiar landmark on South Hyatt Street.
A home's true history isn't found only in deeds and photographs. It lives in birthday
celebrations, holiday gatherings, family dinners, laughter echoing through the rooms, and the quiet moments shared by those who called it home.
Every owner has cared for this home for a chapter in its long story. Today, Brian and Colin
Brown have the privilege of preserving that legacy for their three children and future generations.
The Century Homes Program celebrates more than old houses—it honors the families who built our community and the homes that continue to tell their stories. Every century home is a reminder that history is not found only in museums. Sometimes, it is waiting just beyond the front door.
Through CENTURY HOMES, the Tippecanoe Historical Society hopes to identify more of these properties, recognize the people caring for them today, and preserve their stories for tomorrow.
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