L. S. Good House

Even if its classic architectural embellishments are confined solely to the facade, this freestanding, three-story town house commands attention on the eastern edge of downtown. It gains interest in being a known work by an architect whose efforts often seem to have been eclipsed by his sometime partners, Frederic Faris and Edward Franzheim.

The ornate front is of pressed brick, while the unadorned side walls are faced in regular brick. A first-floor Ionic portico is matched by three-quarter Ionic columns in brick that separate the five windows on the third floor. In between, an off-center polygonal wooden bay protrudes from the second story. The relatively calm exterior belies a sumptuous interior that contains tile flooring, oak paneling, lincrusta walls, and stained glass windows that light the stair hall during daylight hours. In the evening, a four-foot bronze female figure standing on the newel post takes up lighting duty. Marked “‘Orchidée,’ par Dubois,” she holds a threebranched light of orchids surrounded with abalone shells.