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The Kennedys--first W. A., then his sons Don and W. E. "Bud'-owned the Home Lawn until 1968, about the time this photo was taken. A huge "going out of business" sale provided Martinsville residents and others with the opportunity to buy pieces of the elegant furniture, ranging from Chippendale to rustic Old Hickory; fixtures, including the crystal pendants from the chandeliers; and dining room accouterments such as linens and lead crystal water glasses and pitchers. The closing of Home Lawn, and the sale of its contents, truly marked the close of Martinsville's fabulous era as the City of Mineral Water.
The Home Lawn was operated as a weight-loss facility known as Diamondhead from March 1971-November 1972, when it went into receivership. (The owner, William Widgery, attempted to sell it to the county for $300,000 by arguing that it would make a fine courthouse.) By 1975, Daystar Ministry had made the Home Lawn its home. A fire in 1989 destroyed everything but the portecochere and the west hotel complex, and after a failed attempt to convert the remains into upscale apartments, the site was cleared in April 1995.
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| Captain Sylvanus Barnard's sanitarium, Martinsville's first, beside the Big Four Railroad tracks. Michael Cohn purchased the Barnard in 1926. |
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The Cohn-Barnard was the old Barnard enlarged and updated according to the latest technology and architectural design, as this picture postcard advertises. |
| The wealthy Mitchell brothers, Charles, Edgar, and James V., built the Colonial Sanitarium on Washington Street one-half block west of the square--the present site of Home Bank--in 1906. The sanitarium exchanged hands several times and was renamed, first Cohn-Barnard when it was acquired by Michael Cohn following the fire in 1929 which destroyed the original sanitarium by that name, and then Artesian. It was razed in 1963. |
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The New Highland, a fine brick structure, eventually replaced the Highland, which was destroyed by fire. It continued in use until 1951 when it was severely damaged by yet another fire. It was converted into the Morgan House apartments in 1970.
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Built in 1896 by Dr. W. C. Banta and Dr. C.J. Keegan, the Highland Sanitorium (note the exchange of the typical "a" with an "o") was an elegant Queen Anne "home hotel. It boasted 74 guest rooms, well-lit, steamheated, and comfortably furnished; a large amusement room for diversions ranging from music to reading; upper story bath rooms and attendant dressing and retiring rooms; and broad and spacious verandas excellent for exercise and general enjoyment.
Located on North Main Street some twenty feet above the White River, the Highland provided a healthful view of "a diversity of landscape, for rural beauty in all its pristine loveliness meets the eyes of those weary of brick and mortar and artificial parks." Ironically, by 1921, an extensive brick annex with an interior ramp connecting it the original structure had been constructed, and in 1929 another larger, five-story addition was built. The original frame sanitorium was destroyed by fire on March 11, 1929.
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Neighbor to the Buis Sanitarium, the Hill House or Hill-Cohn operated from 1904-1933. David Cohn and Mr. and Mrs. Harrison Hill were partners in the venture which began in January 1904 when they connected the original boarding house with adjacent houses. The Hill-House had a capacity of 100 but had only 14 bath rooms. Dr. Frank Robinson, a local World War I veteran, was the house doctor from 1904-1920. The Hill-House was sold to Schnaiter Lumber Company in 1933 and razed the following year.
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| A private dwelling until 1915 when a well was dug in the lawn, the Buis Sanitarium was located just north of the Hill House Sanitarium located on West Morgan Street (the long-time location of Schnaiter Lumber and Daily Motor Company). A glass-enclosed causeway connected the two sanitariums until 1919, when Mrs. Dora Thompson, William Bailey, and Alexander Stanley purchased the Buis. They had the building remodeled, renamed it Southern Sanitarium, and opened it to African Americans, particularly the servants of white sanitarium guests who were refused lodging elsewhere. Martinsville's only "colored sanitarium" struggled to survive until 1926, the year local resistance forced it into closure and sale. Bought by the Branch Grain and Seed Company, the sanitarium was then razed.
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The Albert Nutter home underwent extensive remodeling in 1923-1924 to become the Whiting Sanitarium, owned and
operated by Dr. Ulysses G. and Lula Whiting. The grand opening article
in The Daily Reporter touted its 45 guest rooms "modernly equipped with
hot and cold water, and toilet," and a spacious closet. The wide halls
were well lit, with no dark nooks, and serviced by an elevator. A sun porch,
first floor parlor, and second floor sun parlor furnished with Old Hickory
chairs were special features, as was the dining room--"as beautiful a little
dining room as one could wish to behold. Following her husband's death, Lula Whiting operated the Whiting for 15 years before selling it to Dr. David Eisenberg. The entire complex was destroyed by fire in 1949. |
