It is known that the Samuel Aikman family were early land owners in Williamson County and had purchased hundreds of acres in the land now roughly distributed from S. Court Street in the east and the interstate in the west and bounded N and S roughly by W. Main Street and Hendrickson.
In January of 1853, one of Samuel Aikman’s sons, James Aikman, sold a piece of 40 acre property identified as the NW quarter of the NE Quarter of Section 24, Township 9, Range 2 to a P.H. Lang. Lang held on to the property for decades but when unable to satisfy a debt, the property was sold at a Sheriff’s sale and ended up in the hands of Robert & Joan Crotfer in June of 1881. Only days later, Crotfer sold the property to William W. & Annice Clemons
In December 1882, the property was sold by the Clemons to E.L. Denison. In October 1888, E.L. Denison’s brother, C.H. Denison sold the property in the form of a lot to Andrew J. & Addie L. Benson. Charles H. Denison served multiple terms as Marion’s turn of the century Mayor and purchased several parcels of land in close proximity to this house the Hub recreation center and was determined to turn them into additions to the city of Marion, so when he sold this property, it was whittled down closer to the size it is today.
Andrew & Addie Benson sold the property to Bazil G. Murphy in September 1890 who sold the property to Shela H. Norman in November of 1891. Shela Norman sold the property to Elizabeth Brown in January 1892. It should be noted that C.H. Denison’s 1st Addition to Marion was officially platted into Marion on November 28, 1890 and the property at this point was now given the description of C.H. Denison’s 1st Addition, Block 1, Lot 4.
Elizabeth Dunaway Brown was the daughter of Samuel Dunaway, one of the pioneering families of the county. Her father, Samuel, came to this area around 1827 when it was still Franklin County settled in Bainbridge and started working as a tanner making hats. He eventually owned large tracts of land and was responsible for the development of the Carbondale and Shawneetown Railroad which first linked Marion by rail to the big four rail system in 1872, helping keep Marion’s early economy rolling. Elizabeth was born in the village of Bainbridge just west of what would later become Marion on April 14, 1836. In 1852, Elizabeth married Frank Brown who operated a tannery business in Bainbridge. After Frank’s death, Elizabeth purchased this piece of property and is likely to have been the builder of the home in the 1890’s. After Elizabeth passed away in 1906, the house passed to her son John W. Brown and his wife Lydia.
John was also born in Bainbridge, Illinois on February 17, 1857, spent the early part of his life as a farmer and married Lydia Norris in October 1880. Lydia had been born on March 4, 1860 to John C. Norris and Elizabeth Huffstutler. John became one of the first rural mail carriers in the county when rural service first began in 1899.
After his mother, Elizabeth’s, death in 1906, John who had previously been living in Bainbridge moved into the home with his wife Lydia and is listed in a 1907 Marion Street directory as living at 902 W. Cherry.
An incident occurred at the home on July 15, 1918. Apparently a young girl named Hope Stephens of West Frankfort had been having a relationship with a man named Ed Houghton 47, who may or may not have been married with children. Both Houghton and Hope’s father, Gay Stephens, claimed the girl had been abused by the other. Stephens tried placing his daughter in jail in an attempt to keep her away from Houghton. Hope, who had been attending Brown’s Business College in Marion came to board with the Brown family on Cherry Street on July 3rd, but almost immediately slipped off to Granite City. After her parents located her, she called Houghton and returned to Marion instead of going home. She was then placed in Jail before returning to West Frankfort. When the father called at the Brown home on Cherry Street to get her belongings, a quarrel started on the porch of the home between Houghton and Hope’s father. Stephens killed Houghton by shooting him five times, the last shot was after Houghton had fallen from the porch. Houghton was 48 and employed at Atwood Mine. He had previously told the state’s attorney that he planned on marrying the girl, but because of parental objections, the wedding had been delayed.
John W. and Lydia Brown lived in the home until his death in the home on September 30, 1927 and her death on January 10, 1935. After their deaths, the house was deeded to their son Frank Brown and his wife Alice (McKinney). Frank lived in Hurst and appears to have rented out space in the home through the remains of the 1930’s and early 1940’s to predominately older widowed women.
On March 30, 1946, Frank deeded the home over to his sister Ethel Brown Burkhart who was married to Jean Burkhart, a local business man. Ethel was born in Bainbridge on October 23, 1885 and married Jean Burkhart (his second marriage) in February 1930. Together, the couple operated Burkhart’s Shoe Store on the Public Square where the Arts Association building is now located. The shoe store operated from the 1920’s until about 1940.
Jean Burkhart passed away on August 19, 1968 followed by Ethel who died February 24, 1972 in her home of natural causes at the age of 86. There were no children generated during the marriage so after Ethel’s passing the home went to her sister Mellie Sanders who lived in St. Anne, Missouri.
Mellie Sanders sold the house on November 29, 1973 to Frankie E. & Joyce Starrick who held the house until December 18, 1978 when it was sold to Walter and Peggy Nieds who still own the home to date. This means the Nieds have lived in the home the longest of any occupants.
(Sources: Williamson County Deed Records, Williamson County GIS index, Marion Evening Post, Marion Daily Republican, Marion Weekly Leader, Southern Illinoisan, FindaGrave.com, Williamson County Plat Map index. Compiled by Sam Lattuca on 6/24/2024)