Levi Till was born in Staffordshire, England in 1826
or 1827. (Sources vary.) He studied architecture in England, and later with an uncle in Mansfield, Ohio. By 1849, he was residing
in Sandusky. Mr. Till is credited with designing and building the former
home of Thomas C. McGee at 536 E. Washington Street in Sandusky.
While in some census records Mr. Till listed his
occupation as carpenter, in the 1870 U.S. Census he stated he worked as a
“builder and architect.” At this time, he and his wife Anna had four children in their home, ranging in age from 9 to 18.
An article which appeared
in the Sandusky Register of August 9,
1873, reported that “One of the finest jobs in iron work to be found in this or
any other city” had just been completed at the residence of Rush R. Sloane. Mr.
Sloane’s home had built in the 1850s by Samuel Torry, and was sold to Rush
Sloane in 1854. In 1873, Levi Till designed the tower, cornices and piazza of
Rush Sloane’s residence, with the construction work carried out by J.B. Weis
and Company, of Sandusky.
In 1878, Levi Till designed of the former home of William
Robertson, Jr., a Sandusky grocer.
Helen Hansen wrote in At Home in Early Sandusky, that
“Neither time nor money was spared” in the building of this house. Charles
Bauman painted each room in a different color, and the newel post and stairway
came from Cincinnati. The original home had chandeliers made of cut glass and
the hardware on the doors was made from triple plated silver.
Another building
that Levi Till designed was the old Number Three Fire Station on
Meigs Street, which is now a law office.
To read more about the many historic buildings and homes in Sandusky, Ohio, visit the Sandusky Library Archives Research Center.
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