The John Rice Miner House

A daguerreotype image taken around 1876

The home at the southeast corner of Fulton and Washington Streets in Sandusky, Ohio, was built in 1868 in the Italianate style. In the 1870s and 1880s, the family of John Rice Miner resided here. Mr. Miner was a vice president of the Sandusky Wheel Company. The address of this home prior to 1915 was 934 Washington Street. By the late 1890s, Mr. and Mrs. Miner had moved to Fresno County, California.

Through the years, the house was sometimes a private residence, with an apartment upstairs, but often it was home to a variety of businesses. In the early 1900s, the Gilbert Harris family lived in the house. When Mr. Gilbert died in 1905, the Sandusky Register featured an obituary of the prominent businessman.

In 1937 Dr. James D. Lea had his “optical parlors” at what by then was 618 West Washington Street.

From about 1942 through 1973, Brownworth’s Furniture was in business on the site. In this advertisement from the May 7, 1953 issue of the Sandusky Register Star News, it appears that Philco radios were a popular item at the business.

The Darr Chiropractic office was in the house for much of the decade of the 1990s. In more recent years, a legal office has been in operation at 618 West Washington Street. Here is a recent view of the former home of John Rice Miner:

From Google Maps

Visit the Sandusky Library to learn more about the residents of Sandusky and Erie County, Ohio.