One of Lafayette’s most historic properties has finally been sold after many months on the market. The Moses Fowler House had been owned by the Tippecanoe County Historical Association, which couldn’t afford to maintain it any longer.
It’s now owned by a recently-created not-for-profit called the 1852 Foundation – named for the year the home was built.
Ann and Matt Jonkman set up the foundation using part of a windfall generated when Matt’s computer security firm was bought out by another company earlier this year. They bought the home and will pay for the extensive renovations it needs themselves.
Matt Jonkman says they’ll also set up a group called “Friends of Fowler,” which he hopes will lead private citizens to help pay for ongoing expenses. He says the family will also try to bring the public in for events.
“Initially the events will be limited to the first floor and then a couple of rooms upstairs for a bride’s room or dressing room and groom’s room – those type of things," he says. "We do hope to, depending on funding over time, perhaps next year, renovate more of the upstairs to have some corporate meeting rooms with some modern [audio-visual] equipment and a meeting place that’s quiet and can have some professional catering to do corporate meetings.”
Historical Association President Terry Edgell says the group had been in talks with the Jonkmans for about two years before the deal came together.
Edgell declined to say how much the Jonkmans paid for the Fowler House, but did say it was less than the $720,000 asking price. But Edgell says the agreement does accomplish the group’s goals of maintaining the historic nature of the property and ensuring it’ll again be open to the public.
“Forming the foundation, funding the foundation and the future plans to get more support from the community and the events that are going to be held out of here – he’s done an excellent job on, I think, securing our concerns about the long-term preservation of the property,” Edgell says.
The agreement includes language guaranteeing several parts of the 160-year-old home will remain in their original, historic form. Other features, such as the kitchen, will be renovated to help the house sustain itself financially.
