AT A GLANCE, the grande dame at 312 S. Downey Ave. may appear to be just another elegant old home in an area full of them. But the Benton House is one of the city’s most cherished historic landmarks. Its story begins with Nicholas Ohmer, who built the house in 1873 as a model home, an example of one of five styles available to new residents of an expansive, high-style Indianapolis suburb he was developing. But he didn’t count on that year’s economic panic, which saw demand plummet as buyers sought more modest abodes on smaller lots. The Benton House, with its bold French mansard roof, ornate tower, and tall, narrow windows featuring lintels, stands out as much today as it did then. With oak floors, ornate woodwork, and a curved hanging staircase with a brass railing, it’s one of the most exceptional examples of Second Empire architecture in Indiana. It received its name in 1880, when Dr. Allen R. Benton and his wife Silence moved in. Benton was twice the president of Butler University, then called North-Western Christian University and located in Irvington. The family lived in the home for nearly three decades, turning it into a symbol of the intellectual life of the burgeoning community. The subsequent owners, the Millers, sold it to the Irvington Historic Landmarks Foundation in 1966, probably saving it from eventual demolition. In 1973, the Benton House earned a spot in the National Register of Historic Places. Restored to its Victorian-era glory, the house boasts period wallpapers, chandeliers, and furnishings, a pier mirror, and Dr. Benton’s Bibles, with many items donated by local benefactors and a descendant of the Miller family. Its historic garden is prized for its heirloom pre-1900 bulbs and cultivars, which include thousands of daffodils, some hybridized as early as 1777, that bloom in early April, as well as tulips and peonies. The light-dappled garden, filled with native woodland flowers, includes a Victorian fernery. The 10-room, native-brick home and its grounds are rented for garden parties and weddings, which support continual preservation efforts, and will be the highlight of the 53rd annual Tour of Homes in September.
