Home tours and more scheduled for Promenade Weekend

It’s time to celebrate the history and architecture of Tecumseh with Promenade Tecumseh on Saturday, June 7 and Sunday, June 8 from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. The tour includes six houses in Tecumseh as well as West Branch School.In addition to the home tours, there are other activities happening throughout the city, including: Art in the Park at John W. Smith Park on Evans St. from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday, and 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sunday; United States Veteran Uniform Display at the Elliott Park Scout Cabin at the corner of Kilbuck and Ottawa Streets; and the Brookside Cemetery Tour at 5 p.m. and 7 p.m. on Saturday, June 7.Southern Michigan Railroad offers Ride the Rails between Tecumseh and Clinton. For those wanting to start the day off with a little exercise, Tecumseh Parks and Recreation Department is hosting the annual Off the Beaten Path 5K Fun Run and Walk on Saturday, June 7 at 8:30 a.m.In addition to the home tours on Sunday, June 8, there will be a Historic Downtown Walking Tour at 1 p.m. beginning in front of the United Bank and Trust. The walking tour is part of the home tour ticket and lasts for 40 to 45 minutes.Entertainment and demonstrations will be at select tour locations, and feature Jamin Grandmas, Dan Hacker on guitar, spinner Lois Lane, quilter Kathy Schmidt, weaver Nancy Wild, and Bill Zietlow on guitar. Antique bicyclists, The Wheelmen, will be riding around the city and near the tour stops.The first stop on the Promenade is the Tecumseh Historical Museum at 302 E. Chicago Blvd. The Old Stone Church was originally St. Elizabeth Catholic Church, built in 1913 by Father Edwin Fisher with local fieldstone. The gothic style building was renovated in 1981 by the Tecumseh Area Historical Society, and the building has all but one of the church’s original stained glass windows.House number two on the tour is the Heesen-Hull House at 406 Seneca Dr. The modern ranch home was built in 1952 and has been renovated by current owners Cheri and Ed Hull. The design of the home was expanded to include an addition of a laundry room, and master bedroom suite and the two smaller bedrooms were repurposed into a walk-in closet and a spa style bathroom.The Jordan-Teske House at 208 N. Democratic is house number three. The upright and wing style home was built in 1872 by Alonzo Murray. Current owners, Neal and Rhea Kupisz, added a second story above the one-story wing of the original home and used a front porch to blend the two sections. They also opened up several rooms to accommodate modern family life.The circa 1840 Dr. I.S. Hamilton House at 402 W. Chicago Blvd, home number four, is a Greek Revival home owned by Marty and Einar Tjolsen. This was once the only home on the block. Although there have been changes to the interior of the home since it was built, the building still retains the Greek Revival features, timber framing and the fieldstone foundation.The Queen Anne style of the A.W. Mills House at 107 S. Union St. is part of the charm of the fifth home on the tour. Built in 1884, the home was owned by the Mills family for more than 50 years. Owners Chuck and Margaret Gross renovated the home, eliminated its division into four apartments and returned it to a single family home. While adding certain modern touches, the family also restored many of the home’s original architectural designs.The sixth stop on the tour is the West Branch School, 301 W. Kilbuck, built in 1886 with a 1913 addition. The Late Italianate style building, now owned by Jerry and Barbara Mullins, was one of three primary schools in Tecumseh. The building used floor registers and cold air returns to keep the two recitation rooms warm in the winter. Students were taught in the building for more than 80 years, and then the Tecumseh School District used the building for storage. It was sold in the 1980s and used as a private residence.“We’ve had people send photos and stories about West Branch School. It’s a once in a lifetime chance to get back into the school again,” said Promenade Committee President Pat Van Camp. “West Branch School is a beautiful old building and very connected to people in the community. There’s just a real attachment to the past with the school being on tour.”The last stop on the Promenade is the George Elliott House at 105 E. Pottawatamie. Built around 1928 this California Bungalow Style is now owned by Paula Mamayek. The house follows the simple floor plan of most bungalows, illustrating the change in family life at the turn of the century. Smaller families and fewer families with servants meant people could live in smaller homes, and often focused expenses on modern conveniences.“The homes featured this year are all beautiful, and the Promenade Committee is very appreciative of the homeowners for opening their homes to the community,” Van Camp said.Promenade Tecumseh honors Lynn Cook this year for her work in highlighting the historic architecture of Tecumseh at a time when older homes were not well cared for or being torn down. Her efforts in developing Promenade the Past 38 years ago brought awareness to the community of the beauty found in older Tecumseh homes.In memory of Cook, the Promenade Committee has installed a bench on the lawn at the old Carnegie Library on W. Chicago Blvd. The bench will be dedicated at a special ceremony on Saturday, June 7, at 9 a.m., and a short reception will follow the dedication. The public is invited to attend the celebration.Promenade sponsors include Foundation Realty, United Bank and Trust, TLC Credit Union, Sunderland Insurance, Tecumseh Big Boy, What a Find! Consign, British Pantry and Tea Garden Café, Evans Street Station, Grey Fox Floral, Hacker Jewelers, LoMonaco Health Care Family Chiropractic, Schmidt and Sons Pharmacy, The Daily Grind and DGII, Abbott Accounting, Tecumseh Insurance Agency, The Doll Cottage, and Tilton and Sons Shoes.The 2014 Promenade Home Tour Committee includes Van Camp, Vice President Jan Salsberry, Treasurer Julie LoMonaco, Secretary Sally Manning, Home Coordinator Glenna Stroud, Mary Bolton, Deana Jackson, Aurora Momcilovich, Carol Partridge, Rebecca Peach, Judy Rinkus, Historian John Waltman, Jean Waltman, Linda Wildern, and Amanda Naugle.“The committee works hard throughout all the year, and I thank them for working to make this a great tour,” said Van Camp.For more information, find Promenade Tecumseh on Facebook, contact the group via email at promenadetecumseh@gmail.com or call 423.3740.