Newman House, Harvard

Built on a hill in 1873 on land purchased six years earlier by Frank and Louisa Newman, this Italianate style house is constructed of brick that may have been handmade on site by Newman and his father-in-law, Washington Hammond. Brick masons by trade, it is possible they operated a brick kiln on site. Upon close examination, one finds the names and initials of various family members pressed into the clay bricks. This was done before firing. These bricks are scattered here and there on the house's exterior.

The Italianate style farmhouse contains a kitchen, dining room, parlor and a sewing room that has since been converted to a bathroom on the first floor and three bedrooms on the second floor. There is also a partial basement or possibly a root cellar. A wooden porch was added sometime after construction.

Both Newman and Hammond served in the 12th Illinois infantry and fought at Vicksburg during the Civil War.

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