For sale: The Huddleston Farmhouse, an 1841 farmstead on Indiana’s National Road

The Huddleston Farmhouse

Indiana Landmarks has owned this property since 1974 — they’ve even kept their Eastern Regional Office in it. But now they’ve listed it for sale, at the incredible price of $349,000.

The property includes the 14-room 1841 farmhouse, the pumphouse, the barn, and an undisclosed amount of land.

Indiana Landmarks keeps the grounds open to National Road travelers much of the year. Occasionally, they open the house and barn for tours. I’ve been fortunate to be on one of those tours and shared extensive photos in this article and this article. But here are a few photos of the interior. This is the kitchen.

The Huddleston Farmhouse

This is the dining room.

The Huddleston Farmhouse

This is the formal parlor.

The Huddleston Farmhouse

Anything built before about 1850 qualifies as “very old” in Indiana. If you’d like to live in one of Indiana’s oldest houses, on the historic National Road near Cambridge City, Indiana, see this listing for more details.

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Comments

21 responses to “For sale: The Huddleston Farmhouse, an 1841 farmstead on Indiana’s National Road”

  1. Andy Umbo Avatar
    Andy Umbo

    Why would an actual “landmarks” organization, actually sell a landmark? More confusing Indiana behavior. When I lived in Zionsville, I was surprised that people could just about do whatever they wanted to the “landmark” houses. So different than Wisconsin, where they take their history and landmarks pretty seriously, and legally aren’t be able to do much once you’re a “landmark”.

    1. Jim Grey Avatar

      Dude, did you read the link at Indiana Landmarks? They explain that they routinely rehab properties and sell them at a profit so they can buy more properties to save and rehab. They also place protective covenants on the properties they sell so they will be protected forever.

      A group in Zionsville is on the cusp of creating a historic district in the village so that people can’t raze old houses to build monstrosities anymore.

      1. Andy Umbo Avatar
        Andy Umbo

        Must have missed that “jump” but good to know they use covenants to lock in the “protection”! Great news about Zionsville, too, always a head-shaker to see vintage houses getting torn down for badly designed McMansion in-fills! Zionsville shhould be better than that….

        1. Jim Grey Avatar

          I spoke to someone involved in creating the Zionsville historic district. He intimated that the problem for a long time was that the people tearing down the houses were too powerful (had too much money). It took a lot of work and a very deft touch to get the historic district in front of the town council.

        2. Andy Umbo Avatar
          Andy Umbo

          Jim, you know that’s a very interesting statement, since one of my problems with Indianapolis when living there was a the highly non-culturally educated wealthy! Living for years in Chicago and Milwaukee, it’s likely that a lot of the people pushing for historical districts and the “like” would be the wealthy and well educated. When I was living in Indianapolis and staying abreast of the local news, it was amazing how the government would lay back and let the wealthy (and ‘business’) run over them and basically pass anything they wanted, even if it was “anti” the right thing to do for the community! Couldn’t see a future for me in a city like that, especially since I had so much history in cities that weren’t like that and I knew better!

        3. Jim Grey Avatar

          You put your finger on something there. Red-state governments, I’ve noticed, tend to cater to the wealthy and their businesses — even if if lowers the quality of life for the rest of us.

  2. DougD Avatar
    DougD

    Wow, thats good value since its in great condition. I could certainly fill that barn with old cars and motorcycles.

    Id imagine maintenance costs and time would be substantial and its a bit too far for my commute, so sadly I must pass. Nice that they can sell it to a caring owner, and move on to the next project.

    1. Jim Grey Avatar

      It is a very old property, but Indiana Landmarks has cared for it for years and it should be at least structurally stable. But yeah, the commute would kill you!

  3. Marc Beebe Avatar

    I wonder if there is a codicil to the sale agreement preventing it from being operated as a B&B. You have to admit it would be a nice place to spend a couple of nights on holiday.

    1. Jim Grey Avatar

      I sure hope that’s not prevented — that would be a lovely use of the home. And it would return it to its roots, as the family that owned it originally used to rent out the bottom-floor rooms to travelers.

  4. Ward Fogelsanger Avatar
    Ward Fogelsanger

    Amazing you can’t get a nothin special 2000 sq ft tract home for that price in Phoenix these days…

    1. Jim Grey Avatar

      I would have thought that this property would go for a lot more than the listed price, even in Indiana, where housing is relatively inexpensive.

  5. brandib1977 Avatar

    This seems like a great value. I do hate the idea of it falling into private hands because it’s hard to tell what someone would do with it. I’m not very trusting!

    1. Jim Grey Avatar

      Indiana Landmarks has a pretty good track record of matching properties to preservation-minded buyers, but they do occasionally sell to someone who doesn’t take proper care of the property.

      1. brandib1977 Avatar

        I’m glad they have experience in the area of matching the right buyer to their historic homes. Here’s hoping this one has a happy ending too!

  6. Khürt Williams Avatar

    Beautiful shots, Jim. I think the header image is my favourite.

    1. Jim Grey Avatar

      Thanks! I made all of these with a Pentax K10D and the kit 18-55mm lens.

  7. Elizabeth Bailey Avatar
    Elizabeth Bailey

    John Huddleston was my 4th great-grandfather. I loved seeing the pictures of the home. I hope to see it in person one day.

    1. Jim Grey Avatar

      Awesome! Here’s hoping you get to see it.

  8. Linda J Poli Avatar
    Linda J Poli

    Can anyone tell about one of the previous owners, Paul L Cochran? Thanks

    1. Jim Grey Avatar

      I don’t know anything about Paul but maybe another reader will.

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