Historic Newport House Steals Couple’s Hearts

By Mary Casey-Sturk

Love at first sight has been known to happen. Maybe it’s with your future spouse, a dog at the shelter, or a cat at a cat café. In the case of Zane Platt-Faulkner, it was a house in Newport.

Zane, and his husband Michael, had been living in an apartment in downtown Cincinnati and started house hunting during the pandemic.

“We were initially looking at a house that was in the Washington Park area, we looked at it and went to make an offer and someone had got to it before us, made an offer, and they had already accepted it” Platt-Faulkner shared. Moving on, they decided to begin looking in Newport.

At that point, they had a friend who lived adjacent to the home they would eventually purchase at 3rd and Overton Streets-a glorious Queen Anne with storybook allure. . .

“I was immediately drawn to the home. I remember the first time I saw it and it was lit up at night—it seemed as though it could have been taken out of a fairytale.” The beauty of the tree-lined streets filled with homes from a bygone era sold Zane and Michael on purchasing a home on a nearby street. The home on Overton Street, however, would continue to draw their attention. On neighborhood walks with their dog Lily, he grew more drawn to the home. “I would love this to be our forever home because I had been researching the house and there were articles about the house details about how it had fallen into disrepair, and how the owner before us (Jim Price) brought it back to life. There’s a history regarding the stained glass that features the original women of the home-the wife Ann and daughter, Clara, at age 17 are depicted in separate windows. All of that history fascinated me.”

“Eventually, I decided that I would write a letter expressing my admiration of the home and desire to eventually purchase it with my husband.” Having support from his husband on this endeavor, Platt-Faulkner wrote to the owner (Jim Price) and expressed their love for the house.

“I talked about the first time I’d seen the house and I was enamored with it and respected all the work that he’d put into it and we were thinking about growing our family” adding, “We let him know we’d love to grow a family in that home and be good stewards of the home, take care of the home.” Price texted him back a couple of days later and thanked them for the letter. “He was really happy to receive the letter and that he was thinking about moving to California, but that it might be a few years or so.” “That timeline was fine with us because we weren’t in any particular hurry but just wanted to be on his radar.” Price invited them to visit just to see the house and asked if we wanted the short version of the long version of the tour. Of course, they choose the long version!

“The amount of information that he just knew about the home was incredible and the amount of work that he had personally done as well, he does this kind of historic restoration work, he had done a lot of the work and just hit in like every nook and cranny of this house and told us about all that work as he was walking through it. “

During this tour, they learned that the stained-glass windows featuring Ann and Clara had been sold by the people who owned the house before Price (who owned it from 2016-2022) to a downtown antiques store. They claimed they were having them restored, but they were actually sold. Price, being eager to return the windows to their rightful places, tracked them down through different antique dealers, eventually finding them in Portland, Oregon. Price got them back and had them restored and reinstalled. Price also shared stories about the extent of work he’d done throughout the house, including evicting some squirrels who had been squatting on the 3rd floor and enjoyed feasting on wood doors!

A Storied Past

Built by wealthy Cincinnati businessman Thomas McIlvain in 1889, it was shared by his wife Ann, daughter Clara, and son Franklin. McIlvain was a captain of industry, his downtown firm, the McIlvain & Spiegel Boiler and Tank Co. was part of the local industrial boom of the time. They even fitted Cincinnati’s Queen of the West steamboat. His house at 301 Overton in Newport was built to impress with six bedrooms, a grand staircase, elegant fireplaces, and the latest comforts. McIlvain also built other residences nearby, including one next door for an employee. This architectural beauty remains one of Newport’s treasures.

Ann McIlvain passed away in 1895 (she, Thomas, and their children are buried in Spring Grove Cemetery), and to the shock of his children (and likely others), Thomas soon married his niece Catherine (his sister’s daughter) at a secret, pre-arranged ceremony in Chattanooga, Tennessee on December 17, 1895. After the ceremony, they retreated to Florida. Thomas died in Florida two years later on May 4, 1897, at age 71.

This was scandalous news, especially among the social elite. A sensational tabloid-worthy estate battle ensued and lasted nearly 20 years, with Thomas’ children coming out victorious in part thanks to incest laws.

During this time, as reported in the local press, Mrs. Clara Edwards was arrested after her stepmother accused her of using “vile epithets” in speaking of her. Clara was arrested and charged with “a breach of the peace”.

Several owners followed the McIlvain family and in the 1930s/40s, the house was used as a boarding house, later homeowners installed shag carpet along with curious updates-eventually, the house fell into a state of disrepair.

Their Stamp

Though Price had planned to move to California later, that date moved up and the Platt-Faulkners, along with their dog Lily (who prefers the tree-lined streets of Newport to downtown) purchased their dream home. This past year, the Platt-Faulkners welcomed their son, Ephraim.

Today’s homeowners have embraced their home and put their stamp on it with personal décor choices and are currently planning a new garden. They also finished projects that Price had not tackled yet, such as refinishing flooring on some levels, repairing and replacing woodwork and trim, and tackling a tricky fireplace project that required the careful work of a carver. Platt-Faulkner praises the craftsmen who have worked on their home since they acquired it.

“The house had had a massive restoration, and I was just really impressed with it, and we said we would keep in touch (with Price)” continuing, “We’ve kept in contact with him ever since about

because he had put so much of his time, energy, and effort into it. Just how much he knows about the house so anytime, so if I go to do something I’m always double-checking with him.”

“I think he really appreciates that like being involved in the process”, you want to put your stamp on your home but be respectful of his work.” Adding, “I’ve become good friends with him- we text him on a fairly regular basis, but the things that I just really love about this house in particular is the just the history of the home.” Zane’s passion for home design and sharing the history of the home led him to begin an Instagram account in late 2023 where he has amassed more than 38K followers. “I started my Instagram account, historically_zane , because I knew there were others out there who love old homes as much as I do and who also appreciate interior design. I had no idea the connections I would make through sharing our home, but it has been a wonderful ride!”

On living in Newport, they enjoy the community for “its convenient location, proximity to downtown and the arts, and the friendly neighbors.” This young family has embraced this storied house and its history, and they hope that their time in it enriches their own family story for years to come.