Prepare To Be Charmed: A Walking Tour

Last week when I was visiting family in Ohio, I drove around through some of the nearby neighborhoods. The majority of the streets are tree-lined with sidewalks on both sides. So charming!

I noticed new trees had been planted in a few spots, probably where a tree had died. I love that the folks who are living here today care enough about their lovely city to preserve it for future generations.

Tree Lined Streets in Beautiful Older Neighborhoods

 

I’m still sick (running a fever today) so I’m going to keep my  comments to a minimum in this post. Some of the pictures were taken from my car as I drove by, others were taken with my cell during our walk to a nearby restaurant. So the houses in this tour are not all on the same street, some are many streets away from each other.

You’ll see a lot of flags flying…love that! Hope you enjoy the tour, it’s all about home town America. If you listen closely, you’re bound to hear kids playing Kick the Can, Freeze Tag  and Red Rover. You may even smell an apple pie cooling in a nearby kitchen window. 🙂

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I shared this picture in a post a few days ago…

House

 

…here’s a better photo showing the front of the home. Love this house, it’s one of my favorites in this area.

Charming Older Homes

 

There are a lot of Tudor style homes in this area. Some feel like “Storybook” homes.

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Many of the lamp poles had signs welcoming residents home. The flower boxes were filled with real, live flowers! Wish I could get my flowers to bloom like this!

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I saw a lot of Tudor homes with the rock/stone accents around the doors. The Tudor style originated in Tudor England and its key design elements are steeply pitched roofs, decorative half timbering and embellished doors. The half timbering design we see today is supposed to mimic medieval construction techniques where the timbering would have actually provided structure and support and wasn’t just decorative. The inset doors offered protection from the elements and the cut stone blocks around the doorway enhanced the curb appeal of the home.

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Another charming Tudor…

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There were daylilies planted all along the front walkway and they were about to explode in bloom. I was just a little early to capture it.

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Love this house!

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I can’t decide if I like home designs that are very symmetrical like the one above or if I prefer those that are asymmetrical, like the one below. I really like both. What about you?

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We passed this house on our walk to dinner and I was fascinated by the roof. It’s done in the style of the old English homes that have thatched roofs. The roof tiles were literally bending over/rounding down like thatch roofs do. This was the best photo I could get because the house had a really tall hedge running across the front hiding it from view.

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No cookie-cutter neighborhoods for miles around.

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Some of the landscaping we saw was so pretty. It was a gorgeous day!

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A grand Tudor!

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Love the big old trees lining the streets.

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Another lovely Tudor home…

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Is this not the cutest storybook home?! Love those darling shutters and the overflowing window box.

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This home appears to be a Tudor style home, but instead of the usual brown, the decorative half timbering was painted green. I love the roof!

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This house reminded me so much of the homes I saw in Isle of Hope, just outside Savannah.

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Love the red door!

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I really love the design of this home. It reminds me of the Tudor style with its steeply pitched roof and decorative stone around the door, but it doesn’t have the half timbering we’re so used to seeing on a Tudor home. I wonder if this is still considered a Tudor style home without the half timbering? Anyone know?

I see that they’ve recently planted a tree in front. I wonder if a tree was there before and this is a replacement tree.

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There’s is something so special about a tree-lined street.

Older Neighborhood with Tree-Lined Street

 

Love beautiful old homes as much as I do?

Take a tour of the lovely homes in Isle of Hope here: Isle of Hope, Part I and here:  Isle of Hope, Part II

Isle of Hope House

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Comments

  1. Susan, I adore older homes. As to your question, I suppose I am more of a symmetrical house person, but love them all. This must be in southern or central OH. My niece lives in n.e. OH in Hudson, the most charming little village-like place. Brick homes there are rare and I love the very different trees I see there from those we enjoy in the south.
    I’m sending you Get Well wishes and hope you are feeling better already!
    I worked in my garden on this hot summer day in Memphis and am a wilted mess! I know you’re familiar with that! Take care and feel better.

  2. Barb Duncan says

    Beautiful homes and neighborhood!
    Where in Ohio were you?
    Thank you for your always interesting posts.

  3. I’m sorry you’re not feeling well. I hope you get better soon. That is a stunningly beautiful street! I had just been thinking how all the homes are unique, and then the next line in your blog was they’re not cookie cutter homes! I would love to have a huge porch like those homes have. At first I thought I liked the Tudor homes the most, but when I saw the huge homes with the balconies and porches, I think I like them both equally.

  4. Wow lovely place! I hope you are better soon and have a good weekend!
    Take care.

  5. Nancy delahooke says

    How lovely the tree lined streets and well maintained homes and gardens.
    Here in Southern California, because of the drought, our watering days are
    limited, the lawns are dying and our cities are digging up the beautiful
    flowers. It is very depressing so it was pure joy to take a vicarious tour
    of these homes in Ohio.

    • Regality (aka The Quing) says

      Nancy, another Californian here–SF Bay Area. Our gardens are dying as well, which is very sad for me, because gardening is my passion.

    • I just hate that you guys are going through that. Georgia went through it a few years back and they were on the verge of rationing water where we would have it only a few hours each day, then the rains came and life finally returned to normal. Everyone just about gave up on their yards during that time.

  6. Susan, Such lovely homes. I saw several homes that are like them in either St. Jo. or Hiawatha. Since these are very old towns, it goes to stand they would be established and lovely.

    I don’t think your body can take you not pushing so hard. Maybe like all of us you need to learn. I know I do. It’s so easy to see so much to do.

    Have a restful weekend.

  7. What a beautiful homes! I like both types, but would prefer to live in symmetrical house.

  8. Regality (aka The Quing) says

    What a wonderful town! I love the long view of the street. Perfect.

    So sorry to hear you’re sick. I bet you’re the victim of the same faux pas I was earlier in the year. Got my flu shot…first day it was offered, only to find that the shot covered only 2 of the 5 strains that were eventually identified. Get well soonest!

  9. Florence says

    What a wonderful post for the lovers of these beautiful older homes. You never disappoint! I’m browsing through them over and over again, really loving something different about each.
    Sending get well wishes….

  10. Hi Susan. Feel better soon! I grew up in the Detroit area and the tour reminds me of my younger years. Beautiful tree lined streets, interesting homes. I live in the desert now but I sure do miss the uniqueness of the midwest (not the winters though). Drink lots of fluids.

  11. WOW! When I saw this I thought I was home and I practically was as I grew up in a little town just outside Cincinnati. Later we moved to an English Tudor closer in to Cincy. My husband is from there as well and we lived in several different states since those days and now live in Florida. Last fall we traveled back there to attend to my husband’s high school reunion and of course I had to see my old house. The half timber was gone, however the owners did a wonderful job reinventing the exterior and landscaping. As I took a couple of photos the owners came out of the house and I was able to chat with them and tell them this was my childhood home. They were packing up their car and graciously let us wonder to their back yard to look around. How lucky was that? After that my husband and I took a walking tour of the beautiful tree lined neighborhood while I sucked in the ambiance of a long time past. Sending healing vibes your way!!

  12. Dear Susan, Absolutely adore this post. Beautifully kept older homes with pristine landscaping and lawns situated on tree lined streets take me back to a more tranquil time. The varied materials and architecture makes one want to stroll or drive slowly past each home in order to not miss a bit of uniqueness. I think the one you named “cutest storybook home” is calling your name so you can be close by to see that grandson more often. Thanks for a most enjoyable post. Hope you feel better soon. Vikki in VA

  13. Hi Susan, Hope this finds you feeling better. My late husband was from the midwest and I always admired the older neighborhoods in Detroit where he was from. So hometown all-American and idyllic looking. These homes are beautiful, so inviting and cozy looking. Thanks for sharing.

  14. We were just in Dayton, but have no time to just enjoy the environs… these neighborhoods are so lovely and the pride of ownership and upkeep and beautification is so evident.. I love that….Thanks for sharing! Hope you are feeling better soon

  15. Susan, your emails are the first thing I open in my inbox. I share your love for home design, porches, and feathering the nest. These Ohio homes reminded me of my hometown, Elgin, Illinois with its river running through it, tree-lined streets and lovely old Victorians. I recently learned that the magazine, “This Old House” honored Elgin as the best place to purchase an heirloom home to restore.

    Take good care of yourself and I hope you’ll be feeling better real soon 🙂

    Diane in Pasadena, California

  16. I think white houses with black shutters are the most beautiful of all the houses.

  17. Maeva Cook says

    Thank you for the tour! Lovely homes.

  18. My parents were from Shaker Heights, Ohio. My grandparents lived in the area too. This looks so much like the streets I remember when we were visiting. The neighborhood I grew up in just north of Chicago looks much the same. I love old neighborhoods. There is so much variety and charm. When David and I moved down to Texas a couple of years ago, we bought a home that was built in 1948. Most of the homes in our immediate neighborhood are from that era. All are different and unique. Nothing cookie cutter. I think it is sad that new homes all tend to look the same. It seems that it would be hard to remember which house is home.

    Big Texas Hugs,
    Susan and Bentley

  19. Peggy Bostic says

    Susan,
    thanks for the tour. I have never seen an old house I didn’t love!

    Hope you feel better soon………Peggy

  20. Nancy Trotta says

    Our first home (’71) was listed as a doll house! I loved it. It was in Hawthorne, NJ. It’s still an old fashioned sidewalk town. Nearby Ridgewood is about the prettiest town in the area, with a small town movie theater and a perfect setting for Memorial Day parades…kids sitting on the curb waving little American flags. Generations of neighbors from the 40’s, 50’s, 60’s all clapping for our servicemen, policemen, and first responders. That was a time of innocence that this generation, sadly, won’t experience.
    What a shame. How many towns don’t even celebrate this holiday. Just another day off–“a long weekend”. Do you exhibit the American flag in your town?

  21. My favorite post ever! It shouts Americana, summer, home, childhood, more summer etc. and I can’t get enough of these photos. (how Christmasy it must be in Dec). Definitely pro asymetrical here–seems more dynamic, but don’t know why I feel that. How unfair to get so sick on top of the drive from hell. Rest, then after a bite to eat, rest some more. Again, Favorite. Post. Ever. Thanks for sharing, Susan.

    • lol Really! I’m just glad it didn’t start that morning. I don’t think I could have dealt with the drive AND this crude I have at the same time. Thanks, Mia!

  22. Love these old houses! You asked about the trees. In some cities while the homeowner is responsible for mowing the area between the sidewalk and the street the city owns the property and decides what gets planted there and what doesn’t. I only know this because during an ice storm several years ago the city I lived in took down the two damaged trees in front of our house and replaced them with only 1 tree. We were bummed to loose them!

  23. Susan, thank you for the tour of homes. They are all charming in their own way. One house, looked as if it had eyes!!
    Now instead of spoiling us, just spoil yourself and rest and get better soon.
    Meg

  24. Great photos of beautiful homes Susan! These older homes are so charming!
    Thanks for sharing them. Hope you feel better soon!
    Have a lovely weekend!
    LuAnn 😉

  25. What a delightful post. These homes are absolutely wonderful and the attention to detail and the care the owners give them makes them the stuff of dreams. BTW…your photography is awfully good, the photos I take of “dreamy” houses rarely convey the gracious feel and how lush the surroundings are the way yours do. Thank you so much!

    • Thanks, Jane! I had to crop some of the width of the pictures so the homes would be big enough to really see in each picture, so the properties are actually more beautiful than the pictures show. I was also taking the pictures from a car so I could cover more area so the angles are sometimes a bit awkward. 🙂 Thanks for that encouragement…means a lot!

  26. Loved the tour of homes, Susan. Everything so green and pretty. Another So. Californian with a large yard which is turning brown. Hope you are feeling better and taking care of yourself. Enjoyed the post of your favorite things. Ordered a few things. The perfume that you liked so much was available from Japan ??? It went through Amazon and I hope everything is ok.

    • I think it was shipped from Japan when I ordered mine, too. I guess everything comes from there or China these days. It took about a month for me to get it. I think it didn’t ship for like three weeks then shipped and arrived pretty quickly. Hope you love it as much as I do. 🙂

  27. Mary Ann says

    Susan, loved the home tour! Love, love your blog! I also love old homes. I love going on home tours, and often go on a Christmas home tour in middle Tennessee. There are some beautiful old plantation homes in middle Tenn. and they are so pretty at Christmas. These homes in your pictures are so lovely and well maintained. I also wish my flowers would bloom as pretty as these. Our humid heat in the south wrecks havoc on my flowers in mid to late summer! Hope you feel better soon. I, too have had the “bug” and still have a lingering cough. Seems so much worse to have this in the summertime!

    • Thanks so much, Mary Ann! I know, it’s 91 outside on the porch today! I guess we’re making up for that real cool spring we had. I’m still sick, too…this stuff doesn’t want to go away! I hope you feel better soon. A friend told me she coughed for about a month afterwards. Ugh.

  28. Such bliss. What is it about tree-lined neighborhoods that brings out the nostalgia in everyone? (Well, in everyone whose ever lived in one.) This neighborhood tour could have been “small town, USA.” Thanks so much for letting us come along with you. 🙂

    • Kathy, you are so right, it really could be! We have a lot of streets with houses like this in Georgia, just not usually tree-lined. The trees really make a world of difference!

  29. Yes, I love older homes (but not the maintenance) and established neighborhoods, and I suppose I’m more a symmetry-loving type, although many different styles appeal to me. I have a sister who lives in Kettering, right outside of Dayton. 🙂 The area I live is tree-lined on one avenue, just a couple blocks over, that were planted over 100 years ago by our city. It is gorgeous, but there are issues with storm damage. Many people are convincing the city to cut down these trees, and it is always sad to see them come down. However, I have seen some significant damage with summer storms from those trees too. We’re doing our best to keep our trees on our riverbank (our property across the street from our home), even cabling one to strengthen its branch spread to weather the storms.

    Thanks for the tour, Susan, and I hope you feel better real soon. Being sick in bad weather is bad enough, but being sick when the weather is good is totally yuk.
    Rita

    • Oh, that makes me sad! They get snow every year in this area of Ohio…wonder if they have issues with the trees. Kettering is an area my son and dil have recommended to me if I ever move to that area. It’s five minutes from where they live but the taxes are a lot less. Taxes are high where they live due to the schools and other services that are provided. Please tell your sister to please let me know if a beautiful old home with a great back yard becomes available. 🙂

  30. I loved the tour, it would be hard to tell which one was my favorite as they were all lovely. Hope you feel better soon.

  31. pam ~ crumpety cottage says

    Love, love, love these neighborhoods! So beautiful, Susan. And so encouraging to see people taking pride in their homes and communities. I absolutely love the “Welcome Home,” sign! I’ve lived all over the country (except Ohio, lol) and never seen a Welcome Home sign before. What a lovely touch. More neighborhoods should do that.

    These pictures actually remind me of my previous neighborhood. We had a new house in an old neighborhood, so we had the best of both worlds, imo. But yes, I always loved driving through the twisty turny streets and just oohing and ahhing at all the pretty houses, trees and landscaping. It’s good to know there are still people out there who appreciate and cherish the concept of home and community. Thanks for the tour and feel better! 🙂

  32. pam ~ crumpety cottage says

    P.S. All the houses were lovely, so many great specifics but too many to mention. I did think I saw a couple of small-ish cottage style houses that would make a great new home for your blog. 😉 And btw, that house with the thatched roof style roof – wow! I’ve never seen one like that that I can recall. Thatched roofs are so cozy, but they make too comfy a home for tons of critters, lol. Eek.

  33. Susan, these are lovely homes. My son and his family live in Mansfield, OH and these remind me a lot of the houses there. I am currently staying with my sister while she is undergoing a stem cell transplant for myelodisplasia at Vanderbilt University in Nashville TN. She is at day 51 after transplant and there is not much she is able to do so we do a lot of driving around looking at homes which is something we love to do anyway. The West End of Nashville has an abundance of older homes that are gorgeous, a lot like the ones you have posted. We are from central Kentucky so we enjoy driving around in different cities. Thanks for your posts, I really enjoy them..

  34. Susan…
    Loved this post…Older homes are my favorite…I live in a house that was built around 1910…my little town has several tree lined streets and many styles of older homes…but these in Ohio are amazing!! Would love to see then in person…thanks for sharing…

  35. Marlene Stephenson says

    I know they don’t make neighborhoods like they use to. They go in and clear the land,no sidewalks, no trees,they just look so empty and hot. I love your little tour,thanks Susan. I went on my vac to Yellowstone,was gone 2 wks. It was wonderful.

  36. Hi Susan, Oh, how I loved the tour. So many of these homes look like the ones in my little town we’ve moved to. I love to drive or walk by at night and peep inside when the curtains are open and the lights are on! 🙂 Sorry to hear you’re sick. Take care of yourself.
    Be a sweetie,
    Shelia 😉

  37. Susan, get well soon. Thanks for the beautiful tour.

  38. Hope you’re feeling better now, still, you need to rest!!

    Thanks for the tour, just beautiful!! We have the same style of homes here in the northeast, love them all. I am an asymmetrical person, but then it depends on what other features the house has. Really love the large front porch!!

  39. bobbi duncan says

    Americana at it’s best! Every house is lovely. I wondered if your relatives lived around Dayton because previous pics you showed so reminded me of that area. I remember many Tudor homes from my travels throughout Ohio, especially with the stone around the door. I think the ones without half timbers are still considered Tudors. I like both symmetrical and asymmetrical homes, but I seem to prefer asymmetrical for the cottage styles as they seem cozier and more story-bookish to me. I was sorry to hear you weren’t feeling well, but am glad you’re much better now. I’m in Destin FL. this week reuniting with a bunch of long-time girlfriends ( it is so hot down here! but we are having a ball shopping, being lazy, and laughing our butts off talking about old times). I’ve been showing the gang some of your previous blogs and they all said you have a terrific blog with so much diversity. Kudos to you!! Hope you have a nice week-end. Hugs.

  40. marilyn in mt. vernon, va says

    Canton, Ohio, has beautiful old homes with tree-lined boulevards. Many styles, and many tudors. Enjoyed this very much. I am from Ohio but left years ago. Thanks for the trip, Susan!

  41. Sorry you are not feeling well. Hope it doesn’t last long.
    Thanks for the tour of these charming Ohio homes. They definitely charmed!
    Actually a few of them remind me of our home. ‘-)
    My brother-in-law and his wife live in Columbus. Their former neighborhood was full of charming homes as well. Haven’t been to their new home, but suspect it is as well.
    Take care!

  42. Bernadette says

    I left a comment before that I thought this was Asheville, NC. These homes look just like the homes here!!! You need to visit Asheville sometime and see the beauty of the mountains along with the homes.

  43. Susan, This is a beautiful community and your son and his family must enjoy living here! I agree that tree lined streets are the best, and the addition of the sidewalks adds to the friendly atmosphere. So convenient for strolling and meeting neighbors! Old communities with unique homes are just wonderful and should be treasured. Thanks for the tour~~I could look at houses all day! Linda

  44. Marilyn (in Ohio) says

    Love this post! I’m in northeastern Ohio & so many of the pictures remind me of some of the streets around here – thank you.
    Your photography is so good – you seem to be able to take an ordinary scene & make it extraordinary! Good job….

    • Thanks so much, Marilyn. It’s really wonderful to see in person, I was hoping to capture as much of the beauty of the neighborhoods as I could. The trees make it feel so special, just wouldn’t be the same without them.

  45. Anne(grew up in Kettering) says

    Susan, Thank you so much for the wonderful home tour.As I said I grew up in Kettering,Ohio, and the photos were like a trip home. Flags always flying, flowers and neat lawns, and all those wonderful porches.

    • Next time I’m up there for a visit, I’ll have to drive through Kettering and take pictures. That area is beautiful, as well! You grew up in a lovely place, Anne!

  46. Wow! I new this was the Dayton Area…..my son lives there and we have had the wonderful experience of driving around Kettering, Beavercreek, etc. He lives in a wonderful little area called McPherson (about 99 restored houses across the bridge from downtown). We are heading there on Thursday to spend a few days. Sadly, he is moving to Boston at the end of the summer but we have loved getting to know this wonderful area. I would have never known how lovely it is!

  47. The family and I were at Disneyland the day you posted this….I am so glad I went back to play catch-up! The neighborhood is so beautiful! The Tudor is among my favorite type of home (you should see my Pinterest real estate board…ha), and I feel like I want to pin every wonderful picture you have so graciously shared! Thank you for a lovely tour!

  48. I now want a big glass of sweet iced tea or lemonade

  49. Linda Louise S. says

    Susan, Thanks for the tour. Such beautiful homes. I could just move right into any of them. Have a wonderful day.

  50. Jennifer says

    I love walking tours of older neighborhoods and live in Ohio, where were you at?

  51. Mmmm….so charming and picturesque! And if I have to guess I’d say it was Oakwood–a little suburb south of Dayton, Ohio, no? (where I grew up). Thank you for the tour.

    BTW I love your blog! A feast for the eyes.

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