The Williams Farmhouse in Coxhall Gardens has changed little since being constructed in 1865. Now, nearly 160 years later, several local organizations are partnering to restore the structure and preserve it for generations to come.

Coxhall Gardens, at 11677 Towne Rd. in Carmel, is owned by Hamilton County Parks & Recreation. The Friends of Hamilton County Parks foundation helped launch the restoration initiative by donating $375,000.

“This project aligns with the Friends of Hamilton County Parks foundation and our mission to encourage and grow parks and park amenities for the benefit of all of Hamilton County,” said April Williams, executive director of the foundation. “We believe preserving history is an important piece of the future growth of our parks.”

During the mid-1800s, John Williams owned and farmed the land that later became Coxhall Gardens. According to Christy Brockton, historical resource specialist for Hamilton County Parks and Recreation, the Williams family constructed their farmhouse on the land and owned it generationally until 1962, when the Cox family purchased the site. Jesse Cox donated the home to HCPR in 1999.

“He wanted to provide an oasis in a sea of homes,” Brockton said. “So instead of this house being knocked down for subdivisions, it’s now preserved here.”

Brockton said the Williams Farmhouse is the second-oldest Italianate home in Clay Township.

“(The family was) prosperous and able to afford a house like this and construct it,” Brockton said. “The room configurations are the same as it would have been when the family owned the house. It’s still associated with the actual land it was on and the original farm.”

HCPR is working with Ball State University and the Carmel Historic Preservation Commission to develop a plan to restore and preserve the home.

“The idea is to stabilize the house, which is in pretty great shape, but also preserve the character of the home,” Brockton said.

A timeline for the project has not been set.

Home details

According to the National Register of Historic Places, the Williams Farmhouse is a 30.5-foot-by-55-foot Italianate brick-styled home, a design characterized by exteriors typically made of brick or wood, thick overhanging gutters with prominent ornamental brackets and wide cornices. It is a two-story, single-family house with an unfinished attic, a partial basement and a garage.

Its kitchen was updated with 1960 appliances and cabinets. The kitchen still has its original flooring from the 1800s. Next to the kitchen is a dining room. In the kitchen is a staircase that leads to the second floor, containing three bedrooms that have most of their original configuration. The second floor also has a bathroom that was installed in the 20th century.

The exterior of the farmhouse is fleshed out with bracket cornices and decorative vents. Its foundation consists of load-bearing masonry walls. The windows of the home are the same as they were when the home was first built. They feature a projected limestone keystone and sill. The home’s five exterior doors have their original pattern and location.

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A number of factors, organizations, and individuals were involved in the significant transfer of land in Hamilton County by Central Indiana Land Trust, Inc. (CILTI) to Hamilton County Parks and Recreation (HCPR). The transfer will result in the county park department gaining 129 acres of non-developed land, referred to as Burr Oak Bend, which is comprised of land parcels that are adjacent to and near an existing canoe landing the park department currently owns and maintains.

The amount of land transferred will permit HCPR to provide increased public access and expanded passive recreation opportunities in and around Riverwood Canoe Landing, located on the banks of White River at 20814 Riverwood Avenue, in Noblesville. Additionally, the overlapping stewardship objectives of both CILTI and HCPR will ensure the continued preservation and protection of the land in perpetuity.

Individuals that played a role in the CILTI Land Transfer of Burr Oak Bend recently gathered at the site to recognize the momentous transaction. Flanking a ceremonial Burr Oak planting are (L to R): Friends Foundation Board Members Ryan Fuhrmann, Todd Irwin, Thomas McLean and Executive Director April Williams; CILTI staff Stephanie Paine Crossin and Executive Director Cliff Chapman; HCPR Director Chris Stice; Hamilton County Council President Steve Schwartz, Hamilton County Commissioner Mark Heirbrandt, and HCPR Deputy Director Bruce Oldham. (Photo courtesy of Byron Settles, Staff, Hamilton County)

The complex transaction was set in motion seventeen years ago when CILTI first provided the land on which the park department created Riverwood Canoe Landing – a public access point to White River. Measured access was achieved then by the installation of a path through the wooded bank area to the river and serviced by a small parking lot off Riverwood Avenue. The original funding CILTI used to purchase the land came from a settlement from the White River fish kill in 1999. At a later date, Steve Schwartz, now a respected member and President of the Hamilton County Council, who also serves as the Council’s Park Liaison, along with his wife Lori, deeded one of the six parcels of land that now comprise what is known as Burr Oak Bend to CILTI, to ensure its proper care, for the benefit of the Hamilton County community. That parcel of land was included in the recent transfer.

Another environmentally aware organization involved in the transfer, Friends of Hamilton County Parks, Inc., recognized the benefits of increasing community access to the land, as well. Members on the “Friends” board, learning that use of the canoe landing had far exceeded its capacity during the pandemic, moved to provide a portion of the funding necessary for the land transfer.

Director of Hamilton County Parks and Recreation, Chris Stice states, “this land transfer is made all the more important, knowing that the Indiana Department of Natural Resources lists Hamilton County as a CRITICAL County – a designation that identifies the county as significantly lacking in parkland, based on the ratio of available park space to the population it should sustain.” Stice continues, “We are truly grateful to Cliff Chapman, CILTI’s Executive Director and Stephanie Paine Crossin, the organization’s Land Protection Manager, for the roles they played in making this land transfer possible, as well as our visionary elected officials and all of those groups and individuals that supported this important transaction.”

HCPR’s goal to provide passive recreation to Hamilton County residents, central to its mission, will be achieved by the installation of strategically placed, multi-use trails on the newly acquired land, serviced by a minimum of access points that accommodate a limited number of users’ vehicles.

No timeline has been set for trail development at this time. Stice anticipates that, when completed, the trails will be used and enjoyed for wildlife viewing, photography, nature education programming, running, walking and a host of other quiet recreation activities, for years to come. To learn more about the critical mission of CILTI, and how you can support the not-for-profit’s efforts, visit ConservingIndiana.org. For more information about Friends of Hamilton County Parks, Inc. visit FriendsofHamiltonCountyParks.org. And find out more about Hamilton County Parks at MyHamiltonCountyParks.com, or on the department’s facebook page, or by calling 317-770-4400.

One of Indiana’s largest supporters of its county’s parks, The Friends of Hamilton County Parks, Inc., (FHCPI) announced the hiring of April Williams, formerly with Trilogy Health Care Services and the Columbus Park Foundation, as its new executive director in January 2022. Williams also comes to the nonprofit from several entrepreneurial business and professional consultant endeavors.

Williams will work with the foundation board and its volunteers to secure new donors, establish a larger funding base, build community recognition, provide marketing strategy, and forge new partnerships for several key FHCPI fundraisers, including April Sensation ( April 30th, 2022) and Posh Picnic ( August 20th, 2022), events staged in cooperation with the Coxhall Guild, as well as the popular On Par for Parks annual golf outing, scheduled to take place once again at the prestigious Crooked Stick Golf Course on September 19th, 2022.

Todd Irwin, of the Noblesville, Indiana-based company, BlueSky Commerce and an FHCPI Board member, has served as the Foundation’s golf outing fundraiser for the last 4 years.

Additional details related to these and other FHCPI special events can be found on the foundation’s website at www.friendsofhamiltoncountyparks.org.

Friends of Hamilton County Parks, Inc. was formed as a 501(c)(3)in 2006 and is led by its board president, Bruce Snyder, The Snyder Financial Group, LLC, Carmel, Indiana.

When asked about Williams’ recent hire, Snyder stated “April brings to the organization a fine balance of marketing savvy, philanthropic experience, and a bevy of unique personal and professional experiences that will ensure that The Friends will navigate the new challenges facing many nonprofits in 2022 and beyond.”

Ms. Williams added, “I am delighted to be returning to the philanthropic community and especially to the parks. I know that the Hamilton County community is where I can lend my new business, resource development, marketing, and fundraising expertise, with the goal of building new opportunities for county residents and park stakeholders.”

Williams will be replacing interim Executive Director Thomas E. McLean, who served in that capacity since last year.  McLean will rejoin the board in which he served prior.

To learn more about Friends of Hamilton County Parks, Inc. and how you or your organization can support the foundation’s worthwhile mission, please continue browsing our site.