Joel Roberts Ninde on the Heritage Trail by ARCH ( Architecture and Community Heritage) lists Further Readings and addresses of several Notable Structures Designed by Joel Roberts Ninde. Joel Roberts was born in 1873 in Alabama and moved to Fort Wayne after her 1900 marriage to Lee Ninde. Instead of living in her in-laws’ dark and old estate, she decided to design her own house. Joel proceeded to design additional houses for family and friends and by 1909, she and Lee formed Wildwood Builders Company, a real estate and building company where Lee handled the real estate and Joel designed houses that were focused on the housewife and were individualized. Architect Grace Crosby joined the company to convey the technical aspects of Joel’s designs. The women were immensely successful with their designs and the business flourished. Eventually the pair opened their own separate company for both architecture and interior design. Unfortunately, Joel died in 1916 at age 42 and the partnership ended. Wildwood continued for awhile after Joel’s death, but Grace Crosby found other work. Copied from a May 7, 2022 Facbook post with several photos by Division of Historic Preservation and Archaeology (DHPA).
ARCH ( Architecture and Community Heritage) posted on Facebook March 27, 2013: Here's what the 1996 Fort Wayne Historic Sites and Structures Survey has to say about Joel: Joel Ninde (1874-1916), a woman self-taught in architecture, designed and built over 300 houses by 1914. Working with her husband, attorney, and salesman Lee J. Ninde, through their Wildwood Builders Company, Ninde and her design partner Grace Crosby created Colonial Revival and Craftsman style houses with innovative features appealing to the housewife. The company also published The Wildwood Magazine, a nationally known publication on the subjects of architecture, city planning, and interior design, from 1913-1917. Joel Ninde died of a stroke in 1916 at age 42. Although examples of her work survive in various parts of the city, both the South Wayne Historic District and the Shawnee Drive Historic District contain significant concentrations. Her own home (pictured) is located at 902 W. Wildwood Avenue. The house on St. Joseph Blvd., later occupied by Philo T. Farnsworth, was designed by Joel Roberts Ninde for her brother-in-law Daniel Ninde, one of the founders of Lincoln Nation Life Insurance. Newspaper article and photo by Cathie Roland June 12, 2009.
Joel Ninde and Grace Crosby were both architects who designed comfortable, convenient, and efficient homes at affordable prices. By 1910, Ninde’s designs were so popular that she and her husband, Lee J. Ninde, formed the Wildwood Builder’s Company. Grace Crosby joined the company soon after its founding. Crosby and Ninde formed the design department and supervised construction. This company designed and developed the neighborhoods of Wildwood Park, Lafayette Place, Brookview and others.
Ninde became known for her innovative ideas regarding city planning, and eventually became one of the publishers of The Wildwood Magazine, which grew into a forum for city planning throughout the country. Joel Ninde died in 1916 after suffering a stroke. Crosby continued to work for Wildwood Builders and other architectural firms until her retirement in 1930. #sociallyhistory
This is a picture from Wildwood Magazine (published by Joel Ninde and the Wildwood Company). This summer of 1916 edition is a picture from an article [ Our Garden at Illsley ]written by Anna Bond Brown, describing the creation of her gardens. The picture shows a woman riding on a horse, leading away from the Illsley Homestead. This expansive property would eventually become Illsley Place.
Thank you Adrienne Maurer!
Comment by George Robert Davis: Franklin Illsley Brown married into the wealthy Charles Bond family. When Isaac Packard died in the late 1800's, Charles took over the Packard Organ and Piano Company. There is a very short Bond Street about half way between Fairfield and Hoagland going south from Kinsmore which used to be called Organ Street. Charles owned land in 07 District. I'm guessing it was between Rudisill & Oakdale east of Broadway. In the early 1900's the Illsley Manson was rotated 90 degrees and moved south of the driveway which became Illsley Drive. Now the house number is 1225 Illsley Drive which you can see on Google Maps. There is much more to this story.
The Joel Roberts Ninde photo shown on other posts on page 14 through page 18 discusses her houses with photos in Fort Wayne. Continues on page 47.
March 24, 2023 post by the Genealogy Center on Facebook:
March is Women’s History Month! Each Friday this month, we are featuring stories to highlight the contributions and work of Fort Wayne women over the years! Today, we are featuring Joel Roberts Ninde, a Fort Wayne architect!
Joel Roberts Ninde was born in 1874 in Alabama to Willis Roberts and Moffitt (Peacock) Roberts. She moved to Fort Wayne at a young age and married Lee Ninde, a Harvard educated attorney, in 1900.
After marrying Lee, Mrs. Ninde did not want to live in “Wildwood”, the old family estate. Instead, she desired something cozy with a yard that she could cultivate. She house-hunted, searching high and low, but could not find what she was looking for. Although she did not possess a formal education in architecture, with a creative eye, she designed her first home for herself and her husband Lee. People were immediately interested in buying the home that Mrs. Ninde had designed - her career blossomed!
Soon, Lee gave up his law practice and the couple went into business together, forming the Wildwood Builders Company. The husband and wife team, along with design partner, Grace E. Crosby, created two of the first subdivisions in Fort Wayne - Wildwood Park and Lafayette Place. She was known for “the practical as well as the artistic” in her homebuilding. She planned houses with ample windows for light and ventilation and “sleeping porches that could be turned into cozy rooms”. Mrs. Ninde also furnished the homes that she built and would plant vines, flowers, and trees as she “believed in using nature whenever possible to enhance the beauty of the homes.”
Mrs. Ninde died March 7, 1916 at the age of 42 from a stroke. She was described as having “great personal charm, nobility of character, tender sympathy” along with a great love for the “beautiful and artistic”. She is buried in Lindenwood Cemetery along with her husband and their infant daughter.
(1914, November 14). Fort Wayne Woman Turns to Architecture and Becomes Creator of Honeymoon Row. The Fort Wayne Sentinel, p. 31.
(1915, February 4). Makes a Specialty of Designing Homes. The Brooklyn Daily Eagle, p. 23.
(1916, March 20). Resolutions Passed Upon the Death of Mrs. Lee Ninde. The Fort Wayne News, p. 9.
(1992, March 4). Founding Mothers. Journal Gazette.
American Association of University Women, Fort Wayne Branch. (1988). Memorable fort wayne women: A women's history project of american association of university women, Fort Wayne, Indiana branch.
March is Women's History Month. We're going to spend the last few days of the month celebrating Indiana's first female architects, Joel Ninde (pronounced Jo-elle; Ninde rhymes with mind) and Grace Crosby.
Here's what the 1996 "Fort Wayne Historic Sites and Structures Survey" has to say about Joel:
"Joel Ninde (1874-1916), a woman self-taught in architecture, designed and built over 300 houses by 1914. Working with her husband, attorney, and salesman Lee J. Ninde, through their Wildwood Builders Company, Ninde and her design partner Grace Crosby created Colonial Revival and Craftsman style houses with innovative features appealing to the housewife. The company also published The Wildwood Magazine, a nationally known publication on the subjects of architecture, city planning, and interior design, from 1913-1917. Joel Ninde died of a stroke in 1916 at age 42. Although examples of her work survive in various parts of the city, both the South Wayne Historic District and the Shawnee Drive Historic District contain significant concentrations. Her own home (pictured) is located at 902 W. Wildwood Avenue.
Joel Ninde and Grace Crosby were both architects who designed comfortable, convenient, and efficient homes at affordable prices. By 1910, Ninde’s designs were so popular that she and her husband, Lee J. Ninde, formed the Wildwood Builder’s Company. Grace Crosby joined the company soon after its founding. Crosby and Ninde formed the design department and supervised construction. This company designed and developed the neighborhoods of Wildwood Park, Lafayette Place, Brookview and others.
Ninde became known for her innovative ideas regarding city planning, and eventually became one of the publishers of The Wildwood Magazine, which grew into a forum for city planning throughout the country. Joel Ninde died in 1916 after suffering a stroke. Crosby continued to work for Wildwood Builders and other architectural firms until her retirement in 1930. #sociallyhistory
The home of Joel Ninde in the Historic South Wayne Neighborhood Association is for sale.
Approximately one year ago, we posted on this historic home. It was one of our most popular posts. For anyone interested in capturing a piece of history, architecturally, and it being the home of Ninde, who was among the earliest women to work in architecture, check the link below.
In fact, after Joel's death in 1916, the home was purchased by author Gene Stratton-Porter for her daughter. "Joel Roberts Ninde was among the earliest women to work in architecture, building a number of homes under the auspices of the Wildwood Building Company which gained a national reputation for practicality and innovation . . . Ninde managed to build quite a reputation as one of the early twentieth century’s most popular architects. In 1914, the Indianapolis Star wrote an article on Joel stating that she had designed and built over 300 houses." ARCH, Inc.
