Ivory Soap Creator's House Faces The Wrecking Ball

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed)
Feb 27th 2010 at 9:01PM

A battle to save a historic house is going on in Cincinnati. A judge has ruled that the city has 30 days to provide compelling arguments that the historic Gamble House in the Westwood area should not be torn down. The Victorian home with an Italianate tower is a home that one of the co-founders of Procter & Gamble once lived in. Preservationists say that the home of the inventor of Ivory soap has historic significance even if it isn't registered as a historic site and is not located in a historic district.

The Greenacres Foundation owns the crumbling property and wants to demolish the home and use the site for its programs which include providing agricultural and environmental education to children. The Foundation says that it doesn't make economic sense for them to repair and maintain the property.

On March 26, court will reconvene to decide the fate of the mansion. The picture above comes from the Save the Historic Gamble Estate NOW! Facebook page which is mobilizing to save the home. There is an online petition and more than a thousand people have registered their support to preserve the home.

UPDATE: An earlier version of this post had the location listed as Westwood, Ohio when in fact this home is in the Westwood area of Cincinnati. We regret the error.

Tags: cincinnati, gamble house, GambleHouse, Proctor and Gamble, Proctor and Gamble PG, ProctorAndGamble, ProctorAndGamblePg, westwood ohio, WestwoodOhio

Filed under: Estates

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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)

alexanbd Feb 28th 2010 10:57PM

NOT Westwood, Ohio - it's the neighborhood of Westwood, on the west side of Cinicnnati. Westwood, Ohio is near Wooster.

The Greenacres Foundation is a charitable foundation run by the wife of the deceased son of the deceased P&G-co founder, Louise Nippert, who recently donated $85mln to the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra.

al schrader Mar 1st 2010 5:40AM

I live in Westwood Estates, it's a paradise on earth East of Walt Disney World, Florida. But Cincinnati, Ohio ? I think they just want to "clean" it up some (I love Ivory soap)....Al-

escpkey Mar 1st 2010 2:55PM

Build around it!!!

Derrel Mar 1st 2010 3:19PM

tear it down and put up some cement monolith blight...
or better yet how about some projects.

JustinOpinion Mar 1st 2010 3:14PM

This country amazes AND disgust me! How about taking a look overseas and seeing all the old manions, castles and such that are 100's and 1000's of years old. God forbid! In the USA the thought process is, TEAR IT DOWN! IT'S OLD!

Barbs Mar 1st 2010 4:08PM

Ha! Ha! Ha! I absolutely agree w/ you, JUSTINOPINION. The U.S. has a generation getting rid of everything old and lovely!

david halladay Mar 1st 2010 6:05PM

I agree one hundred percent

god72father Mar 1st 2010 10:50PM

It is made out of wood and not stone and will never last a thousand years because it was not built too last that long you putz.

evelyn Mar 1st 2010 3:27PM

How can anyone read his quote on that picture and even consider tearing this place down?

I lived in San Jose, CA - some of the priciest real estate in the USA and there was a magnificient, albeit neglected, mansion once owned by the founders of the successful Casa de Fruta business. This tumbledown mansion sat on the corner of Monterey Highway and a busy cross street. The acreage that once surrounded it had been sold piece by piece until there was just this house on about a 5 acre lot. The owners wanted to sell the valuable land, but didn't want to demolish this work of art. They agreed to sell the place for one dollar to anyone who would dismantle, move and put it back together and restore it. After a long wait and numerous inquiries, a couple who was up for the task came forward and bought the house. They have since restored it to its original splendor and it is a testament to the beautiful architecture of the time and probably worth 5 times what they have into it, despite all the expense. That is what this city should do with the Gamble house. It is a proud specimen of an exciting era in this country's history.

John Markley Mar 1st 2010 4:22PM

Why doesn't the foundation by the house and land or make a swap?
Why do people in this country always use lawyers instead of being fair or just mind their own bussiness?

Nic Mar 1st 2010 3:29PM

Why must we tear down the past - it DOES have history - and A LESSON to be learned from. "Let it be such work as our descendents will thank us for." The pride people took in what they did is something that few have instilled within them anymore. We are teaching our young people that the only thing that matters any more is the all mighty buck. Which isn't so all mighty anymore. The true meaning of family is the most important thing we can pass on to our children and the youth of America.

Even if the property is 'crumbling' and not already designated an historic site it is worth saving and when people, especially those with money, want something done these days it gets done. It would be a grand thing to save this wonderful old home. Refurbish it - do whatever people do to make it an historical site. Give or leash the land to the State - have tours - creating jobs - a nominal fee perhaps to tour the mansion and use the extra land to build a place to teach our younger generations the meaning of 'blood, sweat & tears'. Teach them that our forefathers did not have tractors and electric tools and ready to mix cement. They did not have the money to hire a construction crew to come in and 'do it for them'. If they wanted something done they did it themselves. More people should learn that lesson these days. It seems that too many people would rather just 'sweep it under the rug' or demolish it. I think that holds true for all things in life. What a shame that we keep moving further and further from why we came and settled in America in the first place.

I think it would be huge mistake to tear this old home down.

Chuckie Mar 1st 2010 5:39PM

I totaly agree with you about saving this beautiful old home. It would cost a small fortune to re-do it but it would be worth it in thje long run. As for teaching children about the way thing were done in the past, lots of luck. Not only are most of them not intrested but the're not even learning what this country is about and how we came about becoming a republic. Very little of that is being taught in school anymore. Now the're teaching them how great socialism is instead of learning what hard work will get you.

god72father Mar 1st 2010 10:55PM

Have you ever heard the story of the three little pigs . I am quite sure you have but you did not get the message. If you want something to last you build it out of brick or stone. Even a child knows that.

Chris Mar 1st 2010 3:41PM

"The Greenacres Foundation owns the crumbling property and wants to demolish the home and use the site for its programs which include providing agricultural and environmental education to children" Translation...The Greenacres Foundation wants to indoctrinate kids with more liberal lies about the environment.

Roberta Mar 1st 2010 3:56PM

All I know is that when I went back to show my daughter where I had lived and played with family and friends, there was nothing left to my past. IT was replaced with an industrial park which saddened me. I tried to point out where we had played, had picnics, etc. GONE. This was a man that made something positive, built a business to employ Americans and all we can offer him is the wrecking ball.

Thats one of the things wrong with America today... No respect for where we came from...Do we really need another cold, stone building???

brntbree Mar 1st 2010 4:05PM

Its family of the original owner that wants to tear down the house, and they have every right. Unless these people that want to keep it up, agree to hand over the money for the repairs and maintenance, then they do not have a right to decide what happens to the house.

mattydny Mar 1st 2010 4:10PM

Keep it!!!

kathychurns Mar 1st 2010 4:54PM

Please save the Gamble Mansion in Cincinnati Ohio.

The Duck Mar 1st 2010 4:47PM

Again the newly imported civic trash and convenience store magnates have exercised their right to tear down beautiful important buildings in America, not fitting to be included in their 99 cent ventures. This foreign trash should never be allowed to step on American soil.

Bob Hall Mar 1st 2010 4:55PM

We have lost a staggering amount of our history already. Older homes that are not only aesthetically pleasing but also demonstrative of real craftspersonship need to be saved, if only to show the future Americans that not everything we built was either off the assembly line or along the lines of a Gen X's McMansion. There are ample precedents for saving such a home and no doubt something can be done in this situation.

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