The Belden House
1902
The Belden House is a late Revival Style home with Queen Anne and Beaux Arts
features. Some of these features are: An asymmetrical facade; classic ionic columns; gables that are cantilevered out beyond
the plane of the wall below; and dentils and brackets accentuating the varying architectural features.
The
original staircases and railing on the Belden House front porch were removed. You can see that by 1909 the staircase on the
Cherry street side is no longer there, and the railing on the front porch is changed slightly. Notice the (what I am going
to call) cupolas on the rooftop. This is a curious feature that is no longer there. In spite of these small changes, most
of the unique features of our house still exist.
The first owners were Emma
and Charles Clinton Belden, who were also owners of a very successful saddlery and harness shop with T.L. Hehir. Their son,
Ralph, became very influential in Santa Rosa's and Sonoma County's growth and development by the end of World War I. He was
cashier of the Savings Bank of Santa Rosa, and President of the Bank of Guerneville.
