Howard Taft Historic Site in Cincinnati OH

Home       Back       Next

William Howard Taft National Historic Site is a National Historic Site in Cincinnati, Ohio, maintained by the National Park Service of the United States. At the site is the house where William Howard Taft was born in 1857. He lived in that house for most of his first 25 years. William Howard Taft's father, Alphonso Taft, came to Cincinnati from Vermont in 1838 to establish a law practice. He moved his family to this house a little over a decade later.

The house is believed to have been built in the early 1840s by a family named Bowen. Alphonso bought the house , with its accompanying 1.82 acres, for $10,000 on June 13, 1851. The residence, a Greek Revival domicile, was relatively modest compared to other nearby residences.

By 1961, the house was in poor condition and needed restoration, to the tune of $92,500. It was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1964. A ceremony on September 15, 1964 (William's 107th birthday), celebrated the home becoming a National Historic Landmark. The association gained full title to the house in 1968 and in 1969 transferred it to the National Park Service, which currently operates the site as a historic house museum, so that its future upkeep is ensured. The US government took the property title on November 1, 1970.

Howard Taft Historic Site  1 of 1 (#IMG_2805)

Home       Back       Next