John R. Twelves House
John R. Twelves House | |
NRHP reference No. | 82004181[1] |
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Added to NRHP | July 23, 1982 |
The John R. Twelves House is a historic house located in Provo, Utah, United States. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
John R. Twelves House
This home, located at 287 East 100 North, was built in 1906 by John R. Twelves. John R. Twelves was a central figure in Utah's history, being involved in the Grand Central Mining Company and serving as Utah County's treasurer and recorder. The John R. Twelves House was designated to the Provo City Historic Landmarks Registry on April 26, 1996.
Starting in 1911 this was the residence of George H. Brimhall the president of Brigham Young University at the time.[2]
Since 2005, the Twelves House has been the home of independent filmmaker Richard Dutcher's Main Street Movie Company, a motion picture production and distribution company. The 9 foot marble sculpture of Jesus, which dominates the front lawn, is a prop which plays prominently in Dutcher's film Falling.[citation needed]
The Victorian Mansions of Provo
"Constructed between 1893 and 1908 in Provo, Utah, these Victorian mansions reflect the wealth and personality of Utah's most successful entrepreneurs of the time. These mansions include the
Jesse Knight and The Tintic Mining Industry
The successful commercial mining of precious metals and minerals transformed Utah's economy from basically an agrarian base to a more industrialized state. Within this development the Tintic Mining District, located approximately thirty miles southwest of Provo, was founded in 1869 and by 1899 became the leading mining center in Utah with a value of output placed at $5 million. A central figure in Tintic success was Jesse Knight and the Knight family who resided in Provo. Jesse Knight attained wealth with his Humbug mine in the mid-1890s. The large silver producer allowed Knight to develop other mines in the East Tintic area. Knightsville grew around the workings and became touted as the only saloon-free, prostitute-free, privately owned mining camp in the U.S. His strict adherence to doctrines of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints made the town one inhabited primarily by members of that church. "Knight began to expand and diversify as mining in Tintic burgeoned. The Knight smelters at Silver City, power plant in Santaquin Canyon, Narrow gauge railway circumventing the district, Tintic drain tunnel projet, and the Knight dry farm all represented vast investments and profits (National Register of Historic Places Inventory—Nomination Form)."
"With financial success Knight expanded with the result of securing coordination of his holdings and placing responsibility on family members by organizing the Knight Investment Company. This corporation included the Bonneville Mining company, Knight Woolen Mills (located in Provo), Ellison Ranching Company (Nevada), Spring Canyon Coal Company (Carbon County, Utah), and Savings Bank (Provo), Layton Sugar Company, American-Columbian Corporation, Springville-Mapleton Sugar Company, and the Tintic Drain Tunnel Company (National Register of Historic Places Inventory—Nomination Form)." John R. Twelves acquired a large amount of wealth from the mining business as well. As secretary-treasurer of the Grand Central Mining Company Twelves prospered as the stock for Grand Central rose. In 1902, Twelves had attained enough money to fund his home.
Preservation
The house was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1982 as part of a multiple property submission that nominated seven and listed six Provo houses. The listed houses are the
References
- ^ a b "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
- ^ article on history of BYU's house of the president
- ^ Debbie Tenure; Ken Cannon; Phil Notarianni (Summer 1980). "National Register of Historic Places Inventory/Nomination: Entreprenurial [sic] Residences of Turn of the Century Provo Thematic Resources". National Park Service.
- ^ Kenneth Cannon; Merikay Haws; Deborah R. Temme (June 25, 1980). "Utah State Historical Society Historic Preservation Research Office Structure/Site Information: John R. Twelves House". National Park Service. and accompanying photo from 1981
- 2002. "Historic Provo" Provo City Landmarks Commission.
- Temme, Debbie/ Cannon, Ken/ Notarianni, Phil.. National Park Service. "National Register of Historic Places Inventory -- Nomination Form." Summer 1980.