To spot the Pottlitzer House, look up for the grand cream-colored home with dark brown trim, and notice the tall, pointy spires and decorated gables rising dramatically above the tree branches on the corner-almost like a cluster of wizard hats!
Now that you’ve found it, imagine the year is 1893: horses clop down muddy roads, ladies in long dresses bustle by, and a sense of excitement fills Lafayette. Here stands Leo and Minnie Pottlitzer’s shining new masterpiece-a house so stylish it must’ve made the neighbors gasp, “Just how many towers do they need?” Leo and Minnie weren’t showing off, though; they just happened to love a little bit of everything, so they blended Colonial Revival, Chateau, and Queen Anne styles all together. Take a look at those oversized gables and the whimsical spires on the roof-these special spires are the only ones like it on any house in Lafayette. You could call it the fashion icon of 19th-century homes!
Of course, every good house needs a little drama. In 2015, just as the house prepared for its next century, a fire ignited in the back, sending a rush of smoke and panic through the old rooms. Thankfully, much of the house survived, but you can almost feel its resilience as it stands proudly today, a monument to Lafayette’s ability to blend old charm with new grit. And between you and me, if you ever lost a hat in a windstorm, I’d check those spires first!
