In 1976, the Peterson Dumesnil House was placed on the National Historic Register.
Located in Louisville, Kentucky’s Crescent Hill neighborhood, the Peterson Dumesnil House was built in 1869 on 31 acres in land. Its asymmetrical Italian villa-style design is attributed to Henry Whitestone, a well-known Louisville architect whose other works include several significant buildings on Main Street downtown. Unusual for its time, the Peterson Dumesnil House boasts 14-foot-tall ceilings and an Italian villa façade, a wrap-around porch, a spiral staircase, and a distinctive cupola.
The Peterson Dumesnil House possesses a long history, beginning with eight decades of ownership and use by one family. It was built as a summer home for a prominent tobacco trader, Joseph Peterson. He died in 1889, leaving the property to his granddaughters, Eliza and Carrie Lindenberger. When Eliza married Harry Dumesnil, and Carrie married Edward Rowland, both families lived in the House together. Eliza Dumesnil inherited the House and lived there until she died in 1948.
After Mrs. Dumesnil’s death, the Peterson Dumesnil House and grounds were sold to the Louisville Board of Education. In the mid-50s, it became a private teachers club, the only one of its kind in the country.
In 1976, the Peterson Dumesnil House was placed on the National Historic Register and designed as a local landmark, which protects it from exterior change without the approval of the Louisville Landmark Commission. The Crescent Hill Community Council began leasing the House and made it available to groups on a rental basis in 1977. When the Board of Education declared the property surplus in 1982, the Peterson Dumesnil House, carriage house, and grounds were sold to the newly formed non-profit, the Peterson Dumesnil House Foundation.
The Peterson Dumesnil House now serves as a community resource. It is appreciated almost like a community park used daily by neighbors enjoying the grounds to walk their dogs, host an art class, watch birds, or throw catch with their children. The House is a cherished part of Louisville's history and has been the backdrop of countless memories for families and friends over the years.