These Ditmas Park Homes? They're Mesmerizing!
From our Colonial Revivals and Queen Annes to our Tudors and Japanese house, our neighborhood is chock-full of architectural stunners. So, when the website OurBKSocial came out with their list of 20 Brooklyn houses with exteriors that will “leave you mesmerized,” it was no surprise that our neighborhood was well represented!
And while we could’ve filled this list entirely with homes from our neck of the woods, we were happy to see the following homes get shout-outs from the publication:
The Japanese House (131 Buckingham Road, by Albemarle Road)
While our neighborhood has plenty of homes that easily adhere to memory, the pagoda-like structure at 131 Buckingham Road that is often referred to as “the Japanese house” is one that, even among our grandeur-filled streets, sticks out.
The home first sold in 1906 to doctor and writer Frederick Strange Kolle (who wrote this book in 1898 on x-rays and another about cosmetic surgery) for $26,0000 and then for $80,000 in 1972 to Gloria and Albert Fischer. Gloria still resides in the house and has opened it up to the public for tours on occasion. For anyone who hasn’t gotten to go on one of the tours, you can explore the incredible home through our photos here.
317 Rugby Road
The iconic Rugby Gardens home, which doubles as a bed and breakfast, has been the star of many a photo spread, from the Daily News to Time Out New York and Brownstoner — plus all the countless passersby we always see photographing the colorful spot.
The William and Lulu Norwood House, located next to the Japanese house on the corner of Buckingham and Albemarle Roads, was, like many of its neighborhood peers, built in 1906 and has been landmarked as part of the Prospect Park Historical District since 1979. The home, where neighbors Frank Hechenberger, Kathy Libraty, and Elisa Lovelie, live, is just as incredible inside as it is outside — you can take a good look at it here. And, if you’d like to learn more about this beautiful house, Brownstoner did a nice writeup of it here.
865 E. 21st Street
Another turn of the century abode, this five-bedroom spot is now listed for $1.6 million. You can explore photos of the home here.
What other neighborhood homes would you have liked to see on the list? Or, if you were to do a list of your favorite homes in our area, what would you include?