Comstock House Restoration

Comstock House Restoration. Due to be Completed in 2012. The 1905 Comstock House is undergoing a restoration. This house was designed by local architect Brainerd Jones, who also created most of the buildings in Petaluma's historic core as well as the nearby Belvedere. , Jones included may whimsical features: The left and right front side are asymmetrical. The gable is off center and its right side is incomplete. The porch has a decorative giany bracket that appear to be supporting the top floors. , The Comstock House was built for the Oates family in six months during the rainy winter of 1904-1905. It was purchased for $10,000 in 1916 by Nellie Comstock, and members of her family would live there for the next 74 years. , This house was the residence of Judge Hilliard Comstock, a civic leader who directed the expansion of the school system, creation of Howarth Park, and led the drive to build Memorial Hospital. , The Oates and Comstock families had remarkable roles on opposite sides of the Civil War. Nellie's father was head of the abolitionist group that funded John Brown, who attempted to end slavery through armed revolt. Mr. Oates' brother led the Confederate troops at Gettysburg that lost the Battle of Little Round Top, which some scholars believe was pivotal in the South's defeat. , Comstock House is a private family home.