Heartwell Park Historic District
105-106 Lakeside Dr. 110-602 Forest Blvd., and 923 and 1109 N. Elm St., Hastings, NEThe Heartwell Park Historic District is a locally significant example of a planned residential development. The privately developed Heartwell Park Addition, platted in 1886, was designed by landscape architect A.N. Carpenter to include a linear park with a lake surrounded by curvilinear streets with large residential lots. The idea of a designed residential neighborhood with concerns given to the landscape and aesthetics was new to the City of Hastings in the late nineteenth century. The district's park was created in 1886, but the residential lots lay undeveloped for approximately 30 years when construction began on the lots along Forest Boulevard. Development of the lots along Lakeside Drive on the north side of the park did not begin until the early 1940s. The park and surrounding residential neighborhood continue to demonstrate their initial design concept.
The district's housing represents two residential construction periods in Hastings in the early-to-mid-twentieth century. The late 1910s and early 1920s were times of steady growth and prosperity for the community, which was enhanced by Hasting's establishment as a railroad center and the prominence of its local industry. Within the Heartwell Park Historic District, seven residences on Forest Boulevard were constructed during this first period. The second period of residential construction, in the late 1930s through the 1940s, occurred in response to regional housing shortages caused by thriving war production plants and related industries. The establishment of the Naval Ammunition Depot (NAD) in Adams County brought an influx of residents to Hastings and an immediate demand for housing. In response, a large number of modest residences were constructed between 1939 and 1950. Within the Heartwell Park Historic District, the formerly vacant land on the north side of the park on Lakeside Drive was filled with one-story residences, mostly constructed between 1943-44.
The district's period of significance begins in 1886, with the platting and creation of the park, and continues through 1950 to encompass the residential development surrounding the park. Heartwell Park has undergone a number of changes through the years, but the overall design principles and integrity remain. The residential properties in the Heartwell Park Historic District are individually undistinguished but relay their significance collectively.
Listed in National Register of Historic Places in 2000.
The National Register of Historic Places is the official list of the Nation’s historic places worthy of preservation. Authorized by the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, the National Park Service’s National Register of Historic Places is part of a national program to coordinate and support public and private efforts to identify, evaluate, and protect America’s historic and archeological resources.