Noel & Zelda B. Stoddard Home

Attention

The object that is described in this article is located on private property. Trespassing is punishable by up to six months of prison time. Permission should be granted before passing on private property.

About

The Noel & Zelda B. Stoddard Home is a historic home located in Richmond. The house was constructed in 1910.

History

James Lavender Bateman moved to Richmond with his family in 1865. Susanah Vilate Richardson was born in Richmond in 1862. They were married Dec 31, 1877 in Richmond and had nine children. After the birth of their last child in 1893, James began work to build a much more stable home for his family in 1910.

According to family history, James built the garage that now occupies the property at the same time he built the home. They say it is the first garage built in Richmond. The winter after James built the garage, a terrible snowstorm hit the area, making the removal of the snow on the driveway very difficult. As soon as the snow melted in spring, James broke the garage from its foundation, hitched the building to a set of horses, and pulled the garage to the sidewalk.

After the death of James in 1933, the home was purchased by James' granddaughter, Zelda Ella Bateman, and her husband, Noel Thomas Stoddard. They lived in the home for the rest of their lives, including Zelda, who lived to the age of 104 years. After her death in 2019, the home was passed to one of her children.