Dr. Percy and Lileah Harris House Receives National Register of Historic Places Designation

NPS Form 10-900 OMB No.
1024-0018
United States Department of the Interior

National Park Service Final Draft
07/23/2020
National Register of Historic Places
Registration Form
This form is for use in nominating or requesting determinations for individual properties and districts. See instructions in National Register Bulletin, How
to Complete the National Register of Historic Places Registration Form. If any item does not apply to the property being documented, enter "N/A" for "not
applicable." For functions, architectural classification, materials, and areas of significance, enter only categories and subcategories from the instructions.
Place additional certification comments, entries, and narrative items on continuation sheets if needed (NPS Form 10-900a).
1. Name of Property
Historic name Harris, Dr. Percy and Lileah, House
Other names/site number
Name of Multiple Property Listing Twentieth Century African American Civil Rights-related Resources in Iowa
(Enter "N/A" if property is not part of a multiple property listing)
2. Location
street & number 3626 Bever Avenue, SE not for publication
city or town Cedar Rapids vicinity
state Iowa county Linn zip code 52403
3. State/Federal Agency Certification
As the designated authority under the National Historic Preservation Act, as amended,
I hereby certify that this x nomination request for determination of eligibility meets the documentation standards
for registering properties in the National Register of Historic Places and meets the procedural and professional
requirements set forth in 36 CFR Part 60.
In my opinion, the property x meets does not meet the National Register Criteria. I recommend that this property
be considered significant at the following level(s) of significance: national statewide x local
Applicable National Register Criteria: x A B C D
Signature of certifying official/Title: Deputy State Historic Preservation Officer Date
State Historical Society of Iowa

State or Federal agency/bureau or Tribal Government
In my opinion, the property meets does not meet the National Register criteria.
Signature of commenting official Date
Title State or Federal agency/bureau or Tribal Government
4. National Park Service Certification

I hereby certify that this property is:
entered in the National Register determined eligible for the National Register
determined not eligible for the National Register removed from the National Register
other (explain:)
Signature of the Keeper Date of Action
Sections 1 – 4 page 1
National Park Service / National Register of Historic Places Registration Form
NPS Form 10-900 OMB No. 1024-0018
Harris, Dr. Percy and Lileah, House Linn County, Iowa

Name of Property County and State
5. Classification
Ownership of Property Category of Property Number of Resources within Property

(Check as many boxes as apply.) (Check only one box.) (Do not include previously listed resources in the count.)
Contributing Noncontributing
x private x building(s) 1 buildings
public - Local district 1 site
public - State site structure
public - Federal structure object
object 2 0 Total
Number of contributing resources previously listed in the National Register: N/A
6. Function or Use
Historic Functions Current Functions
(Enter categories from instructions.) (Enter categories from instructions.)
DOMESTIC/Single Dwelling DOMESTIC/Single Dwelling
7. Description
Architectural Classification Materials
(Enter categories from instructions.) (Enter categories from instructions.)
OTHER: New Traditional Colonial foundation: Concrete

walls: Hardboard siding
Brick (veneer)
roof: Asphalt shingle
other:
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Narrative Description
Summary Paragraph (Briefly describe the current, general characteristics of the property, such as its location, type, style, method of
construction, setting, size, and significant features. Indicate whether the property has historic integrity.)
The Dr. Percy and Lileah Harris House (1963, 1965) is located at 3626 Bever Avenue SE in Cedar Rapids, Linn
County, Iowa. The New Traditional Colonial house is within a mid-century residential area two miles southeast
of downtown. The two-story house wood frame house features a wing-shaped plan, oriented to the southwest,
atop a concrete foundation; hardboard siding (historic) covers the exterior walls, and the roof is asphalt. The
nominated half-acre property features a wooded northern portion with stone outcroppings; the site slopes
downward to the north, east, and south. A concrete driveway lines the west edge of the property. To the east,
south, and southeast of the house is a garden planted by Mrs. Harris. The house and its site, both considered
contributing resources, retain a high level of integrity from its period of significance, 1961-1965. The site is
considered a contributing resource because the parcel on which the house was built was at the center of the
debate over whether a Black family should be allowed to move into a white neighborhood.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Narrative Description (Describe the historic and current physical appearance and condition of the property. Describe contributing and
noncontributing resources if applicable.)
(Iowa SHPO Additional Instructions: After the main Narrative Description, discuss any physical alterations since the period of significance under
the subheading Alterations, and the seven aspects of integrity as it applies to the resource in a Statement of Integrity with each aspect discussed in
its own paragraph.)
Setting and Site

The Dr. Percy and Lileah Harris House (Harris House) resides within the Indian Creek Hills neighborhood three
miles east of downtown Cedar Rapids (Figure 1). Located about one-half mile north-northeast of the Harris
House, Indian Creek flows southeast toward the Cedar River. The creek is situated between two heavily wooded
hills that have been subdivided into moderately sized parcels; these parcels feature midsized single-family houses
dating from the 1940s to 1960s.
The nominated half-acre property is located on hilly terrain that slopes to the north, east, and south (Figures 2 &
3). The northern portion of the parcel is wooded with stone outcroppings (Photo 5). The house itself sits atop the
hill and is oriented to the southwest and parallels Bever Avenue. A concrete driveway at the west edge of the
property leads up to the attached garage from the street, a stone retaining wall lines the west edge of the driveway.
A brick walkway, laid in herringbone pattern, leads from the driveway to the front porch of the house. To the
east, south, and southeast of the house, the property is planted with a garden; ornamental evergreens along the
east property line provide a privacy barrier for the house to the east. The house to the west of the Harris House
is sited atop a hill while the house to the east is at a lower elevation.
The half-acre parcel is considered a contributing site to the nomination because of its direct connection to the
events described in Section 8. The size of the parcel remains the same as it did when sold to Dr. and Mrs. Harris
in 1962.
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House
The Harris House is a New Traditional Colonial with an initial construction date of 1963. 1 The house has an
irregular footprint that forms a wing-shaped plan. The main portion is rectangular and two stories tall with an
attached one-story garage to the west. 2 To the southeast is a one-story music room wing set at an oblique angle.
In 1965, the first floor of the main block was expanded to the north to provide more space in the family room
and an additional bedroom. The house has hardboard siding and a concrete foundation. The asphalt shingle roof
has boxed eaves, and a plain facia lines the top of the exterior walls at the eave. A brick chimney rises from the
center of the side-gable roof. Wood windows are original to the 1963 and 1965 construction dates. The garage
has a gable-on-hip roof; the music room has a side-gable roof, and the back addition has a deck-on-hip. A
contemporary wood deck (unknown date) extends to the north-northeast of the main block.
The main façade faces south-southeast (Photos 1 & 2). At the west end of the façade is the one-story garage; a
pair of double-hung six-over-six windows pierces the center of the wall. The main portion of the first story is
inset from the garage wall; the roof of the garage extends east to cover this wall, creating a long porch. A wooden
door in the east wall of the garage opens onto the porch; the door has three horizontal lites in the top half and
three panels in the bottom half. Three square tapered wooden columns with simple capitals support the roof over
the concrete slab porch. The wall of the house under the porch is red brick veneer set in a running bond; the
porch ceiling is painted plywood. A pair of six-lite casement windows pierces the west end of this wall, lighting
the kitchen. A picture window with eight-lite casement sidelights is centered in the wall to light the dining room.
The front door has sidelights and is located at the east end of the wall. The wooden paneled door features two
small windows at the top, and a wooden screen door covers the main door. The sidelights contain four square
windows above a wooden panel. A carriage lamp hangs on the brick wall to the east and west of the door. To the
east of the door, the brick wall angles to the southeast; an octagonal divided-lite window pierces this portion of
the wall, lighting a small hallway. Extending to the southeast is the main wall of the one-story music room; this
wall is hardboard siding. Two pairs of ten-lite casement windows pierce the hardboard siding wall. Centered
above the porch at the second story is a side-gabled mass with three pairs of eight-over-eight double hung
windows. All windows on this façade have fixed faux shutters except the music-room windows.
The southeast elevation (Photo 1) of the music room features a bowed window with four ten-light sashes; the
ends are casements. Two simple decorative brackets support the bow window. The gable end features a triangular
vent at the peak of the gable.
The garage dominates the west elevation (Photos 2 & 3). The garage wall features a double-vehicular paneled
door and a single pedestrian door to its north; the pedestrian door matches the porch door on the south side of
the house. The west elevation of the main house is set back from the garage. The one-story family room addition
contains a set of four eight-light casement windows at the north end of this wall; a pair of casement windows
1
Virginia Savage McAlester, A Field Guide to American Houses, rev. ed. (New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2013), 716-727.
2
The house has a full basement located under the main block of the house; it was not accessed during a February 2020 site visit.
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pierce the wall of the main block of the house next to the garage wall. A single eight-over-eight double-hung
window pierces the north end of the second story above the garage, and a half-round attic vent is within the gable
end.
The north elevation of the garage has a pair of six-over-six double-hung windows centered in the wall (Photo
3). The north elevation of the one-story 1965 addition extends north of the main house and the garage (Photo 4).
A series of five eight-lite casement windows is at the west end of the wall. To the west is a series of six ten-lite
casement windows. To the east of this is a pedestrian door leading on the back deck; this door matches those in
the garage. The wall to the immediate east of this door extends north and features a single six-over-six double-
hung window. To the east of this window, a single six-over-six double-hung window pierces the first story wall
of the main block of the house. The second floor has four single double-hung windows; the east window, which
lights a bathroom, is a narrow six-over-six double-hung unit; the others are eight-over-eight double-hungs.
The northeast elevation of the music room has a pair of ten-light casement windows and a single ten-light
casement window at the west wall junction with the main house block (Photo 4).
The east elevation of the house features two ten-light casement windows on the first story and eight-over-eight
double-hung windows in the second story (Photo 4). The east wall of the 1965 north addition is set back from
the main block; this wall has a single six-over-six double-hung window at its south end.
Interior
The interior of the Harris House retains its mid-century design. The first floor contains communal spaces along
with two bedrooms; the second floor contains private spaces. Ceiling heights are consistent throughout at
approximately eight feet. Materials throughout the house include gypsum board walls and ceilings, carpeted
floors (unless otherwise noted), and natural wood built-ins, trim, doors, and decorative features. Ceiling and wall
light fixtures also date to the 1960s construction, and radiant floorboard heaters line exterior walls.
First Floor (Figure 4)
The front door leads into the entry vestibule. This six-panel wood door has a natural finish, and glass panes
comprise the top two panels. Sidelights flank the door and feature four panes above a paneled wood base. The
wood casing around the door system has a simple profile; this is typical of the trim throughout the house. The
semi-open main stair is immediately north of the door, and it runs north-to-south. The stair balusters are a
character-defining feature of the house, comprised of full-height beveled wood panels spaced every other step
on the west side of the stair (Photo 6). A wooden handrail lines both sides of the stair; the treads and risers are
carpeted. A hallway parallel to the west of the stair leads north into the family room through a doorway. A
double-width natural wood cased opening in the west wall of the entry leads into the formal dining room. To the
east of the front door, the hallway extends southeast to access the music room. The northeast wall of this hallway
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features a wood slab door (typical) into the master bedroom and a pair of sliding louvered wood closet doors.
The entry/hallway floor is green slate laid in an irregular pattern; the walls are wallpapered.
The master bedroom is an irregularly shaped space with painted trim, wallpapered walls, and carpeted floors
(Photo 10). Two closets within the west wall each feature a pair of louvered bifold wood doors; a built-in set of
drawers separates the closets. A door in at the north end of the west wall leads into a back hallway; a door at the
east end of the north wall leads into the master bathroom; the southwest wall contains the door into the main
hallway. This space has green tile wainscoting, green and white mosaic tile floor, and built-in cabinets along the
east wall.
The music room occupies the southeast wing of the house (Photo 7). A pair of louvered bifold wood doors
provides access. A full height bookshelf lines the north/northwest wall. Floors are carpeted, and the wood trim
is painted white.
The formal dining room is adjacent to the west of the entry hallway. The south wall features a large picture
window. A cased opening at the north end of the west wall leads into the kitchen. A large bump-out centered in
the north wall corresponds to the fireplace in the family room. The dining room has carpeted floors, painted trim,
and wallpapered walls.
The kitchen occupies the southwest corner of the main floor. This space has wooden cabinets, laminate
countertops, and modern appliances. A ceramic tile backsplash runs along the main counter; the remainder of
the walls in the kitchen are wallpapered. The floor is wood. Most of the north wall of the kitchen is open to the
family room. The west opening corresponds to a pass-through counter while the east opening is a cased
pedestrian doorway.
The family room occupies the northwest quarter of the main floor (Photo 8). The north half of this room dates
to 1965. Nestled between the two doors in the south wall, a brick-lined fireplace is the focal point of the room
(Photo 9). The firebox is raised above a brick hearth plinth that features cubbies for firewood. Wooden built-ins
extend north from the east and west ends of the brick wall. The east wall of the room features a built-in
shelf/counter unit at the north half, and to the south of this built-in unit is a partial height wall with wooden
spindles above (Photo 9). An opening at the south end of this wall leads into the back hallway. A door at the
south end of the west wall leads into the double-car garage. The family room features wood wainscoting and
floors.
The back hallway runs north-to-south. An opening in its west wall leads into the family room. A door in the
south wall opens to the basement steps. A door at the south end of the east wall leads into the master bedroom,
and another door in the center of the wall leads into a bedroom added in 1965. The north wall features an exterior
door that accesses the wood deck on the north side of the house.
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Second Floor (Figure 5)
The upstairs is rectangular in plan. An offset double-loaded corridor organizes the rooms. The main stair opens
to a landing roughly centered within the floor plan. Built-ins line the north wall of the landing (Photo 11). Four
bedrooms occupy the west half of the floor. A door in the south wall of the landing, immediately to the west of
the stair, accesses one of these bedrooms. The southwest bedroom is located through a door at the west end of
the corridor’s south wall; a door at the west end of the corridor leads into the northwest bedroom, and a door at
the east end of the corridor’s north wall leads into a fourth bedroom. The corridor accessing the east half of the
floor jogs around the stair. A door in the south wall leads into the southeast bedroom (Photo 12); a small door to
a laundry chute is to the west of the bedroom door. A door in the north wall of the corridor leads into a small
shower room with finishing matching the master bathroom. At the east end of the corridor is a larger bathroom
with blue ceramic tile walls and blue and white mosaic floor. The corridor and bedrooms have carpeted floors;
some rooms have wallpaper while other are painted. Each bedroom contains sliding door closets.
Major Alterations
No major additions to the house have occurred since 1965 when the first story expanded to the north as described
above. The kitchen has been updated but not expanded.
Statement of Integrity
The Harris House retains excellent historic integrity defined by its location, setting, design, materials,
workmanship, feeling, and association.
The property remains in its historic location within the Indian Creek Hills neighborhood, an area of Cedar Rapids
historically closed to Black residents.
The setting remains residential in character. Surrounding houses date to the mid-century when the Harris House
was constructed. Lots retain their historic sizes without having been subdivided. Further, the surrounding
neighborhood retains is wooded character with stone outcroppings and walls. Therefore, the area outside of the
nominated boundaries retains a high level of historic integrity. The setting within the nominated boundaries
remains relatively unchanged. No substantial buildings or structures have been erected, and the grounds continue
to feature the gardens planted by Mrs. Harris, as well as its wooded character.
The design of the property has not been altered from its mid-1960s appearance. The only structural changes to
the house came two years after the family moved into it. The rear (north) portion of the first story was expanded
to accommodate a growing family. Floor plan layout remains intact on both stories, and the landscape and house
continue to relate to each other as they did historically with no additional constructions on the parcel other than
the deck.
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Similar to design, the Harris House retains the majority of its historic materials. Hardboard siding and brick
veneer remain, as do historic windows, doors, and ornamental features. Inside, the house retains its historic
finishes from wood built-ins to slate flooring.
Tied to the design and materials, the historic workmanship is especially evident in the wood built-ins, stair
balustrade, and fireplace.
The retention of the above allows the building and site to retains its historic feeling of its association with the
Harris family, especially in the 1960s when the house was constructed.
Similarly, the retention of the other aspects of integrity allow the property’s historic associations to be present.
The house dates to the early 1960s when discriminatory practices in housing began to lose their commonplace
status through the challenge of the status quo.
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8. Statement of Significance
Applicable National Register Criteria Areas of Significance
(Mark "x" in one or more boxes for the criteria qualifying the property for (Enter categories from instructions.)
National Register listing.)
ETHNIC HERITAGE: BLACK
x A Property is associated with events that have made a
SOCIAL HISTORY: CIVIL RIGHTS
significant contribution to the broad patterns of our
history.
B Property is associated with the lives of persons

significant in our past.
C Property embodies the distinctive characteristics

of a type, period, or method of construction or represents
the work of a master, or possesses high artistic values,
Period of Significance
or represents a significant and distinguishable entity 1961-1965
whose components lack individual distinction.
D Property has yielded, or is likely to yield, information

important in prehistory or history.
Significant Dates
1961
1963
Criteria Considerations
(Mark "x" in all the boxes that apply.) 1965
Property is: Significant Person
(Complete only if Criterion B is marked above.)
A Owned by a religious institution or used for religious
purposes. N/A
B removed from its original location.

Cultural Affiliation (if applicable)
C a birthplace or grave. N/A
D a cemetery.
E a reconstructed building, object, or structure.

Architect/Builder
F a commemorative property. Undetermined
G less than 50 years old or achieving significance
within the past 50 years.
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Statement of Significance
Statement of Significance Summary Paragraph (Provide a summary paragraph that includes level of significance, applicable criteria,
justification for the period of significance, and any applicable criteria considerations).
The Dr. Percy and Lileah Harris House is nominated to the National Register of Historic Places under the
“Twentieth Century African American Civil Rights-related Resources in Iowa” Multiple Property document.
Controversy over the sale of the parcel on Bever Avenue to a Black family highlighted the implicit housing
discrimination common in Cedar Rapids prior to the 1967 passage of the state’s housing discrimination
legislation. No deed restrictions existed in the post-World War II Indian Creek Hills neighborhood, but the
unwritten spatial partitioning customs in this Iowa town restricted the neighborhood to only white families. 3
When Dr. and Mrs. Harris sought a new home in 1961, none could be found in the city that met the needs of
their growing family. A friend and colleague of the Harrises suggested they purchase the parcel on Bever Avenue
and construct a house. The sale was met with opposition; however, the Harrises prevailed in purchasing the
property and moved into the nominated house after construction completed in 1963. The house and its parcel are
locally significant under Criterion A in the areas of Black Ethnic Heritage and Social History (Civil Rights) as a
Place of Response subtype of the Places Associated with Civil Rights Events property type. 4 The period of
significance begins in 1961, the year the sale of the property was suggested, debated, and finalized, and extends
to 1965, incorporating the year the family moved into the new house in 1963, and 1965, the date of the last major
addition to the house that finalized the family’s permanent place in the neighborhood. The events and period of
significance correspond to those of the historic context “The Modern Civil Rights Movement, 1954-1964,”
described in the cover document. 5
Narrative Statement of Significance (Provide at least one paragraph for each area of significance.)
In Cedar Rapids, organized Black civil rights activism ebbed and flowed in the first half of the twentieth century.
The first efforts to organize a local branch of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People
(NAACP) came in 1919 with the executive authorization of a branch. By 1926, the branch was dormant, and
efforts to revive the chapter were unsuccessful until the early 1940s. In 1942, local activist Viola Gibson
successfully helped to reorganize the Cedar Rapids branch after her nephew, Robert Johnson, a student at Coe
College, was denied entrance to Ellis Pool because he was Black. The city allowed Blacks to use the facility only
at certain times. Johnson petitioned the city council to remove the segregated time slots, but the council deflected
the petition. After a similar incident in 1945, the local NAACP branch, through Waterloo attorney, Milton F.
Fields, filed a petition with the district court that the Cedar Rapids recreation commission should allow all
3
Robert R. Weyeneth, “The Architecture of Racial Segregation: The Challenges of Preserving the Problematical Past,” The Public
Historian, ed. Randolph Bergstrom 27, no. 4 (Fall 2005): 13.
4
Amanda K. Loughlin, “Twentieth Century African American Civil Rights-related Resources in Iowa,” National Register of Historic
Places Multiple Property Documentation Form (MPDF) (July 2020): F-70.
5
Loughlin, MPDF, E39-E47.
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citizens, regardless of race, to use the public facility, stating that refusing this petition violated the Iowa
constitution. The pool was officially desegregated following the petition. 6
In the early 1960s, Black activists directly confronted housing discrimination.in Cedar Rapids. As with many
towns across Iowa and the nation, Blacks continued to be confined to specific areas within a municipality either
through the practice of redlining, residential covenants, or as regional secretary of the NAACP Leonard Carter
noted through “Gentleman Agreements.” 7 As explained in “Twentieth Century African American Civil Rights-
related Resources in Iowa,” during the modern civil rights era (1954-1964), Blacks were more willing to push
the barriers associated with the discrimination enacted upon them. 8
The total population of Cedar Rapids in 1960 equaled 105,118 residents, of whom 1,152 (1.1 percent) were
African American, who were mostly confined to the southeastern portion of Cedar Rapids due to age old
discriminatory real estate and rental practices. These practices were built upon the paternalistic belief that Blacks
would be most comfortable living around others of their race and the fear that Blacks moving into a white
neighborhood would decrease property values. 9
The housing committee of the local NAACP chapter and the local interfaith, interracial Council of Churches
formed the Council on Human Relations to investigate fair housing in Cedar Rapids in 1961. In an April 1961
report to the NAACP chapter, the Council on Human Relations shared their intention to study twelve cases in
town where Blacks were unable to procure housing in predominantly non-white neighborhoods. Some families
had been searching for housing for over a year. Housing Committee secretary Ruth Nash wrote:
Some of the families have been in the market for better housing for a year or two. Two of the
families who now live in the area which is to be razed in order to building a post-office, are being
shown only houses in the segregated section in spite of the fact that they now live in otherwise
white neighborhoods. Negroes who have lived in Cedar Rapids for many years agree that
segregation is more rigid that it was even five years ago, and that efforts by individual Negroes to
buy in a white neighborhood are prevented by actions of either the Real Estate Board or the local
lending agencies. If arrangements are made to buy either land or house from the owner,
representatives of the Real Estate Board “canvass” the neighborhood, and the buyer is subject to
pressure of various kinds from the neighbors and others. Pressure is also put on the seller. Some
6
Jeremy J. Brigham and Robert Wright, Sr., “Chapter Thirteen: Civil Rights Organizations in Iowa,” in Outside In: African-
American History in Iowa, 1838-2000, edited by Bill Silag, Susan Koch-Bridgford, and Hal Chase (Des Moines: State Historical
Society of Iowa, 2001), 317; Loughlin, MPDF, E-33.
7
Loughlin, MPDF, E-40; Address by Mr. Leonard H. Carter, Regional Secretary of the NAACP to the Cedar Rapids, Iowa Human
Relations Council (27 March 1962): 4. African American Museum of Iowa Archives, Jeremy Brigham Collection, A2006.014, Box
1, L 6 B, Folder 1.
8
Loughlin, MPDF, E-40.
9
Brigham and Wright, Outside In, “Chapter Thirteen,” 317; Lennox W. Randon, Lileah F. Harris, et al., eds., “A Healing Presence in
Our Community,” (Cedar Rapids: UnityPoint Health and Mercy Medical Center, 2015), 20; Loughlin, MPDF, E-39.
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Negroes have been told by lending agencies that mortgages cannot be arranged for a Negro buyer
unless there are five other Negro families on the block. 10
The Dr. Percy and Lileah Percy family was one of the twelve families the Council intended to study. The Council
on Human Relations helped advocate for the Harris family in their struggle for a suitable home. 11 The 1961 sale
of land in a white neighborhood to an African American family successfully challenged the discriminatory
practices in Cedar Rapids; the sale of the parcel and the construction of the house were in direct response to
advocacy efforts that foreshadowed the passage of the 1967 amendment to the state’s civil rights act that
specifically banned housing discrimination.
Significance & Registration Requirements

The Harris House is locally significant under Criterion A in the area of Social History (Civil Rights) because of
its direct association with an event in Cedar Rapids that challenged housing practices that discriminated against
African Americans. The Harris House represents a major milestone in African American civil rights in Cedar
Rapids, Iowa, specifically as relates to housing discrimination and community integration during the Modern
Civil Rights Movement era in Iowa.
This property also is locally significant under Criterion A in the area of Black Ethnic Heritage for its direct
association with the cultural identity of the Dr. Percy and Lileah Harris family. The struggle for African
American civil rights by African Americans is directly related the ethnic heritage of the Black community. 12
The Harris House meets the general registration requirements of properties nominated under the Multiple
Property document. The house and its parcel are directly associated with the twentieth century struggle for
African American equality in Cedar Rapids, and both resources retain a high level of historic integrity. The
nominated property further meets the registration requirements of a Place of Response subtype of the Place
Associated with Civil Rights Events property type, as it is associated with the challenge and eventual defeat of
discriminatory housing practices through non-confrontational means. This property was the first sold and lived
on by a non-white family within a neighborhood that did not wholly support integration. 13
Percy and Lileah Harris (Figure 6)

Percy Gene Harris (1927-2017) was born in Durant, Mississippi, the third child of Norman and Glendora Harris.
Norman died in a car accident in 1930 when Percy was just three years old. The family relocated to Memphis in
1935 after Glendora remarried. Sadly, Glendora and Percy’s sister, Hilda, died of tuberculosis soon after moving
to Tennessee. Between 1939 and 1941, Percy lived in a Memphis sanitarium due to the possible presence of the
African American Museum of Iowa Archives, Jeremy Brigham Collection, A2006.014, Box 1, L 6 B, Folder 3 “Copy 1961
10
NAACP Report on Housing.”

11
Brigham and Wright, Outside In, “Chapter Thirteen,” 317.
12
Loughlin, MPDF, E-59.
13
Loughlin, MPDF, E-70-72.
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disease in his lungs. During his confinement, he received no formal education, but he learned to read from other
patients, eventually reading the newspapers to older residents. In 1941, his paternal aunt, Blanche Hoosman,
insisted he come live with her and her husband, John, in Waterloo, Iowa, where she enrolled him at East High
School. He graduated from East High School in 1947 and entered college at what is now the University of
Northern Iowa (UNI) soon after. He was interested in becoming a psychiatrist. 14
Evelyn Lileah Furgerson Harris (1931-2014) was one of six children born to Dr. Lee (L.B.) and Lily Furgerson
in Waterloo, Iowa. Lileah, the name she preferred to be called, was a talented musician. 15 She honed her musical
talents early, taking piano lessons from a teacher at UNI in part because Waterloo did not welcome Black children
to play in recitals. Lileah quickly surpassed her teacher in ability and became a young pupil of another teacher
in Cedar Falls who accepted college students for lessons outside of school; she wanted to be a concert pianist.
After graduating East High School in Waterloo, Lileah attended UNI, becoming the first African American
woman to live on campus in one of the dorms; although, her first year she was given a room to herself because
the college was reluctant to have a Black and white student room together. The following year, she roomed with
two other students, both white. 16
Percy and Lileah had known each other since he had moved to Waterloo. The two dated for two years while
attending UNI, and the couple were married in July 1950 before both completed their degrees. The couple moved
to Washington, DC in 1950, in order for Percy to finish his undergraduate work at Howard University and then
attend medical school. To help make ends meet, Percy worked as a dishwasher for a priest at Georgetown
University then as an elevator operator while Lileah was a typist at the Pentagon. He received his Bachelor of
Science degree in zoology in 1953 and his medical degree for general practice in 1957; he was class president
all four years of med school. 17
Upon their return to Iowa in 1957, the Harrises settled in Cedar Rapids. Four hospitals in Iowa offered medical
internships, which Percy needed. He applied to St. Luke’s Hospital in Cedar Rapids who accepted his application.
He was one of twelve interns and the first Black intern at St. Luke’s. Part of the appeal of this hospital was its
practice of providing housing to the interns with families. By 1957, the Harrises had four children with a set of
twins on the way; eventually, the family grew to include twelve children (Figure 7). Lileah and the children went
to Waterloo to live with her mother while a house could be found for the whole family. 18 The hospital
administration quickly converted a house they owned on A Avenue across from the hospital from a nurses
dormitory back into a single-family home, and less than a year later, the Harris family resided together. Mrs.
Harris recalled that the hospital superintendent even had a fence and swing set installed for the children. The
14
Percy and Lileah Harris’ Narrative, in Life Narratives of African Americans in Iowa, edited by Charline Barnes (Charleston, SC:
Arcadia, 2001), 37-38; Randon, Harris, et al., “A Healing Presence in Our Community,” 7-9.
15
Lileah’s name, pronounced “Leh-LAY-ah,” often inspired strangers to inquire if she were Hawaiian. Life Narratives, 39.
16
Percy and Lileah Harris’ Narrative, 37-38; Randon, Harris, et al., “A Healing Presence in Our Community,” 10.
17
Randon, Harris, et al., “A Healing Presence in Our Community,” 10-12.
18
Her father, Dr. L.B. Furgerson, had died of a stroke in 1948 shortly after Lileah graduated high school.
Section 8 page 13
NPS Form 10-900 OMB No. 1024-0018

location became convenient for Dr. Harris, especially. The hospital was able to call on him at all hours to help
with emergencies, and several people he assisted at the time became patients when he opened his own practice
in 1958. In 1958, Percy became deputy county corner. The following year, he became the Linn County Coroner.
In 1961, the county administration appointed Dr. Harris to be the first official county medical examiner, a
position he held for over forty years. Dr. Harris also became company physician to the Cedar Rapids branches
of General Mills and Iowa Illinois Gas and Electric Company. He retired from general practice in 1999. 19
Both Percy and Lileah also were leaders within the community, serving as board members, advisors, and officers
of numerous boards and committees. These organizations varied from Parent Teacher Association, United Way,
Mayor’s committees, medical organizations, and local African American organizations. Lileah became more
active with the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) as her children grew
more independent, remembering how active her father was in the Waterloo branch; both served on the board at
the Jane Boyd Community House, a community center especially geared toward the African American
community. In the late 1980s, Lileah completed her college degree at the University of Iowa, receiving a
Bachelor of Arts degree in Russian at the age of 62. 20
The Harris House on Bever Avenue 21

Dr. and Mrs. Harris experienced their first bout of housing discrimination in Cedar Rapids when they arrived in
1957. Although St. Luke’s Hospital provided intern housing, they relied on local real estate agents to help find
the homes. While the eleven white interns were placed immediately, the agents found it difficult to find a suitable
house for the Harrises because they were Black. Thus, the hospital converted the A Avenue house for the family
to use. By 1961 when Dr. Harris completed his internship with St. Luke’s, the family of nine was ready to move
into a larger house.
Real estate practices remained discriminatory in Cedar Rapids in 1961. The only houses the couple were shown
were in low-income neighborhoods within the southeast section of the town, an area predominantly home to
African Americans. Dr. Harris recalled the difficulty of finding a parcel on which to build, “I know that in at
least two instances, neighborhood organizations formed, attorneys were hired to keep us from moving in.”22
Unable to find a suitable house or vacant parcel, friend and board member of St. Luke’s Board of Directors,
Robert Armstrong, suggested that Percy and Lileah make an offer on a piece of property on Bever Avenue
(Figure 8). Armstrong had donated twenty-two acres in the Indian Hills Creek area to his church, St. Paul’s
Methodist Church, where, incidentally, the Harrises also were members, in an effort to raise funds for an
19
Randon, Harris, et al., “A Healing Presence in Our Community,” 12-17.
20
Randon, Harris, et al., “A Healing Presence in Our Community,” 55.
21
The following section is from the following: Lileah Furgerson Harris, “I Am A Bridge Award Speech,” 2011; Indian Creek Hills
Committee; Petition to the Congregation of St. Paul’s Methodist Church. December 1961; “Iowa Pastor Wins Fight to Sell Negro a
Lot,” Jet Magazine (28 December 1961): 48; Randon, Harris, et al., “A Healing Presence in Our Community,” 18-25; Brigham and
Wright, “Chapter Thirteen,” 317-318; Kent Williams, “The Whole World is Here Tonight,” Little Village Magazine. Issue 217 (April
19-May 2, 2017): 8-10.
22
Randon, Harris, et al., “A Healing Presence in Our Community,” 20.
Section 8 page 14
NPS Form 10-900 OMB No. 1024-0018

educational wing to the church building. Percy made the offer with the intention of building a new home on the
site. Reverend Jackson Burns, the minister, was thrilled at the offer, seeing it as an opportunity for St. Paul’s “to
witness for our belief in the equality of man under God.” 23
Several property owners, who were also church members, disagreed. In December 1961, a neighborhood
committee formally petitioned the Church against the sale, arguing that having African American neighbors
would lower the property values of the surrounding parcels. In their petition, the committee stated, “We do not
believe it is a christian [sic] act to help one family and do so much harm to dozens of others in the
neighborhood.” 24 They even exhorted the church to “put yourselves in our place” when considering the right
way to vote.
When the congregation met on December 13, 1961, the debate was heated. Armstrong addressed the
congregation, directly stating, “This is a hot issue…not because of Dr. Percy Harris, a Negro, who would like to
buy a lot or because this is St. Paul’s Church but is a hot issue because it’s a world issue…whether there are
second rate people in the world.” He also cited studies that rebutted the neighbors’ fears about property values
while others expressed disdain that Armstrong and the church leadership put them in a position to have to take a
stand on such an issue. 25 At the end of the meeting, the church approved the sale 460 to 291, and the following
May, the Methodist Church conference upheld the decision. In protest, some members who opposed the sale left
St. Paul’s and formed their own congregation.
Building permits for the six-bedroom house were issued by the city in June 1962. Recalling the 1960s events,
Dr. Harris said, “It never occurred to us to give up. It was a matter of survival. We were desperate to find a
home.” 26 The Harrises moved into the two-story house in 1963, and in 1965, the house was expanded to include
a seventh bedroom.
Due to the family’s kindness and “quiet dignity,” neighbors who had signed the petition to bar the sale of the
property to the Harris family came to accept them. Growing up, the children attended nearby Erskine Elementary
School. A shortcut to the school was through the driveways of the two neighbors to the south, both of whom had
opposed the sale. Instead of using the shortcut, the Harris children went the long way around until one of the
neighbors told them to go ahead and use their driveway; they made sure to stay on his side. Some neighbors who
were formerly fellow church members returned to worship with the Harrises and Armstrongs at St. Paul’s. 27
23
As quoted in Randon, Harris, et al., “A Healing Presence in Our Community,” 20.
As quoted in Randon, Harris, et al., “A Healing Presence in Our Community,” 20; Indian Creek Hills Committee; Petition to the
24
Congregation of St. Paul’s Methodist Church. December 1961.

25
Minutes of Church Conference at St. Paul’s Methodist Church, Cedar Rapids. 13 December 1961, 2.
26
As quoted in Randon, Harris, et al., “A Healing Presence in Our Community,” 23.
Conversation between author and Anne Harris Carter, daughter of Dr. and Mrs. Harris, July 2019; Randon, Harris, et al., “A
27
Healing Presence in Our Community,” 23-24; Lileah Furgerson Harris, “I Am A Bridge Award Speech,” 2011.
Section 8 page 15
NPS Form 10-900 OMB No. 1024-0018

The 1961 events occurred before corrective legislation that outlawed discrimination in housing. In 1967, the
General Assembly amended the Iowa Civil Rights Act to include a section prohibiting discrimination in the sale
and rental of housing. This house is both a statement toward the perseverance of a family needing a place to live
and a community struggling with—and overcoming—the fear of living in an integrated neighborhood.
Archaeological Assessment
No archaeological remains within or beyond the footprint of the property were assessed as part of this
nomination.
Acknowledgements
This nomination was produced with assistance from the Historic Preservation Fund, administered by the National
Park Service, Department of the Interior as part of a 2019-2020 project to document sites in Iowa related to
Twentieth Century African American Civil Rights. Anne Harris Carter, daughter of Dr. and Mrs. Harris,
graciously consented to allow her family home to be part of the project. Ms. Carter shared valuable insight and
resources related to the house.
Section 8 page 16
NPS Form 10-900 OMB No. 1024-0018

9. Major Bibliographical References

Bibliography (Cite the books, articles, and other sources used in preparing this form.)
Barnes, Charline, ed. Life Narratives of African Americans in Iowa. Charleston, SC: Arcadia, 2001.
Harris, Lileah Furgerson. “I Am A Bridge Award Speech.” 2011. Text provided by Anne Harris Carter.
Indian Creek Hills Committee. Petition to the Congregation of St. Paul’s Methodist Church. December 1961.
“Iowa Pastor Wins Fight to Sell Negro a Lot.” Jet Magazine (28 December 1961): 48.
Loughlin, Amanda. Iowa Site Information Form: Dr. Percy and Lileah Harris House. July 2019. #57-11388
Minutes of Church Conference at St. Paul’s Methodist Church, Cedar Rapids. 13 December 1961.
Randon, Lennox W., Lileah F. Harris, et al., eds. “A Healing Presence in Our Community.” Cedar Rapids:
UnityPoint Health and Mercy Medical Center, 2015.
Silag, Bill, Susan Koch-Bridgford, and Hal Chase. Outside In: African-American History in Iowa, 1838-2000.
Des Moines: State Historical Society of Iowa, 2001.
Williams, Kent. “The Whole World is Here Tonight.” Little Village Magazine. Issue 217 (April 19-May 2,
2017): 8-10. Copy provided by Anne Harris Carter.
Previous documentation on file (NPS):

preliminary determination of individual listing (36 CFR 67) has been requested
previously listed in the National Register
previously determined eligible by the National Register
designated a National Historic Landmark
recorded by Historic American Buildings Survey #
recorded by Historic American Engineering Record #
recorded by Historic American Landscape Survey #
Primary location of additional data:

x State Historic Preservation Office
Other State Agency
Federal Agency
Local Government
University
Other
Name of repository: State Historical Society of Iowa
Historic Resources Survey Number (if assigned): N/A
NPS Form 10-900 OMB No. 1024-0018

10. Geographical Data
Acreage of PropertyF Less than 1

(Do not include previously listed resource acreage; enter “Less than one” if the acreage is .99 or less)
Latitude/Longitude Coordinates
Datum if other than WGS84:F
(enter coordinates to 6 decimal places)
1 41.984514 -91.616106 3
Latitude Longitude Latitude Longitude
2 4
Latitude Longitude Latitude Longitude
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Verbal Boundary Description (Describe the boundaries of the property.)
The nominated property includes all of the property associated with 3626 Bever Avenue, SE described as:
Pleasant Hill 1st Addition, Lots: East 5 feet of lot 1 & all Lot 2 and Grant Wood Forest 1st Addition; Lots: East 5
feet of Lot A & all Lot B.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Boundary Justification (Explain why the boundaries were selected.)
The nominated property is the historic parcel under dispute in 1961 when the Harrises purchased the property
and on which they ultimately built their family home.
11. Form Prepared By
name/title Amanda K. Loughlin/National Register Coordinator date July 2020

organization Rosin Preservation, LLC telephone 816.472.4950
street & number 1712 Holmes email [email protected]
city or town Kansas City state MO zip code 64108
Additional Documentation
Submit the following items with the completed form:
• GIS Location Map (Google Earth or BING)
• Local Location Map
• Site Plan
• Floor Plans (As Applicable)
• Photo Location Map (Key all photographs to this map and insert immediately after the photo log and before the list of figures).
NPS Form 10-900 OMB No. 1024-0018

Photographs:
Submit clear and descriptive photographs under separate cover. The size of each image must be 3000x2000 pixels, at 300 ppi (pixels per inch) or larger.
Key all photographs to the sketch map. Each photograph must be numbered and that number must correspond to the photograph number on the photo
log. For simplicity, the name of the photographer, photo date, etc. may be listed once on the photograph log and does not need to be labeled on every
photograph.
Photo Log
Name of Property: Harris, Dr. Percy and Lileah, House

City or Vicinity: Cedar Rapids
County: Linn State: Iowa
Photographer: Brad Finch, f-stop Photography
Date Photographed: February 2019
Description of Photograph(s) and number, include description of view indicating direction of camera:
Photo 01 of 12: South elevations, looking NNW

Photo 02 of 12: South elevation, looking NE
Photo 03 of 12: North and east elevations, looking S
Photo 04 of 12: North and west elevations, looking SW
Photo 05 of 12: Landscape to north of house, looking WNW
Photo 06 of 12: Entry Hall, looking E from dining room
Photo 07 of 12: Music Room, looking SE from door
Photo 08 of 12: Family Room, looking N from kitchen
Photo 09 of 12: Family Room, looking SE
Photo 10 of 12: Master Bedroom on first floor, looking NE
Photo 11 of 12: Second floor stair landing, looking NE
Photo 12 of 12: Second floor, southeast bedroom, looking NW
See Figures 3, 4, & 5 for key plans.
Paperwork Reduction Act Statement: This information is being collected for applications to the National Register of Historic Places to nominate
properties for listing or determine eligibility for listing, to list properties, and to amend existing listings. Response to this request is required to obtain a
benefit in accordance with the National Historic Preservation Act, as amended (16 U.S.C.460 et seq.).
Estimated Burden Statement: Public reporting burden for this form is estimated to average 100 hours per response including time for reviewing
instructions, gathering and maintaining data, and completing and reviewing the form. Direct comments regarding this burden estimate or any aspect of
this form to the Office of Planning and Performance Management. U.S. Dept. of the Interior, 1849 C. Street, NW, Washington, DC.
NPS Form 10-900 OMB No. 1024-0018

Figure 1. Contextual map, showing the location of the house within Cedar Rapids. Source: Google Maps.
NPS Form 10-900 OMB No. 1024-0018

Figure 2. Site plan of the Harris House. Dashed line represents the legal and nominated boundary.
Source: Base map from Linn County, Iowa, GIS (https://lcgis.linncounty.org/apps/real-estate/land-records/).
41.984514
-91.616106
Bever Avenue SE
NPS Form 10-900 OMB No. 1024-0018

Figure 3. Exterior photo key plan.
3 5
4
2
1
NPS Form 10-900 OMB No. 1024-0018

Figure 4. Sketch first floor plan with arrows showing photo locations. Not to scale.
Wood Deck
Bedroom
9
Family
Room Bathroom
8 Master
Bedroom
Kitchen Dining
Garage 10
Room 6
Porch
7
Music
Room
NPS Form 10-900 OMB No. 1024-0018

Figure 5. Sketch second floor plan with arrows showing photo locations. Not to scale.
Flat roof
below
Bath
Bedroom -rm Bathroom
Bedroom
11
Bedroom
Bedroom Bedroom
12
NPS Form 10-900 OMB No. 1024-0018

Figure 6. Lileah and Percy Harris in the 1990s. Source: Barnes, Life Narratives, 16.
NPS Form 10-900 OMB No. 1024-0018

Figure 7. The Harris family in a January 1969 advertisement for Maytag. The family are seated in the music
room. Two more children were born after this photo. Source: Randon and Harris, “A Healing Presence,” 38.
NPS Form 10-900 OMB No. 1024-0018

Figure 8. Plat of Robert Armstrong’s land, 1962, with subdivisions. The Harrises own lot 2. Source: Cedar Rapids
Planning Department.

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United States Department of the Interior

3. State/Federal Agency Certification

Signature of certifying official/Title: Deputy State Historic Preservation Officer Date

State Historical Society of Iowa

Signature of commenting official Date

Title State or Federal agency/bureau or Tribal Government

4. National Park Service Certification

Signature of the Keeper Date of Action

Harris, Dr. Percy and Lileah, House Linn County, Iowa

Ownership of Property Category of Property Number of Resources within Property

Number of contributing resources previously listed in the National Register: N/A

DOMESTIC/Single Dwelling DOMESTIC/Single Dwelling

OTHER: New Traditional Colonial foundation: Concrete

Harris, Dr. Percy and Lileah, House Linn County, Iowa

Setting and Site

Harris, Dr. Percy and Lileah, House Linn County, Iowa

Harris, Dr. Percy and Lileah, House Linn County, Iowa

First Floor (Figure 4)

Harris, Dr. Percy and Lileah, House Linn County, Iowa

Harris, Dr. Percy and Lileah, House Linn County, Iowa

Second Floor (Figure 5)

Harris, Dr. Percy and Lileah, House Linn County, Iowa

Harris, Dr. Percy and Lileah, House Linn County, Iowa

B Property is associated with the lives of persons

C Property embodies the distinctive characteristics

D Property has yielded, or is likely to yield, information

B removed from its original location.

E a reconstructed building, object, or structure.

Harris, Dr. Percy and Lileah, House Linn County, Iowa

Harris, Dr. Percy and Lileah, House Linn County, Iowa

Harris, Dr. Percy and Lileah, House Linn County, Iowa

Significance & Registration Requirements

Percy and Lileah Harris (Figure 6)

NAACP Report on Housing.”

Harris, Dr. Percy and Lileah, House Linn County, Iowa

Harris, Dr. Percy and Lileah, House Linn County, Iowa

The Harris House on Bever Avenue 21

Harris, Dr. Percy and Lileah, House Linn County, Iowa

Congregation of St. Paul’s Methodist Church. December 1961.

Harris, Dr. Percy and Lileah, House Linn County, Iowa

Harris, Dr. Percy and Lileah, House Linn County, Iowa

9. Major Bibliographical References

Previous documentation on file (NPS):

Primary location of additional data:

Historic Resources Survey Number (if assigned): N/A

Harris, Dr. Percy and Lileah, House Linn County, Iowa

10. Geographical Data

Acreage of PropertyF Less than 1

11. Form Prepared By

name/title Amanda K. Loughlin/National Register Coordinator date July 2020

• GIS Location Map (Google Earth or BING)

• Local Location Map

• Floor Plans (As Applicable)

Harris, Dr. Percy and Lileah, House Linn County, Iowa

Name of Property: Harris, Dr. Percy and Lileah, House

Photo 01 of 12: South elevations, looking NNW

See Figures 3, 4, & 5 for key plans.

Harris, Dr. Percy and Lileah, House Linn County, Iowa