Frederick Hall House

Captain Lucius Mills, a local builder, constructed this house for Frederick and Ann Hall in 1869-70. Built of variegated Ionia sandstone, the house is an outstanding example of the Italian Villa style. Frederick Hall came to Ionia County in 1837 when President James K. Polk appointed him deputy land register at the U.S. Land Office in Lyons. He held numerous public offices, including state representative and congressman, and became Ionia’s first mayor in 1873. Community churches and schools benefitted from the Halls’ generosity. In 1903 their only child, Marion Hall-Fowler (1849-1931), deeded the Hall house to the city, stipulating that it be “forever used for library purposes” and “known as the Hall-Fowler Memorial Library.”