For the 2013 season, the Cooke House will feature a collection of letters and artifacts belonging to Jay Cooke, son of Eleutheros Cooke. These historic items are currently on loan from the Hayes Presidential Center Library. The Cooke House Museum is open seasonally with regularly scheduled hours. |
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 Eleutheros Cooke House and Garden |
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History of the Cooke House
Eleutheros Cooke, Sandusky’s first lawyer, originally constructed this home in 1843-1844 on the corner or Columbus Avenue and West Washington Row in downtown Sandusky, which today is the present site of the downtown offices of Erie County.  Image courtesy Rutherford B. Hayes Presidential LibraryMr. Cooke was a prominent leader in many of the city’s early institutions, and his son Jay Cooke gained notoriety by assisting the United States government in financing the Union Army effort during the Civil War. After the deaths of Eleutheros Cooke and his wife, the home was purchased in 1878 by local attorney Rush R. Sloane. Mr. Slone then commissioned workers to dismantle the home stone by stone and reassemble it in its current location. Once completed Slone gave the home as a wedding gift to his newlywed son Thomas and daughter-in-law Sarah, who also was a granddaughter of Eleutheros Cooke. The Sloane family retained ownership of the home until 1922 when it was sold to  Roy H. Williams, who served as a judge for the Erie County
Common Pleas Court, the Ohio 6th District Court of Appeals, and as an
Ohio Supreme Court Justice.  Judge Williams and his wife Verna Lockwood Williams owned the
home until 1950. Randolph J. and Estelle Dorn purchases the home
in 1951 from the Williams estate and after a two-year renovation Mr. and
Mrs. Dorn moved into the home in 1953. Mr. Dorn, the president of
Sandusky’s Barr Rubber Corporation, lived in the home until his death
in 1965. Mrs. Estelle Dorn also continued to reside in the home
until her death in 1994, leaving the home and its contents to the Ohio
Historical Society.Today, the home maintains much of the same appearance as it did when the Dorns lived in the home. We invite you to tour the home and experience this unique residence. |
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 Stereo card of the Cooke House in its original location at West Washington Row and Columbus Avenue in Sandusky, Ohio (If you gaze past the screen, you may be able to see the image in 3D! )  Image courtesy of The Rutherford B. Hayes Presidential Library  Image courtesy of The Rutherford B. Hayes Presidential Library |
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HOURS: April 1 - December 1 Monday: CLOSED Tuesday - Friday: 12:00 - 3:00 p.m. Saturday: 10:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m. Sunday: CLOSED All major holidays: CLOSED January - March Open by Appointment Only link to Ohio Historical Society COOKE HOUSE STATE MEMORIAL page back to The Old House Guild of Sandusky |
