The Edwin Hodge House at 502 Norris Lane, known as Actoft

The brick house at 502 Norris Lane, known as Actoft, was built for Henderson tobacco businessman Edwin Hodge. Newspaper accounts trace its beginnings in 1904 and describe a wooded estate that combined the conveniences of town with the setting of a country home. [1–4, 9]

Born in Marion, Kentucky, in 1854, Hodge moved to Henderson with his family as a child. His father, Dr. Joseph A. Hodge, became a leading local physician and served as president of the Kentucky State Medical Society. Edwin entered the tobacco business as a young bookkeeper, began exporting under his own name in 1877, and became general manager of the Imperial Tobacco Company’s western business in 1903. Based in Henderson, he regularly traveled to England for business. [7, 14]

Hodge married Frances Alexander Ditto of Meade County in 1883. Their sons were Thomas Ditto Hodge and Edwin Hodge Jr. Frances, also referred to in newspaper correspondence as Fannie, took an active role in developing the family’s new property. [5, 7, 9]

On February 23, 1904, the Henderson Morning Gleaner announced plans for Hodge’s two-story brick residence in the area called Edgewood. Specifications were nearly complete, and the paper promised modern fixtures and attractive surroundings, predicting “a thing of beauty and a joy forever.” Hodge opened construction bids on March 7. A March 12 report placed the building contract at about $8,890 and identified R. P. Farnsworth as the man in charge of the brickwork. [1–3]

By March 29, Farnsworth and his crew had laid out the site, and foundation excavation was scheduled to begin. A September 18 profile identified the builder as M. F. Nieten, a Henderson contractor located at 1000 First Street. It described Hodge’s mansion as nearing completion. [4, 10]

An earlier account, published June 1, 1904, in The Breckenridge News and the Irvington Herald, described a visit to the Hodges’ new country home on Henderson’s outskirts. Large forest trees, hills, valleys, running streams, birds, and wildflowers gave the property its appeal. Mrs. Hodge personally supervised planning and laying out a vegetable garden, orchard, and woodland areas. [9]

Together, these reports establish that the house was being developed and visited in 1904. The later PVA assessment lists 1905 as its construction year. Because the June account describes a visit while the September profile still reports construction nearing completion, an exact completion or move-in date remains uncertain. [8–10]

An undated newspaper account of a reception hosted by Mrs. Edwin Hodge for Mrs. Dishman, formerly Nellie Hodge, provides a detailed glimpse inside. The house contained antique furnishings, polished hardwood floors, Oriental rugs, and electric lighting. For the occasion, palms, tropical plants, and cut flowers filled the rooms. The drawing rooms featured bird’s-eye maple and were decorated with white and pink roses. [11]

In the dining room, a carved oak table held a large cut-glass bowl of narcissus. High wainscoting of weathered oak and decorative grapevines and clusters overhead added to the setting. Guests were served ice, cakes, and mints, while coffee was poured in the library beside its open fireplace. Huhlein’s string band provided music. The report portrays Actoft as a setting for elaborate hospitality as well as a family residence.[11]

Hodge’s business connected Henderson with events overseas. On May 18, 1910, the Gleaner reported that he had received instructions to close Imperial Tobacco factories on May 20 for the funeral of King Edward VII. The company’s main and branch offices were also to close in tribute to the British monarch. [12]

A fire damaged Hodge’s residence in January 1911. The January 25 issue of The Breckenridge News and the Irvington Herald reported that the home had been damaged “last week,” placing the fire in the preceding week. Firefighters prevented its destruction. On March 22, The Gleaner reported that Hodge had sent Fire Chief Eblen a $25 check in appreciation of their work. The notice credited members of both fire departments. Neither account specifies the extent of the damage or the exact day of the fire. [13, 16]

By 1917, the name Actoft was documented in print. A January 3 column in The Meade County Messenger described an engraved Christmas card from Fannie Hodge bearing a picture of her “colonial home,” identified as Actoft. Admiring the idea, the correspondent observed, “Yes if one has a home like hers.” [5]

A historic fire insurance map likewise labels the house “Actoft,” showing it set back from Norris Lane with separate outbuildings. PVA records describe solid-brick construction, a brick and stone foundation, a hipped slate roof, and 5,102 square feet of living space. The building notes also mention an older residence used as servants’ quarters. [6, 8]

A recorded sale entry documents the property’s transfer in 1991 from Emma H. Sarosdy and other grantors to Harvey and Molly Ershig for $250,000, referencing Deed Book 411, page 182. [8]

Recent photographs show Actoft standing on a wooded rise above Norris Lane. Its red-brick exterior features pale window lintels, dark-green shutters, tall brick chimneys, and a broad hipped roof with dormer windows. A columned porch extends across the front and around the side, topped by a white balustrade. Brick entrance pillars carry the names “ACTOFT” and “ERSHIG.” The sloping grounds and mature trees echo the wooded setting admired by visitors in 1904. [9, 15]

Actoft remains a surviving link to Henderson’s tobacco trade, the Hodge family’s home life, and the craftsmen who built its early twentieth-century residences.


Images:


Sources:

[1] Henderson Morning Gleaner, February 23, 1904, “A Handsome House.”

[2] Henderson Morning Gleaner, March 8, 1904, notice reporting that Edwin Hodge had opened construction bids.

[3] Henderson Morning Gleaner, March 12, 1904, “Mr. Edwin Hodge: Contracts for the Building of a Handsome Residence.”

[4] Henderson Morning Gleaner, March 29, 1904, “Work on Foundation: Of Mr. Edwin Hodge’s New Residence in Edgewood Begun.”

[5] The Meade County Messenger, Brandenburg, Kentucky, January 3, 1917, Christmas correspondence mentioning Fannie Hodge’s engraved card and Actoft.

[6] Historic fire insurance map showing Norris Lane, South Adams, Bluegrass Drive, Greenwood, and the residence labeled “Actoft.”

[7] William Elsey Connelley and E. M. Coulter, History of Kentucky, vol. IV (American Historical Society, 1922), Edwin Hodge biographical entry, as transcribed by Brenda Joyce Jerome, Western Kentucky Genealogy Blog, November 6, 2008. https://wkygenealogy.blogspot.com/2008/11/edwin-hodge.html

[8] Henderson County PVA, Beacon property record for 502 Norris Lane. The record’s sale entry lists January 1, 1991, $250,000, grantor Emma H. Sarosdy et al., grantees Harvey and Molly Ershig, Deed Book 411, page 182.

[9] The Breckenridge News and the Irvington Herald, June 1, 1904, account of a visit to Mr. and Mrs. Edwin Hodge’s new country home and Mrs. Hodge’s supervision of the grounds.

[10] Henderson Morning Gleaner, September 18, 1904, “M. F. Nieten,” contractor profile expressly identifying Hodge’s mansion as one of Nieten’s projects, nearing completion.

[11] “Mrs. Edwin Hodge’s Reception for Mrs. Dishman.” Undated newspaper clipping describing a reception on the afternoon of the 15th.

[12] Henderson Morning Gleaner, May 18, 1910, “Imperial Factories to Close Friday,” instructions received by Edwin Hodge to close factories for King Edward’s funeral on May 20.

[13] The Gleaner, March 22, 1911, “Hodge Shows Appreciation with a Check.” The notice credits members of both fire departments with saving Edwin Hodge’s residence and records his $25 check to Chief Eblen.

[14] “Dr. Anthony Hodge Dead,” undated obituary identifying Edwin Hodge as a surviving son of Dr. Joseph A. Hodge and describing the doctor’s professional service.

[15] Current views. The images document visible exterior features and the entrance inscriptions; they do not establish which features are original to 1904.

[16] The Breckenridge News and the Irvington Herald, January 25, 1911, brief notice reporting that the residence of Mr. and Mrs. Edwin Hodge in Henderson was damaged by fire “last week.”