By Heather Collins
The Carmel Clay Historical Society’s 20th annual Holiday Home Tour is scheduled for Dec 2 to 4 and will feature three unique properties.
Each year, The Carmel Clay Historical Society searches for homes that are historical, feature antiques or collections or are a place of interest.
This year the Holiday Home Tour will feature the Scott Jones Estate, the Kinzer Cabin and the White Chapel Church.
The Scott Jones Estate, 1150 W 116th St., was built in 1939 and renovated in the 1990s by inventor and entrepreneur Scott A. Jones. It features a 28-foot mahogany indoor slide, a 20-seat home theater, and a coral reef aquarium as well as museum-quality antiques and heirlooms.
The estate was awarded Best Crib by MTV in the Early 2000s. Scott Jones is the founder of GraceNote and ChaCha and obtained patents for the technology for telephone companies to offer voice mail.
Emily Ehrgott, executive director of the Carmel Clay Historical Society, said The Scott Jones Mansion will be the “show-stopper” of the tour.
The Kinzer Cabin, owned by the Thomas family, is at 1032 E Main St., and includes a house and a cabin. The cabin was built in 1837 and features a built-in curve staircase. The adjacent house was built in the 1850s. The Kinzer Cabin will feature outdoor holiday decorations and interior designs. Ehrgott said the Kinzer Cabin will be “decorated to the hilt.”
The third property is the White Chapel Church, 5155 E 116th St., across from Flowing Well Park. Many of the founding members of Carmel are buried in the cemetery behind the church. The White Chapel Church features original pews and original stained-glass windows.
Each of the properties have rarely been available to the public.
“It’s really important in Carmel right now to start embracing our history,” Ehrgott said. “These were some of the first properties here in Carmel. It’ll be a one-of-a-kind tour this year.”
For more information or to purchase tickets, visit carmelclayhistory.org.
