History of Elmwood
260 Leland Court
Louisville, Kentucky

The Elmwood is a magnificent historic home, located in St. Matthews off Chenoweth Lane at 260 Leland Court. It was built around 1859 (exact date not documented) by Richard S. Herr as a wedding gift for his second wife, Jane Ormsby. Elmwood is only one of several remaining historic Herr Houses in Jefferson County. From humble beginnings in 1783, four generations of the prominent Herr families contributed greatly to the growth of Louisville for over a hundred and fifty years.

The Herr property was located in the area now called St. Matthews, named after the St. Matthew’s Episcopal Church, a focal point in the community. The early settlers in the St. Matthews community included the Herr, Rudy, Gilman, Cannon, Ormsby, Hike, Norbourne and Breckenridge families. Their family names are now names of streets and lanes that led to the owners houses.

The following Herr lineage will show how closely related all of the families in Louisville were: 

John Herr was the first Herr to come to Kentucky in 1783 when he was only twelve years old. John, whose father Michael was killed in the Revolutionary War, came down the Ohio River on a flat boat with Jacob Rudy, his wife and five children from Cacakia, Pennsylvania.

John lived with the Rudys and eventually married one of the Rudy daughters, Elizabeth. They had a son George Herr.

John’s first wife Elizabeth died and he married Elizabeth Simcoe who had three daughters. John’s son George married Sarah Simcoe, a daughter of Elizabeth. The second son of George and Sarah Herr, Richard S. Herr, (builder of Elmwood) grandson of John Herr, was born in 1827.

The original tract of land was owned by Thomas and Mary Cannon. Thomas died and Mary willed the land to their nine children. Daughter Adeline was left the 52 acre tract on which the Elmwood house was built.

In 1846, Adeline and her husband Stephen Brannon sold the 52 acre tract to John Herr.

Richard Herr married Margaret Rudy in 1852, who died after the birth of their son Harry Roland.

Richard Herr then married Jane Ormsby in 1857 and Elmwood was built as a wedding gift to Jane.

Richard and Jane had two sons, Ormsby, who died at age 7, and George L. Herr. When George L. was eighteen, his father Richard died leaving him the mansion and much wealth. George L. married Addie B. Williams and had a daughter Laura Bell and possibly an undocumented son.

In 1892, George L. and Addie subdivided the 52 acres and the subdivision was called Elmwood. George L. (the last Herr to live at Elmwood) and Addie were divorced and she was given title to Elmwood.

In 1910, Addie, now married to Buckner Board, sold Elmwood to Charles Breckel. After 64 years and four generations, the Elmwood property left the Herr family.

Since the time Elmwood was sold to Charles Breckel in 1910, Elmwood has had four owners. The Dew Nursery was operated on the place from 1918 to 1926.

Elmwood underwent several changes and additions that were made to the original structure. According to an article in the The Courier-Journal, May 25, 1981, Accent Section: “A two-story columned portico was added about 1930 and two bedrooms and two bathrooms were added about 1937.”

Allan Atherton lived in the house as a child and provided the following: “My parents Sarah Atherton and R. Allan Neblett bought the house in 1943 or 1944. We lived there until 1948 when I was six years old. The two-bedroom 1937 addition mentioned in the 1981 The Courier-Journal article would be the large two-story rear wing that formed a T, containing a kitchen and porch across the back of the house on the first floor, and two bedrooms and a bath off the landing on the second floor. There was a long lawn to Chenoweth Lane in front, and a large vegetable garden in the rear. The present garage was there, but gone now are a small barn, a chicken yard and a green house. At that time, the glass green house was unused and its brick headhouse was heated and used for raising chicks. In 1948 my parents sold Elmwood to Ben Johnson Talbott, Sr., during whose ownership the house had a fire. After the fire, the house was extensively remodeled by the Talbots or later owners. The house was duplexed with the removal of the front stairs, the addition of a one-story bedroom wing addition on the right side and more additions on the back. In the 1950's, the property was subdivided for construction of apartments and houses leaving an acre at Elmwood.”

In the mid-1970s, the house was bought by Dr. Edward Masters. The late Dr. V. Edward Masters and his wife Barbara lived at Elmwood for 30 years until their deaths. Dr. Masters, a physician who helped found the Beargrass-St. Matthews Historical Society died in 1996 and Barbara Masters, a former buyer for Stewart’s department store and a co-owner of the Lion’s Head Antiques store, died in 2005. Edward Masters was an obstetrician by profession but had great talents as a cabinet-maker and made many pieces of furniture for their home. Documenting the history of Elmwood, Dr. Masters received a certificate from the Kentucky Heritage Commission which reads, “The Kentucky Heritage Commission has designated the R. S. Herr House A Kentucky Landmark and deems it worthy of preservation, 260 Leland Court, in St. Matthews, Louisville, Jefferson County Kentucky.” and issigned by Governor John Y. Brown.

Upon the death of Barbara Masters in 2005, Elmwood was willed to their three children: Michael Masters of Bardstown, his sister Martha and sister Carolyn Clark, who lived at Elmwood for 24 years before moving to Colorado in 2003.

The house was for sale in 2005 and was recently bought by Michael Masters and his wife, Margaret Sue Masters, from his mother’s estate. Elmwood will be given an elaborate makeover in preparation for the Bellarmine University Women’s Council 2007 Designers’ Show House to be held September 8-23.

Verbal sources:

Lynn S. Renau, Antiques Consultant, Author, Herr House Press

Michael Masters, son of Edward Masters and owner of Elmwood.

Allan Atherton, lived in the Richard S. Herr house from 1943/44 - 1948 as a child.

Ben Johnson Talbott, Jr., lived in the Richard S. Herr house from 1948 - 1956 as a child.

Published sources:

The Thrill of Buying and Researching An Old Herr House and Its Owners, by Dr. Edward Masters, a 14-page document on file at the Historic Preservation Office, Frankfort KY

So Close from Home, The Legacy of Brownsboro Road by Lynn S. Renau, 2007, Herr House Press

The Richard S. Herr House, May 25, 1981, The Courier-Journal, Accent Section

Elmwood, April 5, 1989, The New Voice.

Historic House Put up for Sale, November 9, 2005, The Courier-Journal, Neighborhoods Section, by Martha Elson.

Mansion Makeover, July 4, 2007, The Courier-Journal, Neighborhoods Section, page 6, by Martha Elson.