The Aldridge Family Villa Abandoned After Medical Practice Closure

The Aldridge family established Bellmont Villa on Hawthorne Street in 1907 after Dr. Charles Aldridge purchased the property while expanding his private medical practice. Charles, his wife Margaret, their two children, and Charles’s widowed sister lived in the residence, with several rooms adapted for consultations.

The family income came from medical services, patient payments, and community health contracts. Local directories described the Italianate villa as one of the street’s finest homes, with regular repairs to the tower, porch, and copper roof details before changing medical regulations affected the family’s finances.

The first warning sign appeared in 1928 when new medical licensing requirements increased operating costs and reduced Charles’s patient numbers. By 1930, several unpaid treatment accounts and insurance delays created financial pressure. The family dismissed household help, closed the upper tower rooms, and postponed repairs to broken shutters, porch railings, and damaged windows. After Charles’s health declined in 1932, the medical practice closed permanently, leaving unpaid business expenses, mortgage payments, and property taxes. In 1933, Margaret and the children left Bellmont Villa to live with relatives while legal matters concerning the estate were settled.

Bellmont Villa was abandoned in 1934 after the closure of Charles Aldridge’s medical practice, unpaid debts, and unresolved estate obligations ended the family’s ownership. No restoration occurred, and no Aldridge relatives returned to occupy the residence. Municipal records later noted unsuccessful sales attempts and continued deterioration of the structure. The interior remained closed with medical papers, furniture, and personal belongings left behind. Over decades, weather damaged the stucco, windows, and decorative details while vegetation spread through the yard. The Italianate Victorian villa still stands empty on Hawthorne Street, deteriorating without restoration or a confirmed future owner.