

Father-and-son architects Carl C. Tallman and Robert B. Tallman[1] designed the ranch-style house at 4 Lowell Place (previously 118 Sheldon Road[2]) in 1951 for Lowell Fitz Randolph (1894-1980)[3] and Fannie Rane Randolph (1897-1986[4]).
The seven-acre[5] Randolph lot on Sheldon Road was noted for its expansive iris garden. Planted in sandy soil, the many iris varieties dazzled visitors in late spring, and village residents bought iris plants for their home gardens from the iris experts.[6]
"Fitz", a Cornell botany professor and expert in maize evolution and genetics, and Fannie, a Cornell-trained research botanist, collaborated on iris research and traveled the world collecting wild iris specimens. An American Iris Society (AIS) member recalled that Lowell Randolph arrived at a meeting in Massachusetts with irises that “filled the whole trunk, all these species never before seen in America, pot after pot, all in full and generous bloom, atticas, pseudopumilas, chamaeirises, aphyllas, furcatas, undreamed of forms of Iris pumila.”[7]
Lowell Randolph pioneered breeding techniques for iris species that are now in wide use today for many plants. Among his many honors and awards, the AIS’s Randolph-Perry Prize recognizes Lowell Randolph’s contributions to iris classification and genetics research.
In the mid-1980s, developer Frank Hanshaw bought the Randolph property and divided it into lots for new homes. He named the street Lowell Place.
The seven-acre[5] Randolph lot on Sheldon Road was noted for its expansive iris garden. Planted in sandy soil, the many iris varieties dazzled visitors in late spring, and village residents bought iris plants for their home gardens from the iris experts.[6]
"Fitz", a Cornell botany professor and expert in maize evolution and genetics, and Fannie, a Cornell-trained research botanist, collaborated on iris research and traveled the world collecting wild iris specimens. An American Iris Society (AIS) member recalled that Lowell Randolph arrived at a meeting in Massachusetts with irises that “filled the whole trunk, all these species never before seen in America, pot after pot, all in full and generous bloom, atticas, pseudopumilas, chamaeirises, aphyllas, furcatas, undreamed of forms of Iris pumila.”[7]
Lowell Randolph pioneered breeding techniques for iris species that are now in wide use today for many plants. Among his many honors and awards, the AIS’s Randolph-Perry Prize recognizes Lowell Randolph’s contributions to iris classification and genetics research.
In the mid-1980s, developer Frank Hanshaw bought the Randolph property and divided it into lots for new homes. He named the street Lowell Place.
ENDNOTES:
[1] Architect Jason K. Demarest list of Carl C. Tallman house plans, provided 2015.
[2] Ithaca Deed Book 577, Page 194; May 15, 1980.
[3] Cornell University Faculty Memorial Statement, http://ecommons.library.cornell.edu/handle/1813/17813.
[4] Discharge of Mortgage, Instrument Number 134525-001.
[5] Ithaca Deed Book 599, Page 241; January 6, 1984.
[6] Lowell Fitz Randolph, Cornell Memorial Statement; personal reminiscences of Elizabeth Mount, John Hirshfeld, and Lucy Griffin Hirshfeld.
[7] Clarence Mahan, “American Iris Society: Randolph-Perry Medal-SPEC- X,” American Iris Society, November 2012, http://www.irises.org/pdf/SPEC-X- RandolphPerryMedal.pdf.
[1] Architect Jason K. Demarest list of Carl C. Tallman house plans, provided 2015.
[2] Ithaca Deed Book 577, Page 194; May 15, 1980.
[3] Cornell University Faculty Memorial Statement, http://ecommons.library.cornell.edu/handle/1813/17813.
[4] Discharge of Mortgage, Instrument Number 134525-001.
[5] Ithaca Deed Book 599, Page 241; January 6, 1984.
[6] Lowell Fitz Randolph, Cornell Memorial Statement; personal reminiscences of Elizabeth Mount, John Hirshfeld, and Lucy Griffin Hirshfeld.
[7] Clarence Mahan, “American Iris Society: Randolph-Perry Medal-SPEC- X,” American Iris Society, November 2012, http://www.irises.org/pdf/SPEC-X- RandolphPerryMedal.pdf.
Patricia Longoria, Deputy Historian 2016