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 517 E. Oklahoma is Colonial Revival in style and was built in 1923 by Frank Clark. One of the hallmarks of the Colonial Revival style is the care taken to balance the design elements of the building. Typical of the details from the Colonial Revival style are the central portico at the front entry with its engaged pilasters and wide entablature with dentil molding above the front entry, the evenly spaced, small paned windows, and the balanced exterior end brick chimneys. The brick wall covering and the concrete tile roof are further evidence of the house’s 80-year history and architecture.
The home was bought by Mr. and Mrs. William C. (Bill) Camp (both now deceased) in 1942, and is now the home of their daughter, Emily Camp Gaude, Knox County schoolteacher. The structure is really a Tennessee brick, a large brick with a ripple face, made in Kingsport. Two brick masons came from Kingsport for construction of the house. The only other building in town of similar brick is Park City Presbyterian Church on Linden Avenue. A front porch that became a problem by 1956 was removed and the Camps researched architectural books to decide on simple front steps with curls of iron railing.
The wall around the back of the house was built by Mr. Camp of bricks from historic places and old homes being torn down around town. The red enamel bricks are from the UT building on Henley, formerly Rich's Department Store, under construction at the time. Bricks were donated or purchased from these homes and businesses, and Mr. Camp could recall the story behind each brick and the family whose home it represented.
Bill Camp was the nephew of Maj. Eldad Cicero Camp, the builder of Greystone mansion (1885-90), National Historical Site adapted to modern usage as the home of WATE-TV at 1306 Broadway. His wife, Gladys, was a teacher with Knoxville City Schools.
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