In 1873, Wheeling was experiencing a flourishing industrial period, and the Nail City Boat Club, with its floating boathouse, rowing shells, and racing skiffs, drew many people to the Ohio River for entertainment. Travel on land still depended on horses, and Louis Lotz supplied the public with harnesses, saddles, whips, and blankets, all necessary items of the day. That year he built his Victorian Italianate home on this lot, with his residence above his saddle and harness shop in the heart of a thriving commercial district, as was common for many merchants of the time.