West Second Street is characterized by its mix of stately homes and humble cottages, which are unified by tree-lined streets and an appreciation for gardening among the district’s residents. The neighborhood extends westward from Central Avenue to Cragmont Street, containing a total of nine blocks, and also includes properties of interest within a block on either side of Second Street.

On the neighborhood’s east side at the northeast corner of Poplar and Second Streets stand six gable-front homes, three facing each street. Constructed in 1890 and 1891, these homes are examples of early forms of pre-fabricated housing. George Trow ordered the houses from Chicago, and their components were shipped to Madison, where they were assembled.

Three much older residences sit at the remaining three corners of Poplar and Second. These are some of the oldest homes in Madison. The Schofield House is at the southeast corner of the intersection. At least part of the house was in place by January 13, 1818, when the Grand Lodge of Free Masons of Indiana formed here. Early in its history, the building served as a tavern and hotel.

Across Poplar Street is the Talbott-Hyatt House and Garden. The house was constructed about the same time as the Schofield House and, like it, evolved over time into the building it is today. The adjoining garden is open to the public. Across Second Street from the Talbott-Hyatt House is the Judge Jeremiah Sullivan House, which is described in the Civil War section of the itinerary.

Just off Second Street, at 202 Broadway, is the 1848 Madison United Presbyterian Church, also known as First Presbyterian Church. Constructed in the Greek Revival style, the church had builders who could not resist topping it with a steeple that is more expressive of their New England heritage than of anything Greek. This treatment was not uncommon for early churches built in this style.

Top row: 616 W. Second St., National Park Service; 712 W. 2nd St., National Park Service. Bottom row: The Eckert House with its unusual tin façade, Courtesy of Bradley Miller; 615 W. Second St., National Park Service.

One block away, at the northeast corner of Second and Elm Streets, is the 1838 Colby House, though no Colby ever resided there. Mr. Colby left Madison and his partially built house without paying the builders. James F.D. Lanier, a banker who lived nearby, paid Colby’s bills, took possession of the home, and saw to its completion. It became the residence of Lanier's daughter, Elizabeth and her husband, William McKee Dunn, who served in the  U.S. House of Representatives, 1859-1863. The Greek Revival style residence has a Palladian window in the gable above its full-height porch.

The south side of the next block is now a part of the Lanier Mansion State Historic Site, but iron foundries once stood there. At 510 West Second Street is the Eckert House, that local tinsmith John Eckert constructed in 1871. The entire façade of this shotgun house with Italianate details is made of metal. At 612 West Second is the home of Dr. Joseph and Martha Barnard, parents of famous sculptor George Grey Barnard. Dr. Barnard was a minister at Second Presbyterian Church. Another famous artist is also connected to this street. Singer and actress Irene Dunne, a five-time Academy Award nominee, grew up at 916 West Second Street.

Most of the homes on West Second Street contribute to the historic significance of the Madison Historic District, which is listed in the National Register of Historic Places and designated a National Historic Landmark.