Address
324 4th Ave W, Cresco, IA 52136, USA
Contact
Howard County Historical Society
Phone
563.547.3434
Built in 1880 by William Kellow, Jr., the Kellow House is a fine example of a Second Empire style home. The Historical Society acquired the home in 1969 and restored the interior but made no structural changes.
William Kellow Sr., born in 1822, the eldest child of Joseph and Mary Kellow was a native of Cornwall in England who settled in Iowa in 1854 and was a farmer and stonemason. William married Maria Rawle around 1845 before they emigrated and together, they raised seven children including William Kellow Jr. born in 1852 in England.
By the time William was 17 years old he joined the family business and entered the grocery and merchandise trade. He quarried the stone and had this house built in 1880 for his new wife, Charlotte, and future family.
The Kellow House was built 1879-1880 in Second Empire style. It is basically rectangular in plan, with a slightly protruding pavilion in the center of the east side, and measures 52′ x 27, including the porches. It is two stories high, of red brick laid in stretcher bond on a dressed stone foundation. Windowsills are white cut stone and trim above the window is ornamental wood brackets. The mansard roof was designed by a French Architect. All windows are 1/1 with segmental arches, capped with elaborately carved and bracketed wood hoodmolds. The gabled dormers in the slightly over scaled mansard roof also feature decorative elements. There are two corbelled chimneys, and a finely wrought iron cresting at the roof edge. The roof is covered in composition shingle of a diamond pattern. There are three porches. All are supported by square wood columns. The front porch (main entrance) and a smaller porch in the angle formed by the pavilion on the east side have bracketed eaves. The door beneath the latter porch features two long windows with rounded tops, and decorative panels below. A larger, plainer porch ex- tends around the northeast corner. Main hallways and stairs on-both floors are on the west side of the house, with rooms opening off one side and at the end. There are four rooms on the first floor (living room, dining room, library and kitchen) and three bedrooms on the second.
Charlotte Kellow passed away in 1948 and after 658 years of occupancy by William and his family, the property was sold in 1949 to new owners. The Kellow House was converted from a single-family residence to a rooming house and multi-unit apartment building. Many changes were enacted but the pine flooring and walnut staircase remained intact.
When the Howard County Historical Society purchased the house in 1969, it was still being used as an apartment building. The Society has restored the interior to its original room arrangement and has preserved the original pine flooring and walnut staircase. The house is located in a residential area of the town. It is furnished in the period of the late 1800’s and early 1900’s with several of the furnishings being Kellow family heirlooms.
The Kellow House is also a resource center for the Howard County Historical Society and houses many pictures, county histories, and atlases and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on November 22, 1977, under reference number 77000517 recognizing its architectural significance as a Second Empire-style home built in 1879-1880. The Society continues to fundraise for upkeep ensuring the Kellow House is a cultural resource for years to come.
The Howard County Historical Society is a proud member of the Iowa Museum Association.
The Kellow House is open during community events throughout the year and by appointment anytime.
Pictures (below) of the interior:
1. Dining Room
2. Kitchen
3. Library
4. Lady’s Bedroom
5. Parlor looking into Dining Room
6. Gentleman’s Bedroom
7. Lady’s Wardrobe
8. Child’s Bedroom
There are only 36 Second Empire-style homes in Iowa.
(One of the more famous, Terrace Hill is the Governor’s Mansion).
Ambrose Hall (Davenport)
Andrew–Ryan House (Dubuque)
Black Hawk Hotel (Cedar Falls)
Blair House (Washington, Iowa)
Thomas C. Carson House (Iowa City)
Davis County Courthouse (Iowa)
Grenville M. Dodge House (Council Bluffs)
Five Flags Center (Dubuque)
Harker House (Storm Lake)
E. H. Harrison House (Keokuk)
Hollenfelz House (Dubuque)
Hotel Hurst (Maquoketa)
Immaculate Conception Academy (Davenport)
Jackson Park Historic District (Dubuque)
George Johnson House (Calamus, Iowa)
Sylvanus Johnson House (Iowa City)
Kellow House (Cresco)
Keokuk National Cemetery (Keokuk)
Albert Kiene House (Davenport)
George Klindt House (Davenport)
Laboratory of Mechanics (Iowa State University, Ames)
S. F. Martin House (Atlantic)
Meadly House (Davenport)
Joseph P. Mentzer House (Marion)
Daniel T. Newcome Double House or the Brady House (Davenport)
Orpheum Theatre and Site (Dubuque)
B.J. Palmer House (Davenport)
J. Monroe Parker–Ficke House (Davenport)
P. P. Raymond House (Davenport)
Fred B. Sharon House (Davenport)
Terrace Hill, also known as the Hubbell Mansion, Benjamin F. Allen House and Iowa Governors House (Des Moines)
Vincent House (Fort Dodge)
John K. Voorhees House (Oskaloosa)
Alois and Annie Weber House (Keokuk)
Frank J. Weess House (Keokuk)
Frank E. and Katie (Cherveny) Zalesky House (Belle Plain)
