{"nrhp_refnum":"79000875","name":"Henry, Jacob H., House","other_names":["Victorian Manor","See Also:Joliet East Side Historic District"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"20 S. Eastern Ave.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Joliet","county":"Will County","state":"IL","lat":41.52299461100006,"lon":-88.07633022999994,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1979-05-14","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A late nineteenth-century mansion at 20 South Eastern Avenue in Joliet, Will County, Illinois, begun in 1873 and completed in 1876 by Jacob H. Henry, a Joliet businessman and quarry owner.","why_significant":"The nomination presents it as a magnificent example of the ornate late Victorian houses built by wealthy entrepreneurs across the United States in the last third of the nineteenth century. Its style blends Italianate, Second Empire and Oriental elements, and it uses rolled and cast steel for exterior decoration, an early and unusual use of that metal. It was once the center of Joliet society and could become a focal point for neighborhood preservation in eastern Joliet.","narrative":"Built between 1873 and 1876 for Jacob H. Henry, this Joliet mansion at 20 South Eastern Avenue combines Italianate, Second Empire and Oriental details in one richly ornamented design. Deep red Ohio brick walls rise above a Joliet limestone foundation, with reddish brown sandstone trim, a slate mansard roof and a four and one-half story entrance tower. Decorative scrolls, pediments and urns on the third floor are rolled and cast steel, an early and unusual architectural use of the metal. Inside, each room has its own hand-carved woodwork, fireplace and tile pattern, including a burled walnut staircase and a dining room carved with food motifs. The designers and craftsmen are unknown. The house served as a rooming house and then a funeral home before restoration began in the 1960s. It was listed as an outstanding example of late Victorian eclectic architecture and as a former center of Joliet society, with potential to anchor neighborhood revival.","period_of_significance":"1873-1876","architect_builder":"Jacob Henry, Builder","architectural_style":"Mostly Italianate, with Second Empire Baroque and Oriental influences; described as \"Victorian rococo\" or \"eclectic\"","criteria":[],"status_note":"Being restored and opened to the public as an historic renovation; the form describes a program of exterior maintenance and ongoing restoration. Earlier uses included a rooming house and, from 1935 to 1964, a funeral home.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:55:35.862609-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/19/8943/28894319/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_IL/79000875.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/79000875/06aaaf0388-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/79000875/06aaaf0388-1600.webp","licence":"CC0","author":"Smallbones","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Jacob_Henry_Hs_Joliet_2.JPG\" rel=\"noopener\">Smallbones</a>, <a href=\"http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/deed.en\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Jacob_Henry_Hs_Joliet_2.JPG"},"district":{"nrhp_refnum":"80001418","name":"Joliet East Side Historic District","url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/districts/illinois/joliet-east-side-historic-district-80001418/"},"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/28894319","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jacob_H._Henry_House","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q134585077"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/illinois/will-county/henry-jacob-h-house-79000875/"}