{"nrhp_refnum":"80001395","name":"Stephenson, Benjamin, House","other_names":["Edwards House"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"409 S. Buchanan St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Edwardsville","county":"Madison County","state":"IL","lat":38.80710103800004,"lon":-89.95264534799998,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1980-05-31","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Native American","Exploration/Settlement","Politics/Government","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A two-story Federal style brick house at 409 South Buchanan Street in Edwardsville, Madison County, Illinois, built in 1820 by Col. Benjamin Stephenson and enlarged with a west wing in the 1840s.","why_significant":"The house is tied to Col. Benjamin Stephenson, an early Illinois military officer, congressional delegate, treaty negotiator and Edwardsville banker and civic leader. It is also linked to Ninian Edwards and his family, and to Col. James W. Stephenson. The nomination calls it the oldest brick structure in Edwardsville and notes no other house so connected to Stephenson remains.","narrative":"Built in 1820 at 409 South Buchanan Street in Edwardsville, this two-story Federal style house was the home and business and political headquarters of Col. Benjamin Stephenson. Its solid brick walls are three courses thick, and the bricks were made on site by Stephenson's indentured servants. The original block has four square rooms, a seven-foot central hall with the staircase, and a fireplace in each room with Adam-style mantels. A two-story wing of matching brick replaced a detached kitchen in the 1840s, giving the house an ell shape. A Victorian front porch added in 1902 was removed in the 1940s, restoring the east facade. Stephenson served as a militia officer, Illinois adjutant general, territorial congressional delegate, land office receiver and treaty negotiator with the Kickapoo, and he founded Edwardsville's first bank. The house is also linked to Ninian Edwards, whose wife owned it from 1834 to 1837. It remains the oldest brick structure in the town.","period_of_significance":"1800-1899","architect_builder":"Benjamin Stephenson","architectural_style":"Early Federal","criteria":[],"status_note":"Occupied as a private residence; condition listed as excellent, with the original site retained and some alterations.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:55:35.13662-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/70/8935/28893570/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_IL/80001395.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/80001395/b54d96f7e4-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/80001395/b54d96f7e4-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"Rklawton","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Benjamin_Stephenson_House_(front).JPG\" rel=\"noopener\">Rklawton</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 3.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Benjamin_Stephenson_House_(front).JPG"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/28893570","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benjamin_Stephenson_House","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q4889254"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/illinois/madison-county/stephenson-benjamin-house-80001395/"}