{"nrhp_refnum":"82000397","name":"Hunt House","other_names":["Dunham-Hunt Museum"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"304 Cedar Ave.","address_restricted":false,"city":"St. Charles","county":"Kane County","state":"IL","lat":41.91506575500006,"lon":-88.31056631099995,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1982-11-12","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Commerce","Exploration/Settlement","Politics/Government","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A brick Greek Revival dwelling built in 1841 at 304 Cedar Avenue, St. Charles, Kane County, Illinois, on the northwest corner of Third and Cedar. It is credited as the oldest brick dwelling in St. Charles and now also houses the Dunham-Hunt Museum.","why_significant":"The nomination argues the house is significant for its long association with two pioneer families, the Hunts and the Dunhams, who helped the St. Charles area grow. Major Bela T. Hunt was a leading early settler, developer, businessman and first Kane County Treasurer. The house also shows its original Greek Revival form along with later additions.","narrative":"Built in 1841 of locally made brick, this house at 304 Cedar Avenue is credited as the oldest brick dwelling in St. Charles, Illinois. Its original form is Greek Revival, with a simple rectangular plan, a strong gable roof, and front and rear doorways with sidelights and transoms. Additions were made before 1855, including a one-story brick wing with bargeboard trim reminiscent of Gothic Revival cottages, and a later second-floor addition. A Victorian porch was removed during a 1980 restoration. Inside, the original flooring, trim and doors survive, and the basement still shows tree-trunk floor supports and shovel marks in the foundation wall. The house was the home of Major Bela T. Hunt, an early settler who built businesses, paper mills and commercial buildings, and served as the first Kane County Treasurer. Only the Hunt and Dunham pioneer families have owned it. The first floor now serves as a museum.","period_of_significance":"1800-1899","architect_builder":null,"architectural_style":"Greek Revival, with Gothic Revival cottage detailing on an early addition and a later Eastlake-style porch (since removed)","criteria":[],"status_note":"Excellent condition and in use. The first floor is the Dunham-Hunt Museum and the second floor is an apartment. It was restored in 1980, when the porch was removed and a window restored.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:55:35.075358-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/22/8932/28893222/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_IL/82000397.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/82000397/98cf94c052-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/82000397/98cf94c052-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"G LeTourneau","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Hunt_House_(St._Charles,_IL)_02.JPG\" rel=\"noopener\">G LeTourneau</a>, <a href=\"http://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:Hunt_House_(St._Charles,_IL)_02.JPG"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/28893222","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hunt_House_(St._Charles,_Illinois)","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q5943956"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/illinois/kane-county/hunt-house-82000397/"}