{"nrhp_refnum":"82002537","name":"Phelps, Alexis, House","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"On Mississippi River","address_restricted":false,"city":"Oquawka","county":"Henderson County","state":"IL","lat":40.93337021800005,"lon":-90.95014984099998,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1982-04-28","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Exploration/Settlement"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A two-story frame house, roughly 40 by 36 feet, built about 1833 by Alexis Phelps on Lot 10, Block 42 in Oquawka, Henderson County, Illinois, close to the Mississippi River bluff.","why_significant":"The house predates the town of Oquawka and is a direct link to the exploration and settlement of Henderson County. Alexis Phelps and his brother Stephen traded with the Sac and Fox, laid out the town, and helped win the county seat. Alexis also built the county courthouse in 1841.","narrative":"Built around 1833 on the Mississippi River bluff in Oquawka, Illinois, this two-story frame house was the home of Alexis Phelps. He and his brother Stephen ran a trading post with the Sac and Fox at a spot called Yellow Banks, then plotted the town in 1836 and sold lots. The house therefore predates Oquawka itself. When Henderson County was separated from Warren County in 1841, the brothers donated land for a courthouse, bringing the county seat to the town, and Alexis built the courthouse. Stephen Douglas was a frequent guest in the house. The structure has black walnut siding, studs and trim, a stone foundation, and a simple four-over-four room layout. Changes include a mid-1800s kitchen wing, 1920s porch and garage additions, asbestos shingles added in 1946, and an entrance moved from west to south as the riverbank eroded. It is vacant, and the county historical society hopes to restore it.","period_of_significance":"1800-1899","architect_builder":"Alexis Phelps","architectural_style":null,"criteria":[],"status_note":"Listed as vacant and in fair condition; the county historical society owns it and hopes to restore it.","vacant_flag":true,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:55:34.517351-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/66/8929/28892966/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_IL/82002537.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/82002537/273c59c54e-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/82002537/273c59c54e-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Nyttend","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Alexis_Phelps_House.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Nyttend</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Alexis_Phelps_House.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/28892966","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexis_Phelps_House","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q15179183"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/illinois/henderson-county/phelps-alexis-house-82002537/"}