Wenner, Charles, House
Why it's listed
Set alone on a south-facing hillside outside Galena, this two-story limestone house was built in 1854 by Charles Wenner, a German immigrant who worked for a mining company before starting a family and a farm. Its twenty-inch coursed limestone walls, sawed limestone sills and lintels, symmetrical five-bay front and brick end chimneys give it a solid, simple appearance. A stone lean-to on the north side once held the kitchen and pantry. Wenner received the land from his stepfather, Louis Schaber, whose family came to Galena from Wurttemberg in 1834, and he lived in the house until shortly before his death in 1905. The house is valued as a surviving reminder of the settlers from Germany and England who came to work the area's lead mines. It also compares closely with several early Galena stone houses, and is the plainest of them. Decades of vacancy and use as a corn crib have left it badly deteriorated, though its historic character remains legible.
Significance in brief: The house represents the vernacular dwellings built by settlers who came to Galena to work the lead mines. It shows how an ordinary German immigrant miner turned farmer lived in the early days of Galena's growth. Its plain stone form, with thick walls, end chimneys and side-by-side rooms, reflects German building traditions and resembles several earlier Galena houses.
Machine-generated summary. This summary was generated by a language model from the official nomination document and has not been reviewed line by line by an editor. It may contain errors. Check the source document before relying on any detail. Source: nomination document (PDF) · National Archives catalog entry. NRHP reference 84001073, listed August 22, 1984. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | Rocky Rd., Galena |
|---|---|
| County | Jo Daviess County |
| Listed | August 22, 1984 |
| Reference number | 84001073 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | 1800-1899 (specific date 1854) |
| Architect / builder | Charles Wenner |
| Architectural style | Vernacular stone dwelling |
| Criteria |
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| Areas of significance | Exploration/Settlement, Architecture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Described as in terrible disrepair after about thirty years of vacancy and use as a corn crib; the form marks the property as unoccupied and not used. |
| Acreage | 0.9 |
| Coordinates | 42.46104, -90.41104 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
National Register listing is honorary for a privately owned home: it does not by itself restrict what an owner may do with their own money, and it does not require public access. Restrictions come from local landmark or historic-district ordinances, which are separate (how they differ).
Owner-occupied houses are not eligible for the 20% federal rehabilitation tax credit, which applies to income-producing buildings, but many states offer credits for homeowners. Listing also opens the door to preservation easements and to buying a plaque. Start with what listing means for homeowners, renovating a listed house and selling one.
Noted as vacant in the nomination. Nomination documents can be decades old; current status may differ. If you are considering buying an empty listed property, read the due-diligence checklist.
General information, not legal or tax advice. Rules change; confirm with your State Historic Preservation Office or a qualified adviser.
Sources and further reading
- National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places database (snapshot May 2026), reference 84001073.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q21037396
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.