Milk, Lemuel, Carriage House
Also known as: Lemuel Milk Barn; Stone Barn; Stone Barn Bakery
Approximate location: the National Park Service places this pin arbitrarily within the property, not at a surveyed point (stated accuracy ±12 m).
Why it's listed
Built between 1861 and 1868, this two-story limestone barn at 165 North Indiana Avenue in Kankakee served as the carriage house for Lemuel Milk's 17-room mansion, which no longer exists. It housed the family cow, a matched team of black horses, feed and a carriage, and is reported to have sheltered ice wagons for Milk's Waldron Ice Company. Milk came from New York around 1855, drained wet prairie land, bred purebred cattle and horses, and ran a department store in Chebanse. The barn has a wide bracketed cornice, mostly original windows and a cupola rebuilt in 1973. Over time it served as a livery stable, car painting garage, sign shop, hardware warehouse and, briefly, a bakery and restaurant. It is now a meeting hall. It is valued as an early Italianate building in a downtown where few comparable structures remain, and as the last piece of the Milk estate.
Significance in brief: The nomination argues the barn is significant for its association with Lemuel Milk, a farmer, land drainer, cattle and horse breeder and businessman. It is also one of the oldest Italianate buildings in the downtown business district, and it is the only surviving fragment of the Milk homestead.
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 79000849, listed June 4, 1979. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | 165 N. Indiana Ave., Kankakee |
|---|---|
| County | Kankakee County |
| Listed | June 4, 1979 |
| Reference number | 79000849 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Architect / builder | Unknown |
| Architectural style | Italianate |
| Areas of significance | Industry, Commerce, Agriculture, Architecture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Described as in good condition on its original site; currently used as a meeting place for the Junior Service League and for rental by other groups. |
| Acreage | 0.9 |
| Coordinates | 41.12126, -87.86151 (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.
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 79000849.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q16894079
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.