Mills, Gen. William A., House
Why it's listed
Built in 1838, this brick house at 14 Main Street in Mt. Morris was the last home of General William A. Mills, who settled in the town in 1794 and later founded it in 1818 and Livingston County in 1821. The design is attributed to Colonel Walker Hinman, a friend of Mills. The two-and-one-half-story main block has a three-bay facade, an Ionic portico, double brick chimneys and stone-framed gable fanlights, blending Federal and Greek Revival styles. Inside, seventeen rooms retain bold Greek Revival moldings, cherry and walnut doors, and a cantilevered black walnut staircase. Later owners divided the house into apartments and used it as a warehouse. After standing vacant in the mid-1970s, it was bought by the local Rotary Club in 1976 and given to the Mt. Morris Historical Society. Restoration was under way for museum and educational use, and an archeological survey had uncovered a garden well and a rear brick path.
Significance in brief: The house is tied to General William A. Mills, founder and first permanent white settler of Mt. Morris and a prominent public figure in Livingston County. It is also valued as a transitional building combining Federal (neoclassical) and Greek Revival forms, with good craftsmanship and a largely intact interior.
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 78001858, listed December 19, 1978. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | 14 Main St., Mount Morris |
|---|---|
| County | Livingston County |
| Listed | December 19, 1978 |
| Reference number | 78001858 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | 1800-1899 |
| Architect / builder | Attributed to Colonel Walker Hinman |
| Architectural style | Transitional Federal and Greek Revival |
| Areas of significance | Exploration/Settlement, Architecture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Vacant for over a year after 1975; bought in 1976 by the Mt. Morris Rotary Club and given to the Mt. Morris Historical Society, which was restoring it for use as a museum, craft workshops and cultural center. |
| Acreage | 0.3 |
| Coordinates | 42.72675, -77.87501 (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 78001858.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q5530832
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.