Historic House Near Cooksville Available Free to Mover

If you would like a free historic house and can move it to a new location, you might be interested in the limestone Stebbins House, built 1850, near Cooksville in northwestern Rock County.

Built in the Federal-Greek Revival style, the old rural residence has been called one of the finest mid-19^th century farmhouses in Rock County. It was the home of prominent Porter Township resident Harrison Stebbins in the 19^th century, and in the mid-20^th century an old and unusual heritage apple tree was discovered on the property and was named “Bonnie’s Best” Historic Cooksville Apple.

The Stebbins House is a solid, quarried -limestone structure with approximately 2400 square feet under the Federal-style roof with stone parapets, stepped-gables  and chimneys at each end. The five-bay residence has stone lintels above doors and windows and bulls-eye louvers in the gables of the attic.                       

            Stebbins House (1850), photo late 20^th century.

Located near the historic Village of Cooksville, the house was listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 1980 as part of the greater Cooksville area’s historic and architectural heritage.

The Cooksville Historic District is well-known for its mid-19^th century village architecture and history and has been called “a wee bit of New England in Wisconsin.”  Located along the banks of the Badfish Creek in the Town of Porter, the village has also been called “the town that time forgot.”

The historic house must be moved and re-located and is available free of charge. Several qualified lots in or near Cooksville are potentially available for purchase for its re-location, and a house-moving company has stated that the house can be easily moved.

Solidly constructed, the stone house retains much of its interior woodwork and other architectural details. The late 19^th-century front porch has collapsed, the present wood-frame addition is not moveable, and, of course, the house will need rehabilitation.

The Stebbins House is available from the owner or through the Historic Cooksville Trust, Inc., a non-profit charity, which helps to preserve the area’s heritage. The Trust is cooperating with the owner to help coordinate the move and the relocation of the historic house.

For more information about the house, contact the owner Ted ­­­­at (608) 444-3951 or Larry Reed at (608) 873-5066.