Nearest city Rome City, Indiana NRHP Reference # 74000015 Opened 1914 Architectural style Rustic architecture Architect Gene Stratton-Porter | Built 1913 (1913) Address Geneva, IN 46740, USA Area 4 ha Added to NRHP 27 June 1974 | |
 | ||
Location Southeast of Rome City off State Road 9 Similar Gene Stratton‑Porter State Hist, Limberlost State Historic S, Loblolly Marsh Nature Pr, Lanier Mansion, T C Steele State Historic S | ||
The Gene Stratton-Porter Cabin, also known as the Cabin at Wildflower Woods, is a historic cabin that was built in 1914 and is located in Rome City, Indiana. Currently listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the cabin was owned by author Gene Stratton-Porter. She lived continuously in the cabin through 1919, at which time she began splitting her time between Wildflower Woods in Rome City and her homes in California where she founded a movie studio.
Contents
Description
The outside of the cabin was built out of Wisconsin white cedar while part of the interior was paneled in cherry, with two stories that include a library, a darkroom, and three fireplaces on the first floor, one on the second. The fireplaces were constructed out of a variety of different stones. Stratton-Porter received inspiration from the woods around the premises, using that inspiration for studying nature, writing, and taking photographs. Some of her furniture and other belongings are still in the cabin, reflecting how she preferred to live her life.
The cabin's design was based on a fictional cabin from her writing, that closely resembles her first cabin named Limberlost Cabin. All of the electricity was sent through the cabin in electrical conduits, with the closest wires being a couple hundred feet away.
Modern
The first floor of the home serves as a museum. Inside the home, guests will discover beautiful cherry-wood paneled walls (the wood was harvested on site) and lots of built-in cabinetry to house Stratton-Porter’s collections. There are 14 rooms, which have many of Stratton-Porter's pictures that she colored by hand, her reference books, and the pottery that she collected over the years.
There is a small admission charge for tours of the cabin, available April through December. The property, operated by the Indiana State Museum and Historic Sites, also hosts many events throughout the year. The grounds are open daily from dawn until dusk.
Stratton-Porter and her only daughter, Jeannette, are buried close to the cabin per Gene's wish to be buried under her favorite tree.