Built 1895 to 1901 Area 5,060 m² | NRHP Reference # 88002223 Added to NRHP 3 November 1988 | |
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Location McHenry Avenue at 5th Street, McHenry, Mississippi Architectural styles Victorian architecture, American Queen Anne style | ||
The George Austin McHenry House is located in Stone County, Mississippi. It was constructed between 1895 and 1901 to serve as the family home of Dr. George McHenry. The structure was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1988.
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Background
In 1889, Dr. George McHenry and his wife, Una, led a group of 54 families from Michigan to homestead in northern Harrison County, Mississippi. They settled in an area which would become part of Stone County, where the Gulf and Ship Island Railroad was under construction. George McHenry opened a general store and also handled the U.S. mail. A small town developed with timber-related industries that prospered because of the vast virgin pine forests of south Mississippi. A Post Office opened under the name of McHenry in honor of the settlement's founder. While Dr. McHenry was in military service during the Spanish–American War, his wife oversaw the construction and expansion of their family home.
Description
The house is a two-story wood frame structure with a steep-pitched roof, three gable projections, and a single chimney. The first story was completed in 1895, but the second story was not added until 1901. The original design included a wrap-around porch which was later modified. The building was constructed with virgin yellow pine lumber and rests on brick foundation piers. A one-story rear addition was completed in 1957.
The house has been used continuously as a single family dwelling by descendants of Dr. McHenry. As of 2013, it was the oldest surviving structure in the town of McHenry.