The Cameron House in La Crescent, Minnesota

I travel through La Crescent every now and then when we want to visit family. It is a great little Mississippi River town in southeast Minnesota, just across the river from La Crosse, Wisconsin. The area was founded in 1851 by Peter Cameron and his wife, who later died in 1855.

The Italianate house, known as the Cameron House, was built in 1871 by Daniel J. Cameron, the younger brother of Peter Cameron by 16 years. Mr. Cameron was a railroad contractor who moved to the area from New York around 1859. According to history, Mr. Cameron was well known for digging through mountains ( for railroads, that is) in California, Arkansas, and Ontario.

429 -435 S Seventh St, La Crescent, MN

I was able to find a photo taken in 1974. At some point in time the porch was enclosed, as seen in the photograph, but now it looks like one of the recent owners has brought the porch back to its original state, removing the screens.. They have also done a fantastic paint job on the home, highlighting the architectural details. The cupola on the roof is one of the largest I have seen.

I found an interesting read on a website which gives a history of Emma Eastman, wife of La Crescent founder, Peter Cameron. In 1859, Daniel Cameron, brother of Peter, came to the area to call on Emma regarding some deeds from his brother’s estate. Apparently, as the story goes, Emma didn’t like what he had to say and took two shots at him. The first went through his coat, and the second shot off his little finger.

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