Foss and Wells House

The Foss and Wells House is a historic house in Jordan, Minnesota, United States. It was built 1858 and was jointly inhabited by the two families that owned a nearby gristmill. The property was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980 for its significance in the themes of architecture, commerce, exploration/settlement, and industry. It was nominated for its association with Jordan's early milling industry and for its distinctive Italianate architecture in stone.

Description

The Foss and Wells House stands on a bluff overlooking Sand Creek to the north. It is two stories with a cupola. The house is built of irregular sandstone ashlars. Elements of Italianate style include the cubical massing, shallow pitched roof, cupola, bracketed cornice, and arched window and door lintels. A nearby outbuilding has similar stone architecture.
The house originally had a second-story balcony and three chimneys, all of which have been removed. A one-story frame garage was added to the south side of the house in the 1930s.

History

The house was built in 1858 for Edwin and James Foss and Rufus Wells, who jointly owned a water-powered gristmill down the hill on Sand Creek. The city of Jordan had recently been platted, and it developed quickly over the next two decades as an important regional wheat-milling center. The Foss and Wells families lived together in the house until 1890. It was acquired by a new family in 1911 and was still owned by them at the time of the property's National Register nomination in 1980.