American Gothic House - Eldon, IA - Victorian Style Architecture on Waymarking.com

County of house: Wapello County
Location of house: Finley St. & American Gothic St., Eldon
Phone: 641-652-3352 or 515-281-4221
Architect: Busey and Herald
Architectural Style: Carpenter Gothic

"The American Gothic House, also known as the Dibble House, is a house in Eldon, Iowa, designed in the Carpenter Gothic style with a distinctive upper window. It was the backdrop of the 1930 painting American Gothic by Grant Wood, generally considered Wood's most famous work and among the most recognized paintings in twentieth century American art. Grant Wood, who observed the house only twice in his lifetime, made only an initial sketch of the house—he completed American Gothic at his studio in Cedar Rapids.

"First owned by Eldon resident Charles Dibble after its construction in 1881 and 1882, the home was (with one 1897 exception) a private residence until the late twentieth century. After a thirty-year preservation effort culminated with the donation of the house in 1991 to the State Historical Society of Iowa, the site now includes the original house in its 1930 form and a visitors center. The house was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1974. Since 1991, various caretaker-occupants have continued to rent the home privately.

"Charles A. Dibble (born 1836 in Saratoga County, New York), by various accounts a railroad man, livery stable owner, and Civil War veteran, lived in Eldon in the late nineteenth century. He and his wife, Catharine, began building the house in 1881 for themselves and their eight children. Its relatively simple board-and-batten siding, white color, and moderate size—just 504 square feet (46.8 m2)—were quite common in nineteenth century Iowa architecture. A similar style can be observed in the birthplace of President Herbert Hoover in West Branch, built a decade before the American Gothic House, which features board-and-batten siding, a simple shingled roof, a central chimney, white color, and a moderate size as well. Unique and unusual exterior features of the house include its two Gothic windows in the gable and its steep-pitched roof. Both features would later be exaggerated by Grant Wood in American Gothic. The lower floor of the house contains three rooms and a bathroom, while the upper floor has two bedrooms. The house has been called the best-known example of a Carpenter Gothic cottage in the United States.

"The exterior of the small home. Visible damage is seen near the front porch foundation, although restoration is also evident in metallic reinforcement of the shingled roof and chimney area. This side view evinces the modest size of the house; it also obscures most of the home's addition to give a glimpse of the original design.

"There is no conclusive evidence explaining why the Dibbles chose to place Gothic windows on the upper level. The windows are believed to have been purchased through the Sears catalog. There are two commonly accepted theories: the Dibbles may have wanted the windows to beautify their home at a time when rural life in Iowa was a struggle, or they could have been following a trend in which extravagant details were desirable in residences in the late nineteenth century, and the Dibbles chose windows whose costs would have been relatively reasonable at the time.

"The Dibbles' house was foreclosed around 1897 after they were unable to pay their taxes, and they are recorded as living in Portland, Oregon in the 1900 Census. It changed hands several times until 1917, when Gideon and Mary Hart Jones purchased it. The Jones family owned the house until 1933 (and notably added a kitchen which created the west wing of the house); thus, it was the Jones family who allowed Grant Wood to use their home as a backdrop for American Gothic." ~ Wikipedia