Built in 1891–92 for the president of a patent medicine maker, it is one of the city's finest examples of Queen Anne Victorian architecture executed in brick and stone.

The Edward Wells House is located in eastern Burlington, at the northwest corner of Maple and Summit Streets.

The main entrance is sheltered by a deep hip-roofed porch, supported by clusters of round columns set on stone piers.

Wells was instrumental in the success of the Wells-Richardson Company, which advertised widely, and sold its products by mail order.

By 2003, the fraternity was in decline, and in 2007 the house was purchased by the University of Vermont, which adapted for use as a guest quarters for visiting alumnae.