A two-story wood-frame house, it was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1971 for its association with Edwin Arlington Robinson (1869–1935) one the United States' leading poets of the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

A single-story porch, supported by square posts with decorative sawn arched woodwork between, wraps around the (east-facing) front and left side.

The second floor is divided into bedrooms, one of which has been converted into a bathroom, with a small study at the north side bay window that was used by Robinson for his writing.

His first work, The Torrent and the Night Before, was published in 1896, the year he moved out of the house, ultimately dividing his time between Gardiner, New York City, Boston, and the MacDowell Colony in New Hampshire.

Robinson was a leading American poet of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and was honored with three Pulitzer Prizes for his work.