The building is named for Edward A. Goodnow, who was a well-known abolitionist and reformer who promoted public education for women.

The three-story building was designed by Worcester, Massachusetts architect Stephen C. Earle in the Richardsonian Romanesque style.

It features a tower on the northwest corner of the structure that was originally capped by a domed astronomical observatory.

The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1979.

This article about a property in Poweshiek County, Iowa on the National Register of Historic Places is a stub.