He owned and operated a livery and dray business, where he carried the mail from the train to the post office for 53 years.

Lamoni, Iowa architect Charles F. Church designed the house in a combination of the Neoclassical and Colonial Revival styles.

The Neoclassical Revival elements include full height entry porch that is supported by paired fluted columns in the Corinthian order.

Other Neoclassical elements include the second story porch treatment, architrave window trim, and fluted pilaster corner boards.

The Colonial Revival elements are found in the Palladian windows located in the gable ends, the lunette in the porch pediment, and the scalloped brackets under the eaves.