Genevieve to be authentically restored, the house is a prime example of the traditional French Colonial architecture of the early 18th century in North America and was designated in 1970 as a National Historic Landmark.

Genevieve was founded in the mid-eighteenth century by French-Canadian settlers, most of whom migrated from villages on the east bank of the Mississippi River, such as Prairie du Rocher, Illinois.

In 1792 Louis Bolduc, a successful merchant and trader, who also had lead mines to the west, built a one-story house at the new village site, about three miles north of the first.

The walls of the house were built with heavy oak timbers set about six inches apart and infilled with bousillage, a mixture of mud, straw, and horsehair that hardened to a cement-like texture.

[3] The steep hip roof, made of cedar shakes, was supported by heavy, hand-hewn Norman trusses held together by mortise and tenon joinery.

The house is surrounded by a reconstructed stockade fence typical of the time (to keep out livestock that roamed in the area).