Most of the earliest buildings have been destroyed long ago; no more than four remain to the present time, and three of them have been heavily modified.

Its symmetrical floor plan is characteristic of early Ohio architecture, with features such as chimneys on each end, a curved water table, and detailed cornices.

Also typical of the period is its simple facade,[2] built of brick and covered with an asphalt roof.

[3] Little is known about Nicholas Eckis himself; he is believed to have been a leading member of the mercantile community in northern Columbiana County during the 1820s and 1830s, but few other details of his life have survived, except for his house.

[2] As the oldest house in East Fairfield never to have been significantly modified, it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980.