At a time and place in which conventional construction materials were expensive or unavailable, it was built out of baled rye straw.

For its unique mode of construction, associated with the history of settlement of the Nebraska Sandhills, it is listed in the National Register of Historic Places.

[3] Much of eastern Nebraska was settled under the provisions of the 1862 Homestead Act, which allowed settlers to obtain a quarter-section (160 acres, or 65 ha) of government land for a nominal fee.

[4] The 1904 Kinkaid Act allowed homesteaders in 37 western Nebraska counties to claim a full section (640 acres, or 260 ha) of government land.

[9] The first documented use of hay bales in construction in Nebraska was a schoolhouse built in 1896 or 1897; unfenced and unprotected by stucco or plaster, it was reported in 1902 as having been eaten by cows.