[2] The house was built in 1874 for Thaddeus Binford, a wealthy Quaker attorney, and has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places since 1984.

Jessie Binford was a long-time Hull House resident and executive director of the Juvenile Protective Association.

She was known throughout the thirties, forties, and fifties for her efforts to fight the growing problem of illegal drugs.

Binford was active in the fight to preserve the Harrison-Halsted neighborhood as a residential community and opposing the sale of Hull House property to the City of Chicago.

Jessie Binford returned to her native Marshallown in 1963, giving away her family residence and choosing to spend her last three years in the nearby Hotel Tallcorn.