Andrew J. O'Conor III House
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Andrew J. O'Conor III House | |
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| Location | 637 Chapel St., Ottawa, Illinois |
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| Coordinates | 41°20′55″N 88°49′45″W / 41.34861°N 88.82917°W |
| Area | less than one acre |
| Built | 1848; 1922 |
| Architect | Norman Cook |
| Architectural style | Colonial Revival |
| NRHP reference No. | 93000324[1] |
| Added to NRHP | April 22, 1993 |
The Andrew J. O'Conor III House, also referred to as Riverbend and Buena Vista, is a historic home in the city of Ottawa, Illinois, United States. The structure that exists today was originally constructed in 1848 and underwent a major remodeling in 1922. The house was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places in 1993.
The original house at the site was constructed sometime in the early 1840s by Henry Green, a New Hampshire native who settled in Ottawa around 1834. While Green had built three different homes on the site, the Italianate mansion he completed by 1848 is the only structure that still exists. Henry Green sold this Italianate mansion to William H.W. Cushman in 1848. Cushman named the home "Buena Vista,[2]" and lived there with his family until he sold it to N.B. Bristol in 1869. The property changed hands several times, and passed under the ownership of Oliver Cromwell Gray, Hiram Thornton Gilbert, James W. Duncan, and Martha L. Buell. Ottawa attorney Andrew J. O'Conor III bought the house and property in 1920. The O'Conor's, who renamed the home "Riverbend," completed an extensive renovation of the home in 1923. The result was a 5,100-square-foot (470 m2) house surrounded by a spacious yard with a commanding view of the Fox River.[3]
Architecture
The O'Conor House was designed by native Ottawan Norman Cook, a lifelong friend of the O'Conor family who designed several other significant buildings in LaSalle County. The Colonial Revival O'Conor House has in its windows, cornices and entrances the principal areas of Colonial Revival style.[3]
