Visitors learn from knowledgeable tour guides that Peter Paarlberg built this homestead for his bride Cornelia Van Oostenbrugge in 1870. The house was built on a foundation of rock from the Thornton Quarry and consisted of a parlor, bedroom and kitchen on the main floor. The large south portion of the house was added in 1894 and the back porch and summer kitchen was added in 1915.