Willa Cather, House and Marker

Title

Willa Cather, House and Marker

Contributor

Bysterbusch, Hailey

Biographical Text

Simple L-shaped, one-and-a-half story clapboard structure.
The Cather family moved into this home in 1884 and it is where she spent the majority of her childhood. Several rooms in the house appear to have been the inspiration for Cather’s novels and short stories and still contain original artifacts. The house was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1972.
The house was purchased by Mildred Bennett, the founder of the Willa Cather Center, in 1960. After seven years of restorations, the house opened for tours in 1967. In 2024, the house underwent extensive renovations due to funding from the National Park Service’s Save America Grant. Today, tours are available throughout the week.

Text

[Historical Marker]
NEBRASKA
HISTORICAL MARKER
CATHER CHILDHOOD HOME
Built ca. 1879, this is the house in which Willa Cather lived from 1884 to 1890. She describe it in “Old Mrs. Harris,” in “The Best Years,” and in this quotation from Song of the Lark:
“They turned into another street and saw before them lighted windows; a low story-and-a-half house, with a wing built on at the right and a kitchen addition at the back, everything a little on the salnt–roofs, windows, and doors.” Restored and donated by the Willa Cather Pioneer Memorial and Educational Foundation.
ADMINISTERED BY THE NEBRASKA STATE HISTORICAL SOCIETY

Date Created

1879

Date Modified

1967

Type

English Building

Bibliographic Citation

Willa Cather Childhood Home, Willa Cather Center

Childhood Home Tour, Willa Cather Center

Willa Cather House, NE, National Park Service