The Great Restoration: Preserving Carmi’s Robinson Stewart House

One of the best ways to honor the past is to preserve it.  The White County Historical Society has embarked on what they’ve billed as the Great Restoration.  The organization’s President Kristin Land spoke to the Carmi Kiwanis Club Thursday and says it’s been an enormous project.

“We didn’t know when we began this in 2021 that it was going to be a Great Restoration.  But if you’ve done home renovation, you know that when you start with one place, you find something else, and then something else, and that’s what has happened with us.”

A brief history of the property.

“So the original log cabin section of the house was built for John Craw in 1814.  It is the oldest remaining house in White County and one of the oldest in the state.  When it was built, and it’s hard for us to imagine, but it was in the middle of the wilderness.  There were maybe a few other cabins around; there was a mill down river, but there was nothing but trees there.  As Carmi grew and became the county seat, the house served as the courthouse until a courthouse could be built.  It was sold to US Senator John Robinson in 1835.  The original cabin was only two rooms with a dog run porch in between.  He enclosed the porch and made it an entry and then he and his wife added on a dining room and a kitchen.”

More additions and modifications were made by Robinson over the years.  So how did the Historical Society come into possession of the cabin?  Mary Jane Stewart.

“Miss Mary Jane was the last living relative of Senator Robinson, his granddaughter.  She passed away in 1966.  The Historical Society was formed in 1957 to preserve the Ratcliffe Inn, that was her uncle’s Inn.  And because we had done that for her, she was so appreciative that she left the house to us and with most of the contents.  The house still looks very much like it did when she lived there in 1966.”

Land says the Great Restoration started in 2021 and continues.  Some of the extensive, delicate, and assiduous work that’s been done includes stabilizing the foundation, repairing the crumbling brick fireplace, replacing ductwork, repairing and painting wooden clapboard siding, windows, and more.  Additionally, a new roof, gutters, and other repairs are needed to restore the exterior appearance and the organization has a goal of raising $60,000 through grants and donations.

Find out how you can help by finding White County Historical Society on facebook or find an informational flyer below.