Voltaire Twombley Building

Voltaire Twombley Building
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
Location	803 1st St. Keosauqua, Iowa
Coordinates	40°43′51″N 91°57′41″W / 40.73083°N 91.96139°WCoordinates: 40°43′51″N 91°57′41″W / 40.73083°N 91.96139°W
Area	less than one acre
Built	1875
Architectural style	Vernacular
NRHP Reference #	93000655[1]
Added to NRHP	July 29, 1993

The Voltaire Twombley Building is a historic building located in Keosauqua, Iowa, United States. The two-story structure is a good example of 19th-century vernacular commercial design constructed in limestone. it is the largest example of stone construction that remains in Van Buren County.^[2] While it was built in the 1870s, it is more reminiscent of similar buildings constructed in the 1840s and 1850s.^[2] The only thing that differentiates these rectangular, front gable structures from a house or a school is the first floor storefront. Keosauqua had several stone commercial buildings at one time, but now they are all brick but this one. The building is associated with Voltaire P. Twombly, who was awarded the Medal of Honor for bravery at the Battle of Fort Donelson during the American Civil War. He operated a dry goods and grocery business in this building beginning in 1876. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1993.^[1]

References

1. National Park Service (2009-03-13). "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service.
2. Molly Myers Naumann. "Voltaire Twombley Building" (PDF). National Park Service. Retrieved 2016-05-10.