Burlington possesses a number of houses that were built in the mid-nineteenth century and were radically revamped either later in the century or in the early twentieth century. The Garrett-Phelps house started life as a mildly Italianate dwelling; in the 1870s it acquired a mansard roof, an Italianate bracketed roof, and a hip-roofed entrance tower. If one were to catalogue its style today, one would probably label it as French Second Empire. Alongside the house to the west is the upper entrance to Burlington's well-known landmark, Snake Alley, a narrow winding street descending steeply down to Washington Street.