
Rhodam Bonnifield arrived in Jefferson County in 1837, and the following year Iowa was created as a territory. In 1838 he built this one-and-a-half-story log cabin on a site some 8 miles southeast of Fairfield. In 1906 the cabin was moved to its present location in Old Settlers' Park. The cabin was a large one for its time. It measured 16 by 28 feet, had a low second story, and featured a front porch with a shed roof. The walls are of hewn logs, and the roof was originally covered by rived and shaved walnut shingles (now by modern wood shingles). A large masonry chimney of native stone was situated at the left gable end.