John Ross, a carpenter from eastern Pennsylvania who worked on Indiana's first courthouse and jail (demolished), purchased the 270-acre farm in 1811. The family lived in a log house on the property until they finished the substantial springhouse, which stands east of the main house. They occupied the main house in 1820. Originally two rooms over two rooms, with a small off-center kitchen wing at the rear, this latter was enlarged to a full two stories by 1840. When the present owner purchased the house in 1983, he restored the stone portion and added another floor to the kitchen extension. The five-bay rough-cut stone facade retains its original windows, while the shutters are reproductions made in 1983. The main entrance was also reproduced from a photograph of the main entrance of the earlier courthouse by Ross. It has a distinctive fanlight, a small pediment, pilasters, and a round-arched, recessed entrance.