Winona in Winona County, Minnesota — The American Midwest (Upper Plains)

The Bunnell House

Photographed by Liz Koele, February 8, 2022

1. The Bunnell House Marker

Inscription.

The three-story dwelling above was built in the 1850s as a second home of Willard Bradley and Matilda Desnoyer Bunnell, the first permanent residents of Winona County, who settled here in 1849. Bunnell, who traded with the Indians, was also a land speculator and town site planner. He named the town of Homer after his birthplace in New York state. An earlier log house, which stood about 200 feet north of the present site, was destroyed by fire in 1901. It was occupied for many years by Willard’s brother, Lafayette, the man who named Yosemite Valley in California. The present house, never painted, was built of lumber shipped by steamboat from Iowa.

Erected 1960 by the Winona County Historical Society, Inc.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Exploration • Settlements & Settlers. A significant historical year for this entry is 1849.

Location. 44° 1.344′ N, 91° 33.582′ W. Marker is in Winona, Minnesota, in Winona County. It is on Old Homer Road, on the left when traveling east. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 36106 Homer Rd, Winona MN 55987, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in Southeast Minnesota.

It is also in the American Midwest,

in the Corn Belt,

in the Driftless Area — Bluff Country,

and in the Great River Road Region.

Globally, it is in North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once Rupert’s Land,

the territory of the Mississippian Culture,

and the Louisiana Purchase.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 5 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Sugar Loaf Bluff (approx. 3½ miles away); The Geology of Perrot State Park (approx. 3.6 miles

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away in Wisconsin); J. R. Watkins Medical Company (approx. 3.9 miles away); The Watkins Manor House (approx. 4.1 miles away); Brady's Bluff (approx. 4.2 miles away in Wisconsin); U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Winona (approx. 4.3 miles away); Pickwick Mill (approx. 4.3 miles away); French Post (approx. 4.3 miles away in Wisconsin). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Winona.

Another marker is no longer nearby. Perrot's Post (was approx. 4.3 miles away in Wisconsin but has been confirmed missing).

The Bunnell House and Marker image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Liz Koele, February 8, 2022

2. The Bunnell House and Marker

Credits. This page was last revised on September 25, 2022. It was originally submitted on September 12, 2022, by Liz Koele of St. Paul, Minnesota. This page has been viewed 411 times since then and 28 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on September 12, 2022, by Liz Koele of St. Paul, Minnesota. • J. Makali Bruton was the editor who published this page.