The John R. Wheeler Jr. House, also known as Immaculate Conception Convent, is a historic building located in

Dunlap, Iowa Dunlap is a city in Harrison and Crawford counties, Iowa, United States, along the Boyer River. The population was 1,038 at the time of the 2020 census. History Dunlap was platted in 1867, and it was incorporated in 1871. The city was named for ...

, United States. It was built in 1897 by J.R. Wheeler Sr. for his son and his new wife. Wheeler Sr. was a

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

veteran, state legislator, local lumber merchant. The house is said to have served as an advertisement for the range of woods that Wheeler marketed. with When Wheeler Jr. left the community in 1910, he sold the house to neighboring St. Patrick's Catholic Church for use as a

convent A convent is a community of monks, nuns, religious brothers or, sisters or priests. Alternatively, ''convent'' means the building used by the community. The word is particularly used in the Catholic Church, Lutheran churches, and the Anglican ...

. As many as 45 rural students were housed here to makeup for the low church population in town. The parish sold the house in 1973, and it became a private home again. The two-story, frame, front

gable A gable is the generally triangular portion of a wall between the edges of intersecting roof pitches. The shape of the gable and how it is detailed depends on the structural system used, which reflects climate, material availability, and aesth ...

d, Colonial Revival house is symmetrical in plan, with the exception of the wrap-around porch. It features

Georgian Georgian may refer to: Common meanings * Anything related to, or originating from Georgia (country) ** Georgians, an indigenous Caucasian ethnic group ** Georgian language, a Kartvelian language spoken by Georgians **Georgian scripts, three scrip ...

corner

pilaster In classical architecture Classical architecture usually denotes architecture which is more or less consciously derived from the principles of Greek and Roman architecture of classical antiquity, or sometimes even more specifically, from the ...

pediment Pediments are gables, usually of a triangular shape. Pediments are placed above the horizontal structure of the lintel, or entablature, if supported by columns. Pediments can contain an overdoor and are usually topped by hood moulds. A pedimen ...

dormer A dormer is a roofed structure, often containing a window, that projects vertically beyond the plane of a pitched roof. A dormer window (also called ''dormer'') is a form of roof window. Dormers are commonly used to increase the usable space ...

s, wooden

belt course A belt course, also called a string course or sill course, is a continuous row or layer of stones or brick set in a wall. Set in line with window sills, it helps to make the horizontal line of the sills visually more prominent. Set between the f ...

s, an

Adamesque The Adam style (or Adamesque and "Style of the Brothers Adam") is an 18th-century neoclassical style of interior design and architecture, as practised by Scottish architect William Adam and his sons, of whom Robert (1728–1792) and James (173 ...

-style

cornice In architecture, a cornice (from the Italian ''cornice'' meaning "ledge") is generally any horizontal decorative moulding that crowns a building or furniture element—for example, the cornice over a door or window, around the top edge of a ...

with dentils and decorative

modillion A modillion is an ornate bracket, more horizontal in shape and less imposing than a corbel. They are often seen underneath a cornice which it helps to support. Modillions are more elaborate than dentils (literally translated as small teeth). All ...

s, and an elliptical

fanlight A fanlight is a form of lunette window, often semicircular or semi-elliptical in shape, with glazing bars or tracery sets radiating out like an open fan. It is placed over another window or a doorway, and is sometimes hinged to a transom. Th ...

. The porch features columns in the

Doric order The Doric order was one of the three orders of ancient Greek and later Roman architecture; the other two canonical orders were the Ionic and the Corinthian. The Doric is most easily recognized by the simple circular capitals at the top of col ...

and a plain dentilled cornice. The house was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

in 1986.

References

Houses completed in 1897 Colonial Revival architecture in Iowa Buildings and structures in Harrison County, Iowa National Register of Historic Places in Harrison County, Iowa Houses on the National Register of Historic Places in Iowa {{Iowa-struct-stub