Built in 1867 by Decorah dry goods merchant Dighton B. Ellsworth and his wife Amanda, this Italian Villa home reflected post-Civil War northern prosperity and was one of two Italianates erected on adjacent corner lots during a neighborhood building boom. Ellsworth, who had come from New York in 1855 and prospered in business, spent $10,000 on the house, which featured a three-story square tower joining gabled L-shaped wings, locally made brick with contrasting light brick trim, paired roof brackets, elaborate woodwork, and leaded glass windows, all completed in just four months. After Amanda died in 1876, Ellsworth remarried in 1877; when he died in 1896, the house was sold in 1898 to Frank and Emma Young, who moved in with their eighteen-year-old daughter Grace and added electricity, Queen Anne Revival porches, and other updates. Across the street, Adelbert "Bert" Field Porter was raised by his grandparents, developed interests in butterflies and in Grace Young, and married her in the parlor on June 22, 1904; after a short time away, they returned to Decorah, moved in with Grace's parents, and lived in the house for the rest of their lives. Financially independent, Grace became an accomplished vocalist and pianist, hosted musical gatherings, managed family finances, followed current events, and took part in the women's suffrage movement, while Bert traveled widely, collected butterflies, lectured for a time on his journeys, worked in photography, created and sold art from butterfly wings and natural materials, and collected stamps and natural objects. His interest in stones led from making a birdbath, lamps, and household items to building the rock wall around the property with the help of workmen, after first testing a prototype across the street at his childhood home. After Grace died in 1964, Bert agreed in 1966 to give the house and its contents to the Historical Society while retaining the right to live there until his death. The home is now preserved with the Porters' furniture, belongings, collections, tools, travel gear, and photographs, offering a view of a turn-of-the-century naturalist and his wife and of the English and Yankee community of Decorah's West Broadway neighborhood that helped give the town business, wealth, and culture.