This stone building served as the headquarters of the Democratic Party during the Kansas Territorial period from 1854 to 1861, when Lecompton, known as the Birthplace of the Kansas Democratic Party, was the territorial capital and a focus of national attention. Here ambitious and influential men gathered to discuss issues, plan strategies, and make decisions that helped shape Kansas politics and government. Built in the 1850s by Italian stonemason Mark Migliario, the structure was attached to a log cabin that has since disappeared and may have been the residence of William Simmons and his son Thomas. In 1853 the Simmonses came from Indiana and squatted here a year before Kansas Territory legally opened for settlement. They made their living on the Kaw River by fishing and operating the Fairy Queen, a twenty-foot ferry made from hollowed-out sycamore logs. Later the building shifted from politics to commerce after the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad acquired it and used it for many years as a pay station. In 1997 Pat and Aurelia Istas purchased the property and began reclaiming the building and grounds, and in 1998 the Lecompton Historical Society acquired the site, restored the building, and established the Historic Lecompton River View Park with assistance from many individuals, businesses, and organizations.