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National Honor for the Old Bailey House

Rich Egger

The National Park Service has placed the Old Bailey House, 100 S Campbell St, Macomb on the National Register of Historic Places.

“It's a grand, beautiful old lady of a house here in town,” said Bob Fischer of the McDonough County Historic Preservation Society.

The Old Bailey House was built by William S. Bailey, who was the founder and first president of Union National Bank.

While that is significant, Fischer said those who considered the application for historic designation were even more impressed with the restoration job vocational students completed on the Queen Anne style architecture.

“The fact that the house was so beautifully restored (in the mid-1980s) to the original style really makes it just stand out,” Fischer said.

A plaque will be placed on the building to mark its national historic designation.

Today, the house is used for wedding receptions, parties, and other special events. There is also office space available for rent. Fischer said the home is open for self-guided tours during the day. He encouraged visitors to drop in to see what a home looked like in 1890.

The Old Bailey House is in Macomb's downtown area. Fischer believes the historic designation for the house will help the city as it pursues national historic recognition for the entire downtown district.

The courthouse in downtown Macomb is also on the National Register of Historic Places.

Rich is TSPR's News Director.