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| The Belknap House |
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The Belknap House is the perfect place for extended stays or for families with children not easily accommodated at the Grand Anne Bed & Breakfast. The house includes three full bedroom suites with private attached baths. A fourth bedroom and bunk beds downstairs allow the house to accommodate up to 11 persons. You may rent an individual suite or the whole house; in either case, you have access to the parlors, full eat-in kitchen and rear deck on the main level that all offer spectacular views across the Mississippi River. In addition to family groups, the Belknap House is perfect for the traveler looking for an economical alternative to local hotels, who would prefer to stay in a piece of history on a bluff overlooking the mighty Mississippi. Our rates are attached. Total restoration of this historic property has just been completed under the direction of the State Historical Society of Iowa. Constructed in the 1850's, the Belknap House is among the oldest homes remaining in Keokuk, yet features completely modern amenities, including entirely new bathroom, kitchen and laundry facilities for our guests. Today's guest will find the same high ceilings, high windows and grand moldings and even the radiators and pipes (yes, the boiler has been replaced) that graced the original structure. Central air has not been added, in order to retain the original look of the interior, but each bedroom suite and the main areas are comfortably cooled by window units. The flooring is a unique combination of marble in the entry, kitchen and baths, hardwood in the bedrooms and carpeting in the parlors. |
| Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the Belknap House was originally the home of General William Worth Belknap, a prominent attorney who later became a well-known Civil War General and later General Ulysses S. Grant's Secretary of War. Belknap's career in Washington ended in scandal, as he resigned under threat of impeachment over allegations of improprieties involving Indian traderships. However, during the early pre-war period, Belknap enjoyed a quieter life with his mother in his new home constructed on the bluff at the bend of the Mississippi in Keokuk, Iowa. He was witness to a number of significant events in Keokuk history, including the Mormon migration of 1853, when thousands of Mormon pioneers camped on the bluff near Belknap's House and worked rebuilding the city's streets to earn funds for the journey west to the valley of the Salt Lake in Utah. His picture, along with recollections of this event are memorialized on a historic marker in nearby Triangle Park at the end of Keokuk's famous Grand Avenue. |
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The Belknap House is situated directly above Lock and Dam 19. Be sure to bring your camera as the home commands a "picture-perfect" view across the river to Illinois framed by the historic 1913 powerhouse on one side and the historic railroad bridge on the other. In addition, you can watch every barge and riverboat traveling up or down make its way through the locks.
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Click-on these pages for more information: | Introduction | Guest Rooms/Rates | Area Attractions | Foyer & Stairs | Dining Room | Parlours: Bird's Eye Maple & Tower | 3rd Floor Ballroom: Billiards | How to Find Us | |
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The Grand Anne Bed & Breakfast 816 Grand Avenue Keokuk, Iowa 52632 email: 
Lucretia (Cretia) J. Hesse, Caretaker |
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