The George B. Clifford House is a Queen Anne

Queen Anne Style architecture

The Queen Anne Style in Britain means either the English Baroque architectural style roughly of the reign of Queen Anne , or a revived form that was popular in the last quarter of the 19th century and the early decades of the 20th century...

 style Victorian

Victorian architecture

The term Victorian architecture refers collectively to several architectural styles employed predominantly during the middle and late 19th century. The period that it indicates may slightly overlap the actual reign, 20 June 1837 – 22 January 1901, of Queen Victoria. This represents the British and...

 home located in the Near Southside Historic District

Grand Forks Near Southside Historic District

The Grand Forks Near Southside Historic District is a historic district in Grand Forks, North Dakota that was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2004....

 of Grand Forks

Grand Forks, North Dakota

Grand Forks is the third-largest city in the U.S. state of North Dakota and the county seat of Grand Forks County. According to the 2010 census, the city's population was 52,838, while that of the city and surrounding metropolitan area was 98,461...

, North Dakota

North Dakota

North Dakota is a state located in the Midwestern region of the United States of America, along the Canadian border. The state is bordered by Canada to the north, Minnesota to the east, South Dakota to the south and Montana to the west. North Dakota is the 19th-largest state by area in the U.S....

. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places

National Register of Historic Places

The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...

.

The house was built in 1889 for businessman George B. Clifford on Reeves Dr., a street of impressive homes built for the early elite of the city of Grand Forks. It is one of North Dakota's best examples of early Queen Anne architecture. Because it was built only 13 years after the Watts-Sherman House

William Watts Sherman House

The William Watts Sherman House is a notable house designed by American architect H. H. Richardson, with later interiors by Stanford White. The house is generally acknowledged as one of Richardson's masterpieces, and the prototype for what later became known as the Shingle Style in American...

 in Newport

Newport, Rhode Island

Newport is a city on Aquidneck Island in Newport County, Rhode Island, United States, about south of Providence. Known as a New England summer resort and for the famous Newport Mansions, it is the home of Salve Regina University and Naval Station Newport which houses the United States Naval War...

, Rhode Island

Rhode Island

The state of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, more commonly referred to as Rhode Island , is a state in the New England region of the United States. It is the smallest U.S. state by area...

, said to be the first Queen Anne style house in the country, it is closer in design and detail to the original style as elaborated by Richard Norman Shaw

Richard Norman Shaw

Richard Norman Shaw RA , was an influential Scottish architect from the 1870s to the 1900s, known for his country houses and for commercial buildings.-Life:...

.

The house is also significant historically for its connection to George B. Clifford. Clifford was a prominent businessman, attorney, and real estate man, and one of the three founders of the Cream of Wheat

Cream of Wheat

Cream of Wheat is a porridge-type breakfast food invented in 1893 by wheat millers in Grand Forks, North Dakota. The cereal is currently manufactured and sold by B&G Foods. Until 2007, it was the Nabisco brand made by Kraft Foods. It is similar in texture to grits, but made with farina instead...

company. His investments and links to northeastern capital represented an important contribution to the early years of progress after the first settlement of Grand Forks.