Fort Riley, Building No. 4, 4 Barry Avenue, Riley, Riley County, KS

Significance: Building #4 at Fort Riley was the only single family officer's quarters built in 1903. Its design and ornamentation reflect that of Buildings #97, #99, and #103, which were duplexes built that same year. Building #4 is nearly identical to its neighbors, Buildings #2 and #5 Barry Avenue, which were built in 1889 and 1904 respectively. Erected during a boom phase of construction after the post became a school for the training of cavalry and light artillery forces in 1886, Barry Avenue residences were constructed in chronological order, beginning with the commander's residence, Building #1, built in 1889, and ending with Building #5 to the east, erected 1904. The avenue's chronological development displays the army's increasing tendency to favor designs with less ornamental detail. Building #4's rock-faced machine-cut limestone wall contrast markedly with the smooth-faced limestone wall of the quarters built during the 1850's, as does its Queen Anne styling. Building #4's current resident, Brig. General Williamson is one of only a few female officers to have attained that high rank in U.S. Army history.
Survey number: HABS KS-54-H
Building/structure dates: 1903 Initial Construction