Magnolia Manor (Cairo, Illinois)


Magnolia Manor is a postbellum manor located in Cairo, Illinois, located in Alexander County. It has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places since December 17, 1969.
The house is operated as a Victorian period historic house museum by the Cairo Historical Association.

History

The manor was built by the Cairo businessman Charles A. Galigher in 1869. It is a 14-room red brick house which features double walls intended to keep out the city's famous dampness with their ten-inch airspaces. Inside the home are many original, 19th-century furnishings. Galigher became a friend of Ulysses S. Grant during the time Grant had command in Cairo. When Grant retired after two terms as president he was subject of a lavish celebration at Magnolia Manor.