Hunter House

Historic Hunter House

This home was built by Joseph Sneddon Hunter and members of his pioneer family who came from Scotland to Cedar City in the early 1850s.

Original cost to build the home is unknown.  Restoration costs to date total $160,000.

Subcontractors and Suppliers

Southwest Applied Technology College, Robison Rentals, Cedar Fastening Systems, Sunroc, Jones Paint and Glass, Pacific Supply, Cedar Building Products, Shakespeare Flooring, Warren Electric, J. R. Reardon, Precision Chimney.

Home Description

The Joseph S. Hunter house is significant as an example of Utah vernacular architecture.  The first section of the house, built in 1866 is a one and a half story brick example of the Central Hall vernacular type. The east façade displays distinctive wall dormers. The original house has gable-end chimneys and exhibits common brick bonding and relieving arched windows. Decorative features include a plan entablature, gable end cornice returns, gable and dormer finals, and elliptical fanlights in the dormers. The mixing of Greek and Gothic Revival stylistic elements is commonly encountered on vernacular houses of this type.

Biography of Builder

Joseph Sneddon Hunter was born in 1844 in Scotland to Joseph Hunter and Elizabeth Davidson. The family migrated to the United States in 1849.  After pausing in Missouri where Mrs. Hunter and two of her children died, Joseph Hunter and his sons set out for Utah, arriving in Salt Lake City in the early fall of 1852.  The Hunters were then called to help colonize Cedar City, and arrived there in October.

Joseph Sneddon Hunter subsequently made his living in farming and livestock.  He married Elizabeth Catherine Pinnock in 1865.  They had 10 children.  Their house was built in three stages between 1866 and 1891.  Hunter died in his house in 1904.

Click here to see photos of the restoration progress.