Built in 1867 by Phillip Kirchner, son of Christian and Magdalene, this cabin has been placed on the National Register of Historic Places. Phillip and his wife lived here for 15 years before they built the two story house that still stands along with the cabin. Phillip died in 1903 and his sister, Charlotte bought the land from his estate in 1909. She kept the house and the cabin, not letting it be torn down for logs to make posts or firewood.
It still stands on its original site on a hill three-fourths of a mile north and west of Peterson, to the west of Oakland Cemetary. Privately owned, the cabin stands on a portion of land first claimed by the Christian Kirchner family in 1856, the first settlers in the county. Many thousands have visited this small slice of Iowa pioneer history to hear the story of the first settlers and how they preserved to carve out their destiny in the wilderness. A number of handmade tools and furniture are in the cabin. The present owner is a Kirchner descendant, Julia H. Booth.
