The land on which this fine Greek Revival plantation house stands has been in the Willis family since James Henry Willis married Sarah A. Barksdale in 1840. Mr. Willis began construction on the house in 1854, according to his granddaughter Mary Sale Stennett, and it was completed in 1857. Willis was elected to the Georgia House of Representatives the year the house was completed and served in the 1857-1858 term.

It is believed to be the first of three houses within a six-mile radius attributed to James Cunningham, an area carpenter. The Chenault House and Matthews House, in Lincoln County, and by influence, the Anderson House in nearby Danburg, make up this collective resource. The Chennault House is the closest in appearance to the Willis-Sale-Stennett House.

National Register of Historic Places