MULE
By ALLYSON COOK
Reporter
(WARRENSBURG, Mo., digitalBURG) —
The University of Central Missouri is now the owner of the old home east of the football stadium on Holden Street.
PHOTO BY MARIE NABORS / PHOTO EDITOR
Cheatham-Philips house is a three-story home located at 414 S. Holden street across from W.C. Morris Building.
The university purchased the Cheatham-Phillips house in October for $415,000 but has no formal plan for its reuse.
The three-story house with large columns adorning its façade is located at 414 S. Holden St.
“The interior of the house is extremely dated but no formal assessment has been provided about the oveall condition of the structure,” said Jeff Murphy, assistant director for media relations.
He said the university worked with a local contractor over winter break to make some improvements around the property. Crews excavated the ground on the west side of the home so the property was consistant with the surrounding grade. The rear deck was in poor condition and was removed, along with a fence that surrounded the backyard. A detatched carriage house that needed significant structural repair was removed along with overgrown shrubbery around the property.
“We want that look around it to be very consistant with what is already there,” Murphy said.
The house was originally built by the Cheatham family in 1915. It was a Sears kit house that came to Warrensburg on the railroad. It was the magnolia model and cost $5,190, not including the brick and mortar, according to Johnson County Historical Society information. It was the most expensive model of the Sears kit houses. The house is about 4,400 square feet.
Martin Phillips, a professor emeritus of finance at UCM, and his family were the last people to reside in the house. Phillips came to Warrensburg in the late 1970s, and the family moved into the house nearly 40 years ago.
I looked at the house when I first came to Warrensburg 42 years ago. I was somewhat run down and yard overgrown. Keith Jones had the listing. He was dubious about taking me to see it in that I was opening an investment office in Warrensburg and thought I wouldn’t be around long. As I recall it was listed at $55,000, but Jones said I could make an offer. Before I could get back with an offer Martin had already bought it. We then bought the house three doors north from Win and Ferne Graves.
Unfortunately, the Johnson County Historical Society has misidentified this house. This is not a Sears Magnolia. Not only is it not a close match but the construction date of 1915 is not correct. The Sears Magnolia was not offered until 1918.
If you will look at the Magnolia catalog image and examples you will notice that the roof is hipped. The house at 414 S. Holden Street does not have a hipped roof, it has a side/end gabled roof. When identifying houses I always tell people to start with the roof. Does the roof style match? No? Wrong identification. Then, there’s that construction date……..
The Historical Society was asked to provide info for this article. I looked through Cheatham family files at the Smiser Library and found next to nothing, so asked a Cheatham family member who is also a close friend. That is the single source of my “identification” of the house. My hope is that if the house is to be demolished, that it will removed by a salvage company who would then resell the material for reuse. If the house was a Magnolia, it would have greater historical value, as it would be one of 8 known to yet exist and apparently the only west of the Mississippi River. I once lived in a Wards kit house built in 1910 that was a fine and beautiful home. The idea that a kit house is a “cheap” house is erroneous. The term “kit” simply means it was pre-cut and often pre-fitted, nearly eliminating mistakes by builders. The 414 S. Holden house is at the least very unique. I will miss its stately appearance on Holden Street.
So CMSU spends almost half a million dollars to buy a house and has no ideas for use??
The taxpayers’ money being used wisely–not!
And this at a time thre are budget cuts coming for higher education thanks to former Gov Nixon’s mismanagement.
Sure is good to see this common sense at work.
As a lifelong resident of Warrensburg, this house has fascinated me for as long as I can remember. Over the years I have known a number of people with connections to it, and have heard some wonderful stories. Not long ago I tasked with documenting it. While it is an old house, I found it to be remarkably sound, though in need of some attention. It is my sincerest hope that a way is found to use and preserve this Century Old Landmark.
There’s been a mistake. The build date of 1890 makes it impossible for this to be a Sears kit home. They were not offered that early. sorry
The T. E. Cheatham family appears on the 1910 census at 207 Gay Street,and not 414 S. Holden until 1920.
I have fond memories of my great-grandmother’s house; the views of the fireworks at the nearby stadium on the Fourth of July were fabulous.
Ginny Cheatham
I am also a great-grand-daughter of the Cheatham family. My grandmother grew up in that house. She was married in the then back gardens of the home in 1920. I have some history and photographs the historical society of Johnson Co. might like. It gives Holden St. a distinction and sets the UCM campus apart from other schools. The historical home is a Warrensburg Century Landmark.