Boone County Historical Society

Last updated

Boone County Historical Society was established in 1924. Located in Columbia, Missouri, United States, the Boone County Historical Museum has been collecting, preserving and exhibiting artifacts and records of the people of Boone County, Missouri.

Contents

The campus includes a history museum, an art gallery, a genealogical library, and a number of historic structures. [1] [2] The museum owns historical photographs spanning back to the late 19th century, revealing a Columbia that many people have never seen. [3] The historical society and museum is a cultural and arts destination for Columbia, Missouri and surrounding communities. [4]

Walters-Boone County Museum

The Walters-Boone County Museum was established in 1990 by the Boone County Historical Society. Through the efforts of the historical society's board of directors, a large campaign was launched, which allowed the official construction of the museum to start in 1989. The Walters-Boone County Museum has two major exhibit halls and other display areas which make a total of 5,500 square feet of historical exhibit space. The museum also houses a nearly 10,000 square feet of climate-control vaults and storage space. [5]

The 2,800-square-foot Montminy Art Gallery exhibits local, regional and state artists of importance and interest to the Boone County community. The Montminy Gallery was built in 1993 after the death of longtime Columbia artist and University of Missouri professor Emeritus Elizabeth "Tracy" Montminy. [6] A wide array of art mediums can be found rotating every eight to twelve weeks. Some of the more popular mediums include paintings, photography and sculptures.

The society is the home to the pianist John W. Blind Boone, 125-year-old Chickering grand piano. After belonging to the Walters-Boone Historical Museum for decades, the original piano was hardly playable and continued to deteriorate as a museum piece for the historical society. [7] The century-old piano can now be found as a centerpiece of the Montminy Art Gallery.

Boone County History & Culture Center

In 1988, local businessman Raul Walters made a contribution to honor and in memory of his parents, Bucky and Lala, to the construction of a new museum building for the society. In return, the society included the Walters name in the finished museum's name - The Walters Boone County Historical Museum & Visitors Center. In 1993 an estate gift left by famed artist, Tracy Montminy, allowed for the addition of a 6,000-square-foot space to the west end of the original museum building. The 3,000-square-foot ground floor was dedicated to collections storage and the 3,000-square-foot top floor became the Montminy Art Gallery. Around 2009, the organization began to refer to its venues collectively as the Boone County Historical Museum & Galleries. That was an effort to better describe both the history galleries and the Montminy Art Gallery, as well as the newly built Riverhorse Pavilion. In the years since 1993, not only has the organization produced over 100 major art exhibits, but has also produced dozens of professional music concerts, book readings and other cultural programming. In 2016, the board of directors enacted a long-term plan to improve the organization by changing the mission statement and name.

Deciding to better embrace its role as a culture and arts center, and in addition to its long-time role as a history museum, the board of directors voted unanimously to rename the main building and its ancillary venues (consisting of the Montminy Gallery, The Village at Boone Junction, the Maplewood House and the Riverhorse Pavilion), The Boone County History & Culture Center.

Historic houses and buildings

Historic Maplewood House

The Maplewood House was built in 1877 by husband and wife Slater Ensor Lenoir and Margaret Bradform Lenior, each coming from Boone County pioneer families. The house and farm received its name Maplewood because it was located in a grove of large sugar maple trees. [8] Surviving for over 139 years, the Maplewood House been visited by thousands. [9]

The historical house was built with homemade brick. Showing influence of the Italianate architectural style. With an original T-shaped layout the home was remodeled in 1891. Some of the construction consisted of enclosing the sleeping decks along the south side of the home and adding an additional wing. Some of the architectural features of the home include: corbels, arched windows, bay windows, front balcony and oriel window.

The original farm included 427 acres. The land included: a large pond, utility house, hay barn and a large barn. The animal barn was reconstructed to a summer theater playhouse, called the Maplewood Barn Theater after the property was purchased by the City of Columbia. It was lost to a fire in 2010 and rebuilt and dedicated in 2012.

The City of Columbia purchased 60 acres of the farmland including the Maplewood house in 1970. On November 8, 1970 the park was formally dedicated and renamed the Frank G. Nifong Memorial Park and today is called Historic Nifong Park in recognition of the work of historic preservation undertaken by the City of Columbia Parks and Recreation Department and the Boone County Historical Society.

Village of Boone Junction

The village of Boone Junction contains a number of structures relocated from their original locations. These include:

Collections

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Columbia, Missouri</span> City in the United States

Columbia is a city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It is the county seat of Boone County and home to the University of Missouri. Founded in 1821, it is the principal city of the three-county Columbia metropolitan area. It is Missouri's fourth most populous with an estimated 128,555 residents in 2022.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">George Caleb Bingham</span> American artist (1811–1879)

George Caleb Bingham was an American artist, soldier and politician known in his lifetime as "the Missouri Artist". Initially a Whig, he was elected as a delegate to the Missouri legislature before the American Civil War where he fought against the extension of slavery westward. During that war, although born in Virginia, Bingham was dedicated to the Union cause and became captain of a volunteer company which helped keep the state from joining the Confederacy, and then served four years as Missouri's Treasurer. During his final years, Bingham held several offices in Kansas City, while also serving as Missouri's Adjutant General. His paintings of American frontier life along the Missouri River exemplify the Luminist style.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Booches</span> Bar and restaurant in Columbia, Missouri, U.S.

Booches is a bar, restaurant, and pool hall on 9th Street in downtown Columbia, Missouri, that was established in 1884. At over 140 years old, it is the oldest pool hall in Columbia. It is located near the University of Missouri and has traditionally been frequented by college students. In 2016, Booches was inducted into the Boone County Hall of Fame at the Walters-Boone County Historical Museum.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">State Historical Society of Missouri</span> Research facility in Columbia, Missouri

The State Historical Society of Missouri, a private membership and state funded organization, is a comprehensive research facility located in Columbia, Missouri, specializing in the preservation and study of Missouri's cultural heritage. Established in 1898 by the Missouri Press Association and made a trustee of the state in 1901, the Society is the official historical society of the state of Missouri and is located on the campus of the University of Missouri in Downtown Columbia, Missouri. The Society publishes the quarterly Missouri Historical Review, the only scholarly academic journal produced in the state.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John William Boone</span> Musical artist

John William "Blind" Boone was an American pianist and composer of ragtime music.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">University of Missouri Health Care</span>

University of Missouri Health Care is an American academic health system located in Columbia, Missouri. It's owned by the University of Missouri System. University of Missouri Health System includes five hospitals: University Hospital, Ellis Fischel Cancer Center, Missouri Orthopedic Institute and University of Missouri Women's and Children's Hospital — all of which are located in Columbia. It's affiliated with Capital Region Medical Center in Jefferson City, Missouri. It also includes more than 60 primary and specialty-care clinics and the University Physicians medical group.

Hamburg was a small town in St. Charles County, Missouri, United States. Hamburg was one of three towns, along with nearby Howell and Toonerville, that were evacuated and terminated in 1940–1941 when the area was taken over by the United States Department of the Army for the Weldon Spring Ordnance Works, which manufactured trinitrotoluene (TNT) and dinitrotoluene (DNT) and later processed uranium.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Boone Hospital Center</span> Hospital in Missouri, United States

Boone Hospital Center is a county-owned not-for-profit hospital in Columbia, Missouri. It is administered by Boone Health. The hospital is a regional referral center, providing services to 25 Mid-Missouri counties. It employs over 2000 people, making it one of the largest employers in Columbia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">David Gordon House and Collins Log Cabin</span> Historic houses in Missouri, United States

The David Gordon House and Collins Log Cabin were two historic homes located at Columbia, Missouri. The David Gordon House is a two-story, frame I-house. The 13-room structure incorporated original construction from about 1823 and several additions from the 1830s, 1890s and 1930s. The Collins Log Cabin was built in 1818, and is a single pen log house of the story and a loft design. They represent some of the first permanent dwellings in Columbia. The house, located in what is now Stephens Lake Park burned after arson in the early 1990s. The log cabin survived has been relocated from Stephens Lake Park to the campus of the Boone County Historical Society.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">David Guitar House</span> Historic house in Missouri, United States

The Guitar House, previously known as Confederate Hill, is a historic home located in Columbia, Missouri. It was built between 1859 and 1862 and is a two-story, Italianate style dwelling. It has a low-pitched hipped roof, tall slender windows with segmented arches, decorative eave brackets, and a single-story front porch with square supports. The house was constructed by David Guitar, an officer in the Union forces during the American Civil War. The house was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1993.

Paul Jackson, is well known for his large-scale works. His studio, The Avalanche Ranch, is in Columbia, Missouri. Jackson was inducted as a signature member into the American Watercolor Society at the age of 30, and he is a signature member of the National Watercolor Society. His work has received top honors in national and international competition.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gibson Mansion</span> Historic house in California, United States

The Gibson House is a historic house that now serves as a museum in Woodland, California. It exemplifies several architectural styles, including Georgian Revival, Italianate and Neoclassical. It was listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 1976.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Maplewood (Columbia, Missouri)</span> Historic house in Missouri, United States

Maplewood is a historic home located in Columbia, Missouri, United States. It was built by Slater Ensor Lenoir and his wife Margaret Bradford Lenoir in 1877. It is a two-story, Italianate style brick dwelling. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1979.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Daniel R. Fitzpatrick</span> American cartoonist

Daniel Robert Fitzpatrick was a two-time Pulitzer Prize winner and an editorial cartoonist for the St. Louis Dispatch from 1913 to 1958.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jon Luvelli</span> American photographer

Jon Luvelli is an Italian–American street photographer. He has made black and white images of people in Columbia, Missouri and in rural mid-western American townscapes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tom Bass (horse trainer)</span>

Tom Bass was an American Saddlebred horse trainer. Bass was born into slavery, but became one of the most popular horse trainers of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Bass trained the influential Saddlebred stallion Rex McDonald, as well as horses owned by Buffalo Bill Cody, Theodore Roosevelt, and Will Rogers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tracy Montminy</span> American artist

Tracy Montminy, who completed early works as Elizabeth Tracy, (1911–1992) was an American artist and muralist. During the WPA's era, she painted murals in civic buildings, including murals in the library in Cambridge, Massachusetts; the fire and police building of Saugus, Massachusetts; the Milton, Massachusetts, post office; Medford, Massachusetts City Hall; the post office of Downers Grove, Illinois; and the post office in Kennebunkport, Maine, as well as others both in the U.S. and abroad. She was an art instructor at the University of Missouri and the American University of Beirut, continuing her own painting projects simultaneously with her teaching into the 1980s. Upon her death, she established a trust to create the Montminy Art Gallery in Columbia, Missouri.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Annie Fisher</span>

Annie Knowles Fisher was a cook, caterer and entrepreneur. Annie lived in Columbia, Missouri, and worked for prominent families as a cook until she started her own catering business. Fisher became famous in Missouri for her widely sold beaten biscuits. Through her cooking, Fisher amassed a sizable fortune and purchased rental properties and farms in and around Boone County.

The Smithton Land Company was a group of American pioneers who in 1818 established the frontier village of Smithton, Missouri in the Boonslick region of Missouri, then the Missouri Territory. In 1821 the settlement was renamed Columbia, Missouri and relocated slightly East of its original location. Smithton was the first county seat of Boone County. The company and town were named after Thomas Adams Smith, the receiver of the land office in Franklin, Missouri.

References

  1. Vernaschi, Bruno. "Boone County Historical Society Celebrates Museum's 25th Anniversary". Columbia Daily Tribune.
  2. "Boone County Historical Society". Boone County Historical Society.
  3. Martin, Kaitlynn. "Boone County Historical Society Celebrates Museum's 25th Anniversary". Columbia Business Times. Archived from the original on 2016-08-13. Retrieved 2016-06-18.
  4. Jones, Jacob. "Walters-Boone County Historical Museum Celebrates 25 Years". KOMU News.
  5. "Walters-Boone Historical Museum". Boone County Historical Society.
  6. "Montminy Art Gallery". Boone County Historical Society.
  7. Clark, Bill. "Sunday Concert Features Restored Boone Piano". Columbia Daily Tribune.
  8. "Historic Maplewood House". Boone County Historical Society.
  9. Sanders, Briana. "Maplewood House renovations will preserve history for generations to come". The Missourian.
  10. "Village at Boone Junction". Boone County Historical Society.
  11. "Boone County Historical Society Civil War". Missouri Digital Heritage.
  12. "Boone County Historical Museum". University of Missouri Digital Library.
  13. "Walters-Boone County Museum Preserves Firefighting History". Columbia Missourian Newspaper.
  14. Stark, Erin. "Street Photographer's Images of Student Protests Join Museum Collection". Missourian. Retrieved 3 April 2019.
  15. "A Bell Rings – 150 Years of Boone County Education". Columbia Daily Tribune.
  16. "150 Years of Boone County Education". Boone County Historical Society. Archived from the original on 2016-06-30. Retrieved 2016-06-18.
  17. "The Sporting Life: Hunting, Fishing & Conservation in Boone County". Boone County Historical Society. Archived from the original on 2016-06-30. Retrieved 2016-06-18.
  18. "The Letters of Joseph Cooper Babb". University of Missouri School of Law. Retrieved 3 April 2019.
  19. "Westhoff Photo Collection". Missouri Digital Heritage. Retrieved 3 April 2019.
  20. "Postcards from the St. Louis World's Fair & Exposition". Missouri Digital Heritage. Retrieved 3 April 2019.

38°54′26″N92°17′38″W / 38.9073°N 92.2939°W / 38.9073; -92.2939