Jefferson City, Missouri
The Missouri Governor’s Mansion, on the bluff overlooking the Missouri River, had always been on my bucket list, so while in Jefferson City we reserved time for a tour. Our first glimpse of the old three-story, red-brick mansion was from the Missouri State Capital Dome, which we had toured the previous day. It looked tiny nestled among the gardens and trees. From the heights of the dome we were able to get quite an impressive view of the layout of the ten acre plot which was owned by the tax-payers of Missouri.
We parked on the street at 100 Madison, directly in front of the three-story mansion and placed our quarters in the parking meter. A large security officer met us at the gate, and after we told him the password he escorted us past the beautiful bubbling fountains to the front door. As we topped the stone stairs and passed through the pink granite columns, Jeanette was waiting for us. She wasn’t tall in stature, but she looked as though she knew everything we wanted to learn about the mansion awaiting just beyond the front door.
We entered into the great hall to a large open area. The walnut parquet floors shone brightly just inside the 66 foot square building. On our left, where the matching walnut carved grand staircase should have greeted us was a huge wall of plastic. The curved staircase was being renovated and we were disappointed that we would miss seeing the crown jewel of the mansion.
Built by Prisoners
Jeanette described the building as one of the oldest governor’s mansions in the United States built in 1871 for $75,000 with the work being performed mostly by prisoners from the State Penitentiary located not far from the mansion.
Through the large pocket door on our right, we entered the double parlor or as some refer it as the music room which held a beautiful Chickering piano which was patented in 1889. Yes, if my math was correct it was just a baby at 133 years old.
The parlor was graced by many beautiful portraits of previous First Ladies of Missouri elegantly displayed on the 17 foot walls.
Jeanette told a story of while renovating this room they found hidden pocket interior shutters in the windows. The carpenters restored these shutters back into service.
Through the doors on the opposite wall was the formal dining room with a long wooden table set with fine china. I wondered what famous people enjoyed a meal here and sat around this beautiful table.
The fireplaces along the wall and others throughout the mansion were no longer a wood or coal burner, but had been converted to natural gas and was still used on special occasions to heat part of the building.
Back Porch Treats
A plain white back porch stood just beyond the outside wall of the dining room. Compared to the rest of the house the porch wasn’t fancy, but it called my name to come and sit a spell and look out into the beautiful gardens. Jeanette didn’t stop talking long enough for me to take a seat and we moved on, circling back around to the Great Hall and on to the Library.
Library
During some of the early renovations the library had been one of the first rooms to get air conditioning. The book cases along the walls contained classics, Bibles and a children’s collection. The shelves also housed photographs of the first residents of the mansion, Mr. and Mrs. B. Granz Brown.
Jeanette was quite a storyteller. She proudly spouted off facts about the beautiful 13 bedroom mansion. She stated the home was originally built with no bathrooms or no closets and was now sitting where the first Missouri Capital once sat.
Weddings at the Mansion
She also told us fun facts of when her brother married Governor Hearns’ daughter and Jeanette, being nine months pregnant, was one of the bridesmaids. The wedding was held in the mansion and she had to waddle gracefully down the grand staircase. She giggled as she she spoke. We loved hearing all the human interest stories.
It was quite a fun trip and I would highly recommend Jefferson City as a fun, historic place to visit.
Happy Wandering!
