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What and where: The Bingham-Waggoner Mansion, 313 W. Pacific Ave., a few blocks south of the Independence Square.
What’s going on: The mansion is getting a new roof and new guttering.
What happened: The current composite roof was damaged in a September 2010 storm. It’s being replaced with a slate roof.
“A lot of people won’t even notice the difference, but it will be historically accurate,” said Nancy Riotte, president of the Bingham-Waggoner Historical Society.
Also being restored are box gutters. “They are built into the roof,” Riotte said.
There was a gap between the amount insurance would pay from the storm damage and what was needed for the slate roof and the gutters. The city of Independence, which owns the Bingham-Waggoner Estate, kicked in some money, and the Bingham-Waggoner Historical Society, which actually runs the site, set out to raise the rest.
“It was a major undertaking for everyone,” Riotte said.
Who stepped up: “There were a lot of people who worked very hard to make this happen,” Riotte said.
Forty-five to 55 individuals contributed, as did the William T. Kemper Foundation and the Mason L. Bean Foundation, Bank of America Trustees.
Riotte said those involved want to stress “how much we appreciate everyone coming through” and that “it takes all of us.”
The history: Artist and politician George Caleb Bingham lived there from 1864 to 1870. After the Civil War, he painted one of his most famous works, “Order No. 11,” using one of buildings (no longer existent) on the estate as his studio. Later the estate came into the hands of the Waggoner family, known for its mills, which produced “Queen of the Pantry” flour, among others. The old mill across the street today houses the National Frontier Trails Museum. The 1827 alignment of the Santa Fe Trail passes through the Bingham-Waggoner Estate and even today some swales – faint indentations left by wagon trains – can be seen on the southwest edge of the property.
What and where: The Bingham-Waggoner Mansion, 313 W. Pacific Ave., a few blocks south of the Independence Square.
What’s going on: The mansion is getting a new roof and new guttering.
What happened: The current composite roof was damaged in a September 2010 storm. It’s being replaced with a slate roof.
“A lot of people won’t even notice the difference, but it will be historically accurate,” said Nancy Riotte, president of the Bingham-Waggoner Historical Society.
Also being restored are box gutters. “They are built into the roof,” Riotte said.
There was a gap between the amount insurance would pay from the storm damage and what was needed for the slate roof and the gutters. The city of Independence, which owns the Bingham-Waggoner Estate, kicked in some money, and the Bingham-Waggoner Historical Society, which actually runs the site, set out to raise the rest.
“It was a major undertaking for everyone,” Riotte said.
Who stepped up: “There were a lot of people who worked very hard to make this happen,” Riotte said.
Forty-five to 55 individuals contributed, as did the William T. Kemper Foundation and the Mason L. Bean Foundation, Bank of America Trustees.
Riotte said those involved want to stress “how much we appreciate everyone coming through” and that “it takes all of us.”
The history: Artist and politician George Caleb Bingham lived there from 1864 to 1870. After the Civil War, he painted one of his most famous works, “Order No. 11,” using one of buildings (no longer existent) on the estate as his studio. Later the estate came into the hands of the Waggoner family, known for its mills, which produced “Queen of the Pantry” flour, among others. The old mill across the street today houses the National Frontier Trails Museum. The 1827 alignment of the Santa Fe Trail passes through the Bingham-Waggoner Estate and even today some swales – faint indentations left by wagon trains – can be seen on the southwest edge of the property.
