Bingham-Waggoner gets much-needed upgrades

Ask members of the Bingham-Waggoner Historical Society, caretakers of the magnificent three-story Bingham-Waggoner Estate, what the biggest need of  the house is and you’ll get the same answer – money.

“We are always looking for money,” said Janice Pearson, past president of the Historical Society and a 24-year volunteer at the restored home where famed Civil War artist George Caleb Bingham once lived.

Noting all estate maintenance and restoration is done by the Historical Society, Pearson says the cost of preserving the Independence landmark gets more expensive each year.

“So we are working harder and harder to preserve this piece of history,” she said, noting many improvements have been made over the past year.

Take the sleeping porch, for instance, on the south side of the victorian estate. Once about to fall off the house, site coordinator Shireen McLaughlin says the porch was restored to its grandeur last summer. 

Then there’s the Carriage House, to the west of the estate,  where visitors purchase tickets and begin their guided tours. Once cooled by noisy, ineffective window units and heated by two large gas blowers, the building now has central air-conditioning and heating, thanks to a $25,000 donation from the city of Independence. The units were installed in March.

As visitors walk from the parking lot to the Carriage House, they will tread on a brick walkway, partially constructed of commemorative Vitralase bricks, bearing the names of donors and some businesses.

The first 100 of the 5,000 bricks needed to complete this fundraising project were placed near the west end of the walkway in early March.

“We are hoping for another 100 bricks or more to continue the walkway,” Pearson said, noting the project will be done in phases.

Unlike normal bricks, the hard Vitralase bricks will not deteriorate or erode because of the weather or wear.

“They will be there longer than any of us,” she said.

 The cost of one weatherproof brick is $75; a double brick is $150. To make a purchase, call the Bingham-Waggoner Estate, 816-461-3491, and you will receive a form to fill out.

“You tell us what you want on your brick and we will have it made for you,” Pearson explained. It’s as easy as that.

Another improvement to the estate is in its elegant dining room. There golden velvet curtains will grace the large doorway for the first time since the Waggoner family lived there. The curtains will hang on rings from a rod across the doorway – one on each side of the frame.

“Ours will not have sashes because there are no sash marks on the door frame,” Pearson said, explaining everything in the house is as it was in 1900. “That’s our restoration period.”

But these curtains aren’t the only dining room improvement. So that the old window curtains won’t look ugly, new window curtains and shades will cover the five dining room windows.

“The new window curtains will be a gold velvet sheer with a slight shimmer, and we will have more elegant shades.”

Visitors won’t have to wait long to see the dining room back in all of its glory. As soon as the specially-made curtain rings arrive – hopefully in two or three weeks – the curtain will be installed.

“You can’t go down to your local mercantile and buy curtain rings anymore,” Pearson said. “We just have to be patient.”

The biggest modification, though, has been to the gift shop in the Carriage House, which has been redesigned for content purposes.

“We have totally started over in the gift shop,” said Nan Ingham, board member and volunteer. “Everything is new. We have no clutter.”

No longer is the gift shop a souvenir shop to the Bingham-Waggoner Estate. It is a fundraiser for the estate.

“It is a lovely gift shop with very, very nice items,” said site coordinator McLaughlin. “And we want to make sure that people know that they can visit the gift shop without the need of visiting the house.”

Nancy Riotte, a member of the gift shop committee and tour guide, says the shop is different than it was in the past.

“We want a more upscale look,” she said. “We would like our gift shop to be as good as those on the Square and to attract customers on its own.”

Attractions include the works of local artists Ron Taylor, Rebecca Friend and George Lightfoot, as well as such gift items as candy in gift boxes, wine stoppers, dip and dessert mixes, books, soaps and more. Shop hours are 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Saturday; 1 to 4 p.m. Sundays.

The excitement doesn’t stop here.

For the past few years, Bingham-Waggoner has been offering catered lunches for groups of 10 to 50 in the Carriage House, followed by a guided tour of the estate. The meal and tour is $16.

Because of the popularity of the lunches served between 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., an evening meal has been added between 4 and 7 p.m. The supper and tour is $20. For reservations, call McLaughlin at the estate.