Volunteers work to save historic county courthouse

Sunday, August 30, 2015
MADELINEDEJOURNETTadvancensc@sbcglobal.net Members of the Stoddard County Historic Preservation Committee meet at the Stars & Stripes museum to discuss plans for a stage 5 grant for the courthouse. (L-R) Frances Moore, Kathy Skelton, Jim Mayo, and Shaaron Geisler.

Located on the "Lancaster Square" in the small town of Bloomfield, the Stoddard County Courthouse is a county treasure. The clock in the cupola is a "Maria Strike" clock, only one of four similar clocks in the state of Missouri. Though the original courthouse was burned during the Civil War, a portion of that building was incorporated into the current structure, when it was rebuilt in 1867-1870 and remodeled again in 1909.

Over the years, the building has shown the wear and tear of the ages. Members of the Stoddard County Historical Society approached the Stoddard County Commission in 2010 to ask for their support in obtaining a grant to repair the leaking cupola, fearing that it would eventually fall through the roof into the courtroom below, as it had done in the distant past.

Though the county commission had a structural study done in 2009, grant money was not available, so the matter was dropped. The historical society began a campaign to collect donations, but the restorations were far beyond any amount that private money could handle. Historical society members had to sit helplessly as north winds and rains continue to pelt the old courthouse, causing the dome to leak. Animals and birds were unwelcome dome visitors, causing further damage to a structure that had already been replaced by the new Justice Center and the government building across the street.

photo courtesy of Stoddard County Historical Society This photo showed hoe the courthouse looked in 1870, shortly after it was built. The east and west wings were added , when the building was remodeled in 1909. The cupola has also been changed since the building was built.

Then, in 2013, County commissioner Greg Mathis notified the historical society that a Missouri Historical Preservation grant for courthouses was available through the Department of Natural Resources (DNR). In fact, the county had already missed the stage 1, 2, and 3 deadlines for the grants, so Mathis was calling for help on the stage 4 grant.

At this point, Stoddard County Historical Society members sprang into action. Fortunately, historian Frances Moore had already succeeded in getting the courthouse on the National Historic Register in 1984, so the stage was set for grants.

"We called Kathy (Mooney) Skelton, and she agreed to write the grant for us," Moore said. "We appointed a Stoddard County Historical Preservation Committee, consisting of Kathy Skelton, myself, Jim Mayo, Shaaron Geisler, and Larry Ward. Greg Mathis was also a member of the committee."

Daily Statesman archives This photo shows the current courthouse, which was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1984.

The committee worked closely with the county commission, and the grant, which asked for $100,000, was submitted by the January, 2014 deadline. The county commission agreed to be the governmental agency responsible for the project, also agreeing to furnish the $30,000 matching funds required for the 30/70 grant.

Three committee members--Skelton, Moore, and Geisler--drove to Jefferson City and hand-delivered three copies of the grant application into the hands of the proper officials.

"We were very pleased with their comments, after they read our application," Moore said. "They said they knew they were going to approve the grant as soon as they saw it!"

Extensive documentation and photographs were included in the application, clearly pointing out the importance of the courthouse to Stoddard County and the urgency of needed repairs.

The project work summary that the committee wrote for the grant is detailed and impressive.

"We started from the top," Skelton explained. "The cupola (dome) is the first priority. It has to be repaired before the rest of the building, since it's leaking. The electrical wiring is also in need of repair right away. We didn't include the repair of the clock in the grant, because we have a competent repairman who is willing to donate his time to get the clock in working order. We did include the tuck-pointing of the brick exterior of the building, since that affects its structural integrity."

At this point in the narrative, the old adage "The best laid plans of mice and men often go awry" comes into the story.

A Monday, Aug. 17, 2015 visit with the Stoddard County Commission reveals that an extensive, but as yet unannounced amount of the $100,000 grant will have to be used not for actual repair work--but for architectural and administrative costs. It is unknown how much will be left for actual repair work or when work will begin.

However, Kathy Skelton recently discovered that the stage 5 grant is due in Jefferson City by Sept. 11, 2015, so she and the historical society committee will be working to pull together another grant to continue where the first grant leaves off.

The old courthouse has stood in the square for 145 years, serving the residences of Stoddard County since shortly after the Civil War. Sitting atop the hill, the courthouse and its cupola can be seen above the trees for miles, a living reflection of the county's history.

If not for caring volunteers, such precious monuments will crumble into the dust of history.

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