Cape house nominated for national historic registry

One of Cape Girardeau's oldest buildings will get a new life as a bed and breakfast inn, the same week that it may be accepted on the National Register of Historic Places.

The A.R. Ponder house, at the northwest corner of William Street and Louisiana Avenue, is undergoing renovation by owners Jay and Kelly Purcell.

An original stained-glass window next to the staircase was backlit in the Ponder house. (Fred Lynch)

By December, they would like to have the house, their residence until eight months ago, up and running as an unattended bed and breakfast, or an extended-stay inn, Jay Purcell said.

The house, a three-story brick building constructed in the Neoclassical Revival style of local architect L.B. Blackwood, surrounded by a wrought-iron gate and more than 100 rosebushes, has appeal to both families as a vacation rental and couples looking for a secluded, romantic getaway, Purcell said.

"I've got to believe when I proposed to my wife, I would have rented a place like this," Purcell said.

At a public hearing Monday, Purcell requested a special-use permit for the property to operate an unattended bed and breakfast in a single-family residential district. Council members unanimously approved the Purcells' request.

The decision about the National Register of Historic Places will be made Friday.

Purcell said he will add four parking spots to the 11 behind the property because several neighbors voiced their concerns about parking being insufficient.

The bed and breakfast is projected to open in December.

The renovations to the house cost about $250,000, Purcell said, and include new wiring, plumbing, Jacuzzi tubs and wall-to-wall tiling.

"It's like a brand-new 101-year-old house," Purcell said.

Kelly Purcell picked the new furnishing and interior design for the 16-room, three-story house, which is all new but has something of a "period" feel.

Jay Purcell described the decor as "like a Norman Rockwell painting" and said he and his wife attend house tours every chance they get for inspiration and decorating ideas.

Abraham Russell Ponder built the house in late November 1905, using new colored, hard-pressed bricks from the Cape Girardeau Press Brick Co., which he helped organized.

The bricks are said to contain iron filings and coral for added strength and a rich, red hue.

Louis Houck brought Ponder to Cape Girardeau for his assistance in building railroads throughout Southeast Missouri. Ponder also aided in the creation of the Cape Girardeau Telephone Co.

Morgan Lake, a student in the program for historic preservation at Southeast Missouri State University, nominated the house for the National Register of Historic Places as part of the program curriculum because it exemplified trademark characteristics of both Blackwood's work and Neoclassical Revival architecture.

In doing research for the project, Lake delved into the history of the Ponder house by poring over photographs, fire insurance maps, tax assessments and old news articles, she said.

Steven Hoffman, director of the program at Southeast, said he offers students the chance to draft a nomination to the National Register of Historic Places as part of one of his classes.

Of the 23 Cape Girardeau buildings on the National Register, 12 were nominated by Southeast students, Hoffman said.

Achieving national status is important, Hoffman said, because it lends outside validation to the "rich and significant" history in Cape Girardeau that "local claims alone can't make."

Some of Cape Girardeau's historic homes, like the Reynolds House at 623 N. Main St., have fallen into disrepair while those like the Ponder house have not. Hoffman said sometimes it's just a matter of "being lived in."

"Just living in a house makes it healthier," he said.

bdicosmo@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 245