Thomas Hickman House facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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Thomas Hickman House
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 Location in Missouri
Location in the United States
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| Location | 10 Research Center Rd., New Franklin, Missouri |
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| Area | less than one acre |
| Architectural style | Colonial Revival |
| NRHP reference No. | 06000627 |
| Added to NRHP | July 19, 2006 |
The Thomas Hickman House is a really old and special home in Howard County, Missouri. A businessman named Thomas Hickman built this brick house in 1819. It's built in a style called Georgian. In July 2006, it was added to the National Register of Historic Places. This means it's an important historical site.
Contents
Discovering the House's Style
This historic house was built in 1819. It covers about 167 square meters (1,800 square feet). The house shows off a southern Georgian-cottage style. It is one of the oldest brick houses in Missouri that is still in great shape.
The house has one and a half stories. It was built with bricks made by hand. Its strong foundation is made of stone. Inside, there's a wide central hallway, about 2.4 meters (8 feet) across. This hallway leads to three of the four main rooms. It also connects to an attic that was never finished.
A Look Back at History
Who Was Thomas Hickman?
Thomas Hickman was a local businessman. He was one of the first people to settle in Howard County. His property is located just two miles from Old Franklin. This town is famous because William Becknell started the legendary Santa Fe Trail there in 1821.
Thomas Hickman and his wife, Sarah M. Prewitt, moved to the Boonslick area of Missouri. They came from Bourbon County, Kentucky, around 1816. Thomas Hickman was involved in many businesses. One of his ventures was a partnership with Wm. Lamme & Co. This company sold dry goods and hardware in Old Franklin.
Today, the Thomas Hickman House sits on land that belongs to the University of Missouri. It is part of their Horticulture and Agroforestry Research Center.
Bringing the House Back to Life
In 2009, a big project costing $1.3 million was finished. The goal was to restore the house to its original look. Even though the house was falling apart, experts had many original parts to work with. These included the outside bricks, the stone foundation, and the floor joists. They also had the original walnut flooring, cabinets, and window sills.
The restoration team did a lot of work. They poured a new foundation for the house. They also brought the windows back to their original size. They replaced old window panes and sashes. The roof was re-shingled with materials from that time period. Workers carefully removed paint from the outside bricks and made them strong again. The original floors and woodwork inside were refinished. The plaster on the walls was also repaired.
In addition, the four chimneys were rebuilt because they were in bad condition. A summer kitchen was also rebuilt. This was done using information from old records and archaeological digs.
