Retro CoMO

Do you have an extra $735,000 lying around?  Want to buy the coolest house in the entire town of Centralia, Missouri (population 3,774)?

You are in luck.

I am not exaggerating about this being the coolest house in town.  It is located at 543 Jefferson Street, which is the main thoroughfare, in the middle of town but on four acres.  The house has 8 bedrooms and 9 bathrooms (7 of which are full and 2 partial) in 9,937 square feet.  I think it even has a ballroom!  It has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places since 1979 (here’s a copy of the nomination form with a ton of information).  It was built in 1940, and is technically in the Art Moderne style rather than Art Deco, though it could also be considered the International Style.

It was built for F. Gano Chance, son of A.B. Chance, the man who owned a factory in town that employs a large percentage of the town’s population to this day (though it is no longer owned by the Chance family).  It has been known as the Chance Guest House because it is still owned by the AB Chance Company, and has been used as a guest residence for visitors to the factory as well as parties, but is also known as Chatol (a combination of Chance and Toalson, Mrs. Chance’s maiden name).

On page 20 of the DNR form above is a blueprint layout of the house, and these pictures were taken from the real estate listing.  It looks like that ballroom was probably originally the room with the indoor pool, but the pool is no longer operational.

The square footage of the house is 2.63 times the population of the town!  You literally could have a party and invite the entire town and they could all fit into your house.  (Not comfortably, but some of them might not show up, and others will spend their time outside smoking anyway, so it would be fine.  Do it!)

Have I convinced you yet?

Centralia is about thirty minutes northeast of Columbia.  Full disclosure: my parents have lived in that area since 2000, so I have been driving by this house for the past nine years, usually longing for a better glimpse inside.  Centralia is a very nice town with a good school system, and totally within commuting distance from Columbia, Mexico, and Moberly.  Actually, my dad regularly commutes between Centralia and Jefferson City, so there’s that too!

You should buy this house.  Then you should read my blog to find some cool furniture to put in your awesome house.  And then you should invite me in for a better look so I can post pictures to this blog.  That’s what you should do.