HISTORIC HOME ON THE AUCTION BLOCK
Updated at August 27, 2010 18:10The former home of Missouri legislator Sylvester Baker, known as the Baker Plantation House, is being auctioned on October 18, 2010. This is a no reserve, no minimum bid auction. The event presents an opportunity for a buyer who wants a site with excellent visibility and who appreciates our Missouri Civil War history.
The Baker House played a prominent role during Bill Anderson’s October 14, 1864 raid on the town of Danville. The town, and the Anderson House, sits smack on Interstate 70 in Montgomery County. The House is 3/4 mile east of Exit 170 on the north outer road. Anderson’s guerrillas tried to burn the house during the Danville Raid, and as a result there is a burn mark on the parlor floor. As the tale goes, one of the men in Anderson’s band returned to the house to help Mrs. Baker douse the flames. What Virginia wouldn’t do with a place like this.
A side building that was once a book and souvenir store has full facilities. The historic home, and side building, are quite suitable for an antique business, as one example. The Baker House forms part of a small but significant historic core of buildings that survived the near-total destruction of Danville when Anderson paid his visit. The Danville Female Academy stands just up the road.
The property may be viewed on September 18. For more details, see the website of the Missouri Alliance for Historic Preservation, at http://preservemo.org/properties.html
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