This month my quest club friends and I read Campbell Quest by Patrick MacCulloch. This true story is about fur trader and entrepreneur, Robert Campbell, who made his fortune in St. Louis in the 1850s. It is a well-written book that contains a lot of family letters. As a follow-up to the story, we decided to take a field trip and headed to the Campbell Museum for a guided tour. It was wonderful!
This gorgeous home was the first one to be built in the prestigious St. Louis neighborhood, Lucas Park, and once the Campbell family moved there, decedents remained there until the 1930s.
Robert and Virginia had thirteen children. Of those, three sons lived to adulthood. The surviving men all resided in the house as adults and never married.
Most of the family pieces are still within the house, down to written records and treasured letters. One of the Campbell sons, Hugh, was a photographer and took copious amounts of pictures which has provided invaluable information to historians. On the tour, we were able to study the old photos of the home and it was interesting to see that the rooms have remained unchanged.
All of the stained glass windows are original. I found that amazing to think none had been broken throughout the years.
There were at least two quilts on display and both had belonged to the Campbells.
Naturally, this butler's pantry caught my attention! Mrs. Campbell's china is very striking!
Mrs. Campbell was a gracious hostess and enjoyed throwing dinner parties.
Some of their guests included Mr. Eads and the Grants.
I recommend the book and, especially, touring the home. If you're local, you may want to consider making a trip there during the holiday season. Soon the home will be decorated in Victorian Christmas style!
Happy weekend to everyone!