Tuggle Monuments
A matched pair of 28-foot granite monuments erected in 1886 and 1909 honor a local farm couple. The wills of Johathan and Polly Tuggle specified that $10,000 of their estate be used for the statuary located in Packard Cemetery on BB Highway. Both female figures hold anchors in their left hands while one points skyward.
Depot Museum
The Cameron Historical Society spent years restoring the former Burlington Northern depot into the Depot Museum which houses artifacts tracing Cameron’s railroad heritage. The town once had three train stations including the elegant Cameron Junction and boasted 44 trains a day. Railroad contractors completed the Hannibal-St. Joseph Railway ahead of schedule in 1859 and earned a bonus—ten gallons of whiskey.
Veteran's Memorial
A Cameron veterans group bought land in 1946 with some of it earmarked for a golf course and future memorial. Schools and recreational facilities came first, however, and the Four County Veterans Memorial was delayed until 1990. The wall and tablets honor area veterans who served in America’s four major conflicts and it is the site of Memorial Day and Veterans Day services. Two other monuments honor Cameron’s war dead: Fountains at the high school and downtown McCorkle Park cite two fighter pilots downed over Vietnam.
Musser Mansion
The recently-restored Musser Mansion was built in 1875 by Solomon Musser, Cameron’s eccentric second mayor who was acquitted twice and finally convicted of assaulting a widowed teacher, a case which the local paper called “Rich, Rare and Racy Proceedings and Wonderful Developments”. The 14,000 square-foot landmark features a 5-story walnut, spiral stairway and two ballrooms used as an opera house and lodge hall. The basement once served as a glove factory. Part of the lower level has housed the Cameron Children’s Development Center since 1987.
Sanders House, 621 S. Chestnut
The most famous occupant of this elegant 1891 banker’s house was Ted Sanders who was a political ally and confidant of President Harry Truman. Sanders headed the Clinton County Democratic party while Truman did likewise in adjoining Clay County. The two became lifelong friends and Sanders was a special guest at Truman’s inauguration as well as a regular White House visitor. Truman took time to write Sanders from the 1945 Potsdam Conference with Churchill and Stalin that the talks “were going along in good shape”, but because of the widespread bombing that he had “yet to see a chicken in any yard”. Sanders sent Truman a turkey each Christmas for over 30 years. This ornate Queen Anne Victorian home features impressive oak woodwork, four fireplaces and 52 doors.
Darby House
Harnessmaker, drum major, and Mayor E.F. Darby paid $2,800 in gold coins for 3 _ acres and a small brick house which he enlarged into this magnificent Queen Anne Victorian at S. Walnut & Ford Streets. It became the renowned Collins Tea Room from 1947 to 1964, then a rest home and fell into disrepair. In 2003 Dr. William Reed completed a three-year restoration and the Darby House is now operated as a four-room Bed & Breakfast with a gourmet restaurant which accommodates parties and receptions. (link: thedarbyhouse.com)
Thompson House, 513 S. Chestnut
The owner of Cameron’s first furniture store built this Greek Revival-style home in 1883. The grandson of Cameron’s founder also lived here. French beveled glass adorns the front transom, side lights and large front window.
Price Home, 403 S. Chestnut
This 1889 Italianate-style house features a magnificent oak staircase with intricately carved balustrades, 14-foot ceilings, doors over nine feet tall and two massive cherry fireplaces. One 19th century owner couple clashed over temperance. R.N. Williams was a druggist who dispensed alcohol while his wife, Alice, headed the Temperance Union. Temperance advocates passed a local option law prohibiting liquor sales while Williams continued to fill prescriptions for medicinal brandy. The matter went to court and the druggist was fined $300. Since 1959 the home has belonged to Tom and Betty Price. Tom was an award-winning band instructor while Betty became Cameron’s first female mayor.
Goodrich Building
The Goodrich Building, built in 1929, continues as part of the Cameron School System and currently is the site for the kindergarten program. The building features a modern, 432-seat auditorium with orchestra pit. The building is named for patron N.S. Goodrich, founder of the Cameron Savings and Loan Association.
The Ole School
The Cameron Historical Preservation Society operates the former middle school built in 1914 and has converted the large upper library into a community ballroom. The downstairs rooms are rented for office space and classrooms. There’s even a cramped gymnasium in the basement referred to as the “cracker box”.
