Old Barnhill Building - California, MO - Victorian Style Architecture on Waymarking.com

County of building: Moniteau County
Location of building: 301 N. High St., California
Type Building: Victorian: Italianate

"The Old Barnhill Building was constructed c. 1892 for insuranceman William Barnhill. First used as a millinery shop and later, c. 1898, by the Acklin Jewelry Company, the structure was deeded to Barnhill's daughter, Ethel, in 1899. The property was acquired c. 1921 from the Barnhill estate by C. F. Nischwitz presumably as an annex to the family furniture and undertaking establishment located on the north side of the courthouse square C. F. Nischwitz was succeeded in business by his son, Edward C. , whose civic contribution' to California and Moniteau County include service as director of the Farmers and Traders Bank, City Councilman, and Mayor and Presiding Judge from 1914-22.' Whether the Nischwitz actually conducted business in the buildings is unknown; the structure, was sold within the year to Jack Bowlin who began the Bowlin Funeral Home at this address by the close of 1921. 5 Perhaps briefly used as the Wilson Funeral Home during the early 1930's, the Old Barnhill Building was transferred to J. F. McDaniel in 1935 after Bowlin's default on loan payments." The structure was converted subsequently into medical offices by K. J. O'Banion, M.D. , ending fourteen years of use for undertaking purposes. The doctor purchased the building two years 1ater, modernizing and adding onto his office at unknown dates prior to the property's sale on October 3, 1977.' Default on payments by the next owner resulted in the building's sale at auction to present owner, Jack Crawford, in December, 1978. Kr. Crawford hopes to qualify for the tax incentives available under the Tax Reform Act in the rehabilitation of the structure for apartment use." ~ NRHP Nomination Form