County of house: Decatur County
Location of house: W. Main St. & N. Fayette St., Lamoni
Site Phone: (641) 784-6133
Architect, builder, or engineer: Thomas Jacobs
Architectural Style: Late Victorian
"Liberty Hall (1881) is a large and intact example of a Victorian-era rural residence,
constructed to meet the needs of its owners and to serve as the headquarters for an
important religious body, the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ Latter Day Saints.
"The house originally consisted of a two story "T" plan, with gable roof. A centered side
wing (the base of the "T") is oriented to the east. Built on a stone foundation, three first
floor chamfered bay windows, and a front portico and connecting porch project beyond
the houses' basic plan.
"The house was built without plans by local carpenter Thomas Jacobs, and vernacular
traits are mixed freely with standardized features and ornamentation. The broad front
gabled portion of the main façade (the south end of the cap of the "T") has an
asymmetrical fenestration pattern. A paired widow grouping on the second floor is
centered above a similar paired window on the floor below which is the center of a
projecting bay. On the right-hand side of the front, a double door with transom (two
rectangular lights) is placed below a single double hung window (2/2 sash) on the second
floor. The remainder of the main facade is generally more symmetrically balanced.
Three evenly spaced windows on the second floor originally matched a window, door and
bay window below. The right-hand window is a pair of narrow windows, which being
slightly wider matches the paired window in the bay. Originally, a recessed porch area to
the left of this bay contained a side entrance into the main hall and a south side entrance
into the side wing. About 1890 a series of four twelve light windows replaced filled in
the recessed porch and formed a conservatory. Two years later, a connecting porch,
flush with the front of the bay, was added to the front, providing a means by which solar
heat in the conservatory could be moderated throughout the year. A very thin porch with
ornate balustrade was set just in front of the conservatory windows as a decorative
touch. The bracketed entry portico was altered into a broadeer porch with support posts,
and was connected to the front porch. Unusual 'stepped' decorative brackets were added
to the porch posts.
"The house has been faithfully restored to its 1890 appearance. Clapboard is largely
original. A 1978 archeological dig provided information about the original house
including the finding of part of the original fireplace mantle. Historic research and an
overall stripping of the interior yielded additional data for restoration efforts. The noted
additions post date the Smith occupancy and reflect the home's institutional uses.
Surviving out buildings date from the same later period. Significant interior remodelings
took place in 1906-07, 1917, 1920, and 19^0. These alterations were eliminated by
restoration efforts in the late 1970's. All three chimneys were reconstructed. The
basement and exterior cellar entrance were added in 1940. The original gutter system
has been modified, and apparently originally converged to supply a cistern at the
northeast corner of the house. A fireproof wood shingle roof has been added following
hail damage in the summer of 1982. A ventilator was added to the east gable end." ~ NRHP Nomination Form
Historic Marker Text:
Liberty Hall
Liberty Hall was built in 1881 and until 1905 was home to Joseph Smith III, church president from 1860-1914. The church was headquartered in Lamoni, and Liberty Hall was a center of social and religious life for the community. According to Joseph III, "Liberty Hall throbbed with life, teeming with the bustling activities of a large and growing family. Birth, death, and marriage occurred within its walls . . . joys and sorrows succeeded each other as days [follow] the nights."
After the departure of the Smith Family, Liberty Hall served as a home for the aged, a farmhouse, Civilian Conservation Corps headquarters, and a private residence. Now restored to its 1900–1905 Victorian style, the home reflects the culture of the large, middle class Smith family living in a small mid-western town, as well as the heritage of Community of Christ.