William B. Sappington House - Arrow Rock, Missouri
Posted by: BruceS
N 39° 02.449 W 092° 59.145
15S E 501233 N 4321306
Historic house also known as Prairie Park located southwest of Arrow Rock Missouri.
Waymark Code: WM341R
Location: Missouri, United States
Date Posted: 02/05/2008
Views: 51
From Missouri - A Guide to the "Show Me" State -
Tour 1 - Arrow Rock section:
South of the cemetery is the WILLIAM B. SAPPINGTON HOUSE (open by
arrangement), 3.7 m. (L), a red-brick mansion with a two-story portico. Built in
1844 by a son of Dr. John Sappington, it is an important example of
Classic-Revival architecture in Missouri. Dr. John Sappington, who lived here
with his son during the closing years of his life, came to Missouri from
Tennessee about 1817. He early experimented with quinine, then little used, as a
treatment for malaria, the most common of frontier diseases, and his "Sappington
anti-fever pills" achieved a national sale. He wrote a vigorous book on The
Theory and Treatment of Fevers, published at Arrow Rock in 1844, and considered
by medical authorities an important contribution to American medicine. The
doctor s activities also included Western trading ventures, large-scale farming,
and politics. He was the father-in-law of Meredith Miles Marmaduke, governor of
Missouri in 1844, and of Claiborne Fox Jackson, governor 1860-62, and the
grandfather of John S. Marmaduke, governor 1884-87. He was also the
great-great-great grandfather of the Hollywood actress, Ginger Rogers.
According to legend, Dr. Sappington purchased his coffin several years
before his death and kept it under his bed, with apples and nuts in it for his
visiting grandchildren. It is also said that when Claiborne F. Jackson, twice
married to Sappington girls, asked the doctor for the hand of his third
daughter, the doctor replied: "You can take her, but don't come back after the
old woman."
The house is a private house and is well maintained. The house is
listed on the National Register of Historic Places and can be visited by
appointment only.