CVB to move offices to Marmaduke House

The Col. Darwin W. Marmaduke Home sits at the corner of Capitol Avenue and Lafayette Street.
The Col. Darwin W. Marmaduke Home sits at the corner of Capitol Avenue and Lafayette Street.

The Jefferson City Convention and Visitors Bureau is moving.

Diane Gillespie, executive director of the CVB, said the bureau plans to move from its current location on East High Street to the Col. Darwin W. Marmaduke House, a historical home on the corner of Lafayette Street and Capitol Avenue.

Also known as the Missouri State Penitentiary Warden's House, the building is named for the first prison warden to live in the home upon its completion in 1888. Marmaduke was the brother of Missouri Gov. John Sappington Marmaduke, who led troops into the Battle of Shiloh in 1862 and killed another Confederate general in a duel.

Gillespie said the lease on the current space ends July 31, 2016, and the CVB board decided to look into other options. The Marmaduke House was purchased by Jeff and Jane Schaeperkoetter in 2013 and Gillespie said the new owners will be partners in promoting Jefferson City and its history.

The CVB currently pays $3,000 plus utilities, maintenance fees and parking costs for their current space, owned by the Missouri Optometric Association. Gillespie said moving to the Marmaduke House, while more costly up front with moving expenses, will save money for the bureau in the long run, as the lease will cost $3,500 including utilities and parking.

Gillespie said the bureau will lease the first floor and the basement of the Marmaduke House, with the Missouri State Penitentiary Museum going in the basement. Gillespie said the Marmaduke House is a great fit for the museum as it was built with prison labor and some inmates even carved their initials in the basement during construction.

"It's just going to add a whole new element to that museum," said Katherine Reed, CVB communications manager.

The new location also will provide a more cohesive feel for visitors looking to tour the old Missouri State Penitentiary as the ticket sales will be right across the street from the old prison, Gillespie said.

Reed said moving to the Marmaduke House also will allow the CVB to showcase more of Jefferson City's history when people come to the offices.

"I think it's exciting for people to know that they can come in and see a piece of history that they otherwise wouldn't have been able to see before," Reed said. "The prison was actually a really big part of how Jefferson City was formed."

Gillespie said the CVB will continue to support downtown Jefferson City and have a presence at many downtown events. She said, when considering the move, she took into consideration the city's plan for wayfinding, which will install new signage to point visitors to various locations, as well as the Lafayette Street interchange. She said the CVB is looking forward to becoming an anchor on the east side of Jefferson City.

Gillespie said the CVB will keep its existing kiosk downtown, near Arris' Pizza and they are looking into other potential kiosk locations.

The move is expected to start in early summer, though both Gillespie and Reed said there are many details that have yet to be worked out. They said they hope to move the museum as early as possible, as tours start for the 2016 season in March.

The CVB has had its offices on East High Street since 2007, when the bureau moved out of the Jefferson City Area Chamber of Commerce offices on Adams Street.