Originally built in 1882, the home was a showpiece of Vermillion from the day it was designed, and continues to be a talking point for the community as the home of the Clay County Historical Society.

Each season throughout the year, the board members, staff and volunteers of the Austin-Whittemore House take great strides to decorate and show off the history of the community through seasonal decorations and tours. This upcoming Christmas season will be no different, says executive director Wess Pravecek.

However, she said to understand why they make the effort, you have to first understand the history of the home.

A Look Back At Austin-Whittemore

“The house was built in 1882 by Horace Austin and his wife, Rachel,” she said. “He came to Dakota Territory in 1860 to be the surveyor for the opening of the homestead land in Clay County. He was having a real pity party that he wrote about in his diary about not finding the love of his life. Then Rachel Ross came to town to be a teacher at the first school in Dakota Territory. They married and through the years he had a pretty successful career, in that time he was also buying land up above the hill.

“After the flood, their home was not destroyed down the hill but they thought it would be a good time to move up because the town was moving up the hill then.”

Pravecek said the Austin’s were not blessed with biological children of their own, however they did adopt their daughter Helen (Pansy) and together the family lived and grew in the home that was at the center of the community.

“Even when the home was built it was very large for its time,” Pravecek said. “Then they added on and made it even larger and more grand. The stairway located in the foyer originally stood in the southeast corner of the music room. The large dining room and the large room above it were added to the house. Mrs. Austin had a greenhouse attached to the south side of the dining room where she grew her own garden year around. Little Pansy’s pet rabbit lived in the greenhouse. Mrs. Austin was known as a very good cook, and over the years, many very important people sat at her table.”

Helen grew up in the home and married a man from town and they lived in the house. His name was Arthur Whittemore.

“Whittemore, a football coach at the University of South Dakota, and Helen raised four daughters and a son in this home,” Pravecek said. “After the children grew up and moved away from Vermillion, Pansy continued to live here. She rented out rooms upstairs for extra income.”

She added that when Helen passed away in 1968, her son Arthur “Bucky” Whittemore inherited the home.

“He was a well-known musician who lived in New York,” Pravecek said. “The house was beginning to need lots of repair and he did not wish to deal with the house. He decided to sell the house and the four lots to the grocery store which was across the street at the time. After the sale, the house would be torn down and a parking lot constructed.” Pravecek said that several Vermillion residents got together and said “we need to save the house”.

“They formed the Clay County Historical Society and told him we wanted to save the house because it was such an integral part of Vermillion history,” she said. “He went ahead with the household goods auction, which is unfortunate so everything you see here today has been donated except for the old white cupboard in the kitchen. It is the only piece of furniture from the house that has been given to us.”

After they convinced Bucky to sell the society the house, then began the work of renovating the property back to what it would have looked like in the early 1900s.

“Can you just imagine how grand they would have had the home fixed up for the holidays?” Pravecek asked during a tour of the home. “They loved children and I know it would have been a very festive place, so we try to capture that in our decorating for the holiday which we will showcase at the Tour of Homes.”

Showing Off Their Holiday Spirit

“The first week-end in December we traditionally host a Tour of Homes with many beautifully decorated local homes on the tour,” Pravecek said. “The Austin-Whittemore House is decorated in a different theme each Christmas, and refreshments are served here for those attending the Tour of Homes. Funds raised are used to maintain the home.”

Pravecek said that it isn’t a process that happens quickly.

“We will select a theme and then begin sorting through the different decorations that we have stored in the attic and decide what we need to add,” she said. “I will also be watching throughout the year for any decorations or ideas that we can incorporate. Many times I will find items at the Civic Council that we can purchase to use here.”

Saying that the decorating process will begin in early November so that it is completed by Thanksgiving, Pravecek says it wouldn’t be possible without the help of the community and her board.

“Once we pick the theme we will start pulling out the decorations and setting everything,” she said. “I am always excited to see how beautiful it will be, because then I can imagine what it was like for Helen as a child and then for her children celebrating the holidays here.”

Even if you have visited the home in the past, Pravecek said please come back.

“We are constantly making changes and moving things around, displaying different items as new items get donated,” she said. “We are in the process of redoing some of the bedrooms, such as making the room at the top of the stairs into a men’s bedroom.”

She also noted that this year’s Tour of Homes will be held on December 4, from 4:30-7:30 p.m. “It will just be a great time. It always is,” Pravecek said. “Last year we added a bus tour to the tour where we had one of the buses from Vermillion Transit take us around on the tour and it was just fantastic. I played tour guide and the women who rode the bus with me said they loved it.

“The list of homes will come out in early November and, while I can’t say what they are yet because they have not all been finalized, I can tell you the ones we are working with will all be unique, beautiful and offer a great opportunity to see different homes of Vermillion.”

Pravecek said the final stop on the tour this year will, as always be the Austin-Whittemore house where refreshments will be served.

“I just invite everyone to come out and experience the home, be it on the tour or during our open hours,” she said. “It is just a great look into the history of this house and community.”

For more information about the Austin-Whittemore House or the Clay County Historical Society, please call (605) 624-8266 or reach us via the website www.cchssd.org.