Posted April 19, 2008

My Family House

This posting was designed for friends and family. Our home is the countryside of Jackson County, Missouri, near where 1,200 New York emigrants planned a Christian city, 1831-1833. I am a mile away from a major commercial center but yet on the edge of modern Kansas City with the deer, wild turkeys, and foxes; Burr Oaks Woods, the Little Blue River; and the accompanying ridges, glades, and prairies. Missouri has a moderate climate in the center of the U.S., typically snowing 2-3 times per year, 2-3 inches at a time, and melting in 2-3 days. Missouri has the Mississippi River, the Missouri River, and the Kansas River; has Lake of the Ozarks, Table Rock Lake, and Truman Lake; and has two major cities, Kansas City and St. Louis.

I get many questions about where I find space for my 25,000 books, my children, and also my work as an investor working from home. This is my tenth year living in the same home. My current home is 6,500 sq. ft., technically 34 rooms with 8 bedrooms, but most of it very practical. The house is spacious, but most of it has been put to library, archives, and office use. The house features a congressional-style library and an archives in the lower level. The main level has 16-ft. ceilings with 11-ft. high bookcases. Many features in the house were designed for the protection of my book and manuscript collection. More than 100 windows are UV-light protected, the house has museum-quality temperature and humidity controls, and my rarest books are kept in fire-proof vaults with the highest level of residential security available. The design of the house is influenced by a historic church in Kirtland, Ohio, with fine moldings, keystones, arched divided-light windows, stucco, corner quoins, and a roof spire. A Greek portico in the back area is made of Mississippi River white limestone similar to a favorite historical building in Nauvoo, Illinois. We love to entertain and cook, and welcome visitors.

The big 2007 news is this: I have purchased a lakeside lot here in Jackson County for $280,000 and paid $30,000 to have a home/library/archives designed to fit my lifestyle. The architectural plans are finished, and we are almost ready to break ground. The 13,000 sq. ft. house has a great room with 12 alcove libraries and a lake view, a chef-quality kitchen and lanai, 8 bedrooms, 8 bathrooms, a spiraling staircase up to a third-level synagogue-style meeting room or down to a lower level family area with lake views, and an elevator to a 2,000 sq. ft. underground vault archives. All that, plus a swimming pool and my own boat dock to make this a special family house for children, future children, and future grandchildren. But the house duals as a home for visitors, church responsibilities, and business practicalities. I like things understated and modest, and tasteful but not luxurious. The house will be finished like a 200-year-old French stone and timber cathedral turned into a modern loft.

Anyway, this is an 18-month endeavor, so I will post updates here and eventually some pictures.

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