Curtis |
"Old Curtis Home Is Survivor of Two Great Floods" Topeka Capital-Journal September 10, 1961 by Ruth E. Hunt "Still standing, but in a sad state of disrepair, the old Curtis home at 905 North Van Buren is the survivor of two great floods (1903, 1951). It was one of the mansions of North Topeka, which the Curtis' had laid out in 1864. (The town was then known as Eugene.) This remained the family home until after the flood of 1903, and its last mistress was Mrs. Permelia Hubbard (Grandma) Curtis who died that year at the age of 96. Mrs. Curtis was the mother of fourteen children and reared eight of her grandchildren. The most illustrious of the grandchildren was, of course, Charles Curtis - successively representative (1893-1907), senator (1907-1913, 1915-1929), and Vice-President of the United States in the Hoover administration (1929-1933). The home on North Van Buren was a social center for years, the scene of countless parties and club meetings. It was known also to the less elite of Topeka's citizenry; it is said that no one who asked Grandma Curtis for food or shelter was ever turned away. Charles Curtis was always proud of his fine horses. His half-sister, the late Mrs. Permelia "Dolly" (Curtis) Gann, used to tell a story of the 1903 flood. The family stayed in the home on North Van Buren as long as they dared, but when they realized that they must leave, they summoned the Negro stable man and told him to hitch up the horses. "Lordie, I done got them away days ago", replied the old man. Shortly after that flood, the Charles Curtis family moved to the brick house at the southwest corner of Topeka Avenue and 11th Street. It was their home until they moved to Washington D.C., when Charles Curtis became Vice-President." Unfortunately, the house on Van Buren, had a fire and the current owners were working to restore the house, BUT, the City of Topeka decided the house was an eyesore so it was soon destroyed. © copyrighted 1998, by Ann Andrews |
The house shown above was in Mount Florence (close to Meriden) Kansas. This is where the Curtis family stayed when they first came to Kansas. This house, located on private land, was destroyed during the 1970's. |
William Curtis born 22 Dec 1800 a descendant of the 'original' William Curtis who in his day, was the boss town Boomer of the West |
