About the Birthplace
Built in the 1880s, Mamie’s birthplace received national attention on November 2, 1954 when the DeShon Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution, Boone, Iowa, placed a bronze marker on a stone in front of her home. After Mamie received the coveted Iowa Award in Boone in 1970 from Governor Robert D. Ray, local interest in preserving her birthplace grew, and a group of concerned Boone citizens formed the Boone Committee for Preservation of Historic Landmarks, Inc. (Trust Committee) to look into saving the house, and started raising funds for that purpose. This home was the only remaining Iowa birthplace of the wife of a U.S. President; Herbert Hoover’s wife’s birthplace in Waterloo, Iowa was torn down in 1926.
The parlor in the Mamie Eisenhower Birthplace.
Miss Lois E. Dell of Des Moines chaired the committee that collected books for the library. Rugs, curtains, and wallpaper reflecting the 1890s period were found and purchased for the interior. Many organizations raised funds for, and contributed to, the restoration of the birthplace. The Iowa American Legion contributed $500 to the restoration and passed a resolution (see below) urging all Iowans to assist financially to the project. The Boone County American Legion and Auxiliary contributed a flag pole and flag. The Boone Women’s Club raised money for the landscaping. The two Boone Questors Clubs contributed substantially, and the Boone Soroptomist Club held a tour of homes project in the spring of 1977 to raise money.
A plaque outside Mamie’s Birthplace dated November 2, 1954.
The birthplace had been purchased in 1962 by the adjacent First Baptist Church, for possible future expansion; renovations were then made so it could be a rental property. In 1974 the Church’s plans for an expansion were finalized, and the Church offered the house to the Trust Committee as a gift for preservation, provided it was moved from its original location. A formal acceptance ceremony involving several Boone civic leaders was held on March 17, 1975 in the parlor of the First Presbyterian Church in Boone. During the ceremony, the officers of the Trust Committee accepted the house as a gift from the First Baptist Church. The property across the street, where the home was to be moved, was gifted by Warren Kruck. The additions and renovations made previously to the house were removed and on September 15, 1975, Mamie’s Birthplace was moved across the street to the west, to 709 Carroll Street.
Restoration plans were drawn up by Iowa architect William J. Wagner of Des Moines, who was noted for his work in the preservation of historic Iowa homes and buildings. Five years of extensive restoration were done, including the restoration of a summer kitchen and carriage house. With Mamie’s aid, the Trust Committee arranged with the History Colorado Museum in Denver, Colorado for the loan of the original bedroom furniture from the home, used when Mamie was born. In addition, Mamie and her sister, Mrs. G. Gordon Moore of Washington, D.C., plus their uncle, Joel Carlson of Boone, donated many family heirlooms for the home, including a chair, Bible, piano, and settee owned by Mamie’s parents.
A view of the kitchen in the Mamie Eisenhower Birthplace.
WHEREAS, Mamie Doud Eisenhower is one of Iowa’s most noted native citizens born in Boone, Iowa; and
WHEREAS, her birthplace in Boone has been acquired by a proper group to insure its restoration and preservation as a historic site; and
WHEREAS, thousands of Iowa Legionnaires were honored to have served under General Dwight David Eisenhower in the great victory over tyranny 1941-1945; and
WHEREAS, all Iowa Legionnaires are proud of their fellow Iowa, Mamie Doud Eisenhower, who served with such grace and charm as First Lady 1953-1961; and
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the Department Executive Committee, Iowa Department, The American Legion in regular session assembled July 11, 1975, in Sioux City, Iowa, that $500 be contributed to the Boone Committee for Preservation of Historic Landmarks, Inc., and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Department urges all Iowans to assist financially in the preservation of this historic site.
— Iowa American Legion Resolution
