Campbell House Museum

Annual Lecture: The St. Louis Slave Trade in the Era of Robert Campbell
2017-04-09 14:00 - 16:00 (America/Chicago) | St. Louis Public Library (Central Library), 1301 Olive Street, St. Louis, MO, 63103, United States
The 2017 Annual Lecture will be presented by Dr. Kenneth Winn, Historian and Former Archivist of the State of Missouri.
During the 1850s St. Louis’s preeminent slave trader Bernard Lynch handled the trade for St. Louis’s elite. While Lynch sold slaves locally, he sold more “down the river” to places like Natchez and New Orleans. Most wealthy St. Louisans became involved with slavery in one manner or another, including. Robert Campbell. This talk unveils previously unknown information about Bernard Lynch’s pernicious trade, and puts Robert Campbell’s slaveholding into the context of its time.
St. Louis Public Library, Central Auditorium
1301 Olive Street (please use the Locust St. entrance)
Saint Louis, MO 63103
All metered parking is free on Sundays.
THANK YOU TO THE ST. LOUIS PUBLIC LIBRARY FOR BEING THE VENUE SPONSOR FOR THIS LECTURE.

Spring Member's Party
2017-04-30 16:00 - 19:00 | Campbell House Museum, 1508 Locust Street, St. Louis, MO, 63103
Annual members are the Campbell House Museum’s lifeblood – they fund education programming for local schools, help keep the lights on in our historic buildings and preserve St. Louis history and heritage. Join us in the garden of the Campbell House Museum for wine, hors d’oeuvres and members receive a 20% discount on the Museum Store’s new line of Spring merchandise. This year two local authors will join members to discuss and sign copies of their nationally renowned books.
Maureen Kavanaugh
Author of the new book “Hidden History of Downtown St. Louis”
Cameron Collins
Author of “Lost Treasures of St. Louis”
All are welcome to attend, no reservations are required. Free parking is available in the YMCA lot.
We hope you can join us! For more information on becoming a member of the Campbell House Museum, click here.

Arias in the Afternoon
2017-06-04 13:00 - 16:00 | Campbell House Museum, 1508 Locust Street, St. Louis, MO, 63103
You are invited to join Union Avenue Opera and the Campbell House Museum for an afternoon celebrating cultural partnerships in St. Louis, featuring performances by Union Avenue Opera artists. Experience the magnificent restored interiors of the Campbell House and the new exhibit— Taxidermy…
A light lunch will be provided featuring Virginia Campbell’s
original recipes for Roman Punch. Complimentary wine.
Free parking.
Tickets:
Patron: $75 per person (includes a $35 tax deduction) or Adult: $40 per person
Food provided by: The Social Affair
Wine provided by: Ces & Judy`s
For tickets call U.A.O. at 314-361-2881 or visit Union Avenue Opera,

Decoration Day Celebration
2017-06-10 09:30 - 16:00 | Bellefontaine Cemetery and Arboretum, 4947 West Florissant Avenue, St. Louis, MO, 63115, United States
This year’s Decoration Day Celebration at Bellefontaine Cemetery and Arboretum will acknowledge some of the early St. Louisans who helped shape our city and impacted Western Expansion. In attendance on this day will be Fur Traders, War of 1812 Veterans, noted gentleman who took part in the 1817 Benton-Lucas Duel, and many others.
Re-enactors will portray in first person the historical figures including, William Clark, Mary Hempstead, Thomas Hart Benton, Susan Magoffin, General Daniel Bissell and Charlotte Charless.
Bellefontaine Cemetery’s Redbud Valley will be transformed into the 1832 Pierre’s Hole, Idaho – rendezvous and play backdrop to the 1817 Bloody Island duel between Thomas Hart Benton, and Charles Lucas. Historic Home Museums and St. Louis Parks agencies will also be on site to share their stories with attendees.
Due to parking dynamics, timed registrations for arrival are mandatory. Please visit Bellefontaine Cemetery to order your tickets. Once on the grounds, you may choose to stay as long as you like until the event closes at 4:00 PM.

Drink Up Tweet Up 2017
2017-10-20 17:00 - 19:00 | Campbell House Museum, 1508 Locust Street, St. Louis, MO, 63103
Join the Campbell House Museum and Distilled History for an evening of music, food, and potent potables. Explore St. Louis’ history through the lens of beer and spirits in and around the walls of one of America’s most accurately-restored 19th century buildings.
Enjoy food donated by Maya Cafe and beer donated by Schlafly and Urban Chestnut. Distilled History`s, Cameron Collins, will be providing homemade gin and Campbell themed beer. This event is completely FREE to the public, but limited to the 21 and over crowd.

Victorian Christmas Open House
2017-12-07 17:00 - 20:00 | Campbell House Museum, 1508 Locust Street, St. Louis, MO, 63103
Join the two jewels of historic preservation in St. Louis for a special holiday open house, featuring the Campbell House Museum and Magic Chef Mansion. On this holiday evening, guests will have the opportunity to see both homes in all their Christmas splendor.
ADVANCE TICKET PURCHASES FOR THE THURSDAY, DECEMBER 7 OPEN HOUSE HAVE ENDED. DAY OF TICKETS ($35 EACH) WILL BE AVAILABLE AT BOTH LOCATIONS BEGINNING AT 5 P.M. ON DECEMBER 7.
The Campbell House Museum was built in 1851 and has been completely restored to the high-Victorian opulence of the 1880s. The home or renowned fur trader and entrepreneur Robert Campbell and his family, the Museum contains hundreds of original family possessions including furniture, paintings, clothing, letters and carriages. Campbell House is located at 1508 Locust Street in downtown St. Louis.
The Magic Chef Mansion was built in 1908 for Charles Stockstrom who was the founder of the Quick Meal and Magic Chef Stove Company. Designed by architect Ernst Janssen, the 12,000 square foot home cost $49,600 and took only one year to build. This restored mansion, today a private residence, sits on two acres and also features the original carriage house. The Magic Chef Mansion is located at 3400 Russell Boulevard near Tower Grove Park. For more information visit Magic Chef Mansion.
TICKETS ARE AVAILABLE AT THE DOOR of either house for $35 per person. Tickets are non-refundable.
No tickets will be mailed. Your reservation will be under your name at each location.
Free parking at the Campbell House Museum is available in the YMCA lot immediately west of the Museum. Street parking is available on Russell Blvd. in front of the Magic Chef Mansion.

Urban Museum Collaborative Lecture
2018-02-28 19:00 - 20:00 | Prairie Commons Branch
Walking in Someone Else’s Shoes
Step into history and take “a walk into the past” with the Urban Museum Collaborative. See how artifacts, documents, and “character cards” bring into focus the compelling narratives of individuals associated with two historic house museums–the Campbell House and the Field House. The issue of freedom is central to the story of two women and two men who lived in the tumultuous times surrounding the Civil War. Their struggles and issues of compassion, advocacy, resilience, and justice connect to our communities today.
Prairie Commons Branch
915 Utz Ln.
Hazelwood, MO
Lectures starts at 7 p.m.

Annual Campbell House Museum Lecture
2018-03-18 14:00 - 15:00 | St. Louis Public Library (Central Library), 1301 Olive Street, St. Louis, MO, 63103, United States
Non-Parallel Lines: Virginia Campbell, Bridget, & Sally
In his essay, “Self-Reliance,” Ralph Waldo Emerson, whose lifespan is almost identical to fur trader Robert Campbell’s, echoed Socrates: “The unexamined life is not worth living.” Certainly, the life of the successful St. Louis businessman has been recorded and scrutinized in books and articles. About Virginia Kyle Campbell there is one interpretive article, published locally. Viewing this imbalance of examination through a gendered lens, we might deduce that –although she was the wife of a very prominent citizen—Virginia‘s life was somehow not worth examining. In her life as a nineteenth-century woman, bound by what we now call “the cult of domesticity,” Virginia gave birth to thirteen children, only three of whom survived, and numerous miscarriages and still births. However, if we know little about Virginia, we know even less about other women who lives were intimately intertwined with hers—the Irish domestic servant, colloquially known as “Bridget,” and the enslaved females—often called “Sally”– who were part of the property that became Robert’s when they wed in 1841. Using the letters of Virginia Campbell, this essay explores the details of her life as an individual upper-class female who inhabited the binary gendered world of home and marketplace. It will also investigate the experiences of the Irish domestic female servant in the Campbell home and in St. Louis. Little is known about the enslaved people owned by the Campbell family, but there is some detail about the lives of enslaved women in St. Louis, and that is the third narrative that will be considered.
Presented by Dr. Kathleen Nigro
Director: Gender Studies Program,
University of Missouri – St. Louis
The lecture is held in the Central Branch Auditorium. Lecture is FREE and open to the public. Reservations are no required. Parking is free on Sundays.

Lucas Place Walking Tour
2018-04-23 13:00 - 15:00 | Campbell House Museum, 1508 Locust Street, St. Louis, MO, 63103
Join the staff of the Campbell House Museum for a walking tour of the 1875 neighborhood of Lucas Place, St. Louis’ first private place and an enclave of Gilded Age wealth and nineteenth century elegance. Spanning from 13th to 16th Streets in Downtown St. Louis, participants will walk a street once lined with expansive homes, today the site of a resurgent early twentieth century business district. Tours will begin and end at the Campbell House Museum and will last approximately 90 minutes.
Please call 314–421-0325 to purchase tickets. Campbell House members are free, but require a reservation.

Or click here to buy tickets:

Free parking available in lot directly next to the house.

Lucas Place Walking Tour
2018-04-28 13:00 - 14:30
Join the staff of the Campbell House Museum for a walking tour of the 1875 neighborhood of Lucas Place, St. Louis’ first private place and an enclave of Gilded Age wealth and nineteenth century elegance. Spanning from 13th to 16th Streets in Downtown St. Louis, participants will walk a street once lined with expansive homes, today the site of a resurgent early twentieth century business district. Tours will begin and end at the Campbell House Museum and will last approximately 90 minutes.
Please call 314–421‑0325 to purchase tickets. Campbell House members are free, but require a reservation.

Or click here to buy tickets:
https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=3YW5K279UX38L

Robert Campbell Documentary Premiere
2018-06-18 07:00 - 21:00 | Public Media Commons, 3653 Olive St., St. Louis, MO, 63108
A new one hour documentary titled “Robert Campbell, Mountain Man” was commissioned by the BBC for a series of famous Irish immigrants who become successful in America, Robert Campbell was the first person they picked! Last June, Alan McFarland and Michael Beattie (producer/director) were accompanied by an Irish film crew in the U.S. for 13 days of filming. Viewers are treated to stunning new footage of the Rocky Mountains and the Great Plains and interviews with the Campbell House staff and experts on the history of the fur trade. Watch a preview of the documentary.
There will be a panel discussion immediately after the screening with director Michael Beattie and presenter Alan McFarland.
Screening is FREE and open to the public. Reservations are requested, please reserve online at nineNET.org/campbell or by calling 314-421-0325.
Parking is free in the lot adjacent to Nine Network, enter on Spring Street. The event is outdoors, bring chairs for seating.
Can’t attend this event? Watch the broadcast one Nine PBS on Monday, July 2 at 8 P.M.

Native Americans and the Presidency of U.S. Grant
2018-07-18 14:00 - 15:00 | Ulysses S. Grant National Historic Site, 7400 Grant Rd., St. Louis, MO, 63123
Andy Hahn, Executive Director at the Campbell House Museum, will explore Grant’s “Peace Policy”, Grant’s progressive step of appointing a Native American to the post of Commissioner of Indian Affairs, and the formation of a new Board of Indian Commissioners which included St. Louisan Robert Campbell.
Event is FREE and open to the public.
Please call 314-842-1867 ext. 230 to RSVP.

Native Americans and the Presidency of U.S. Grant
2018-07-18 19:00 - 20:00 | Ulysses S. Grant National Historic Site, 7400 Grant Rd., St. Louis, MO, 63123
Andy Hahn, Executive Director at the Campbell House Museum, will explore Grant’s “Peace Policy”, Grant’s progressive step of appointing a Native American to the post of Commissioner of Indian Affairs, and the formation of a new Board of Indian Commissioners which included St. Louisan Robert Campbell.
Event is FREE and open to the public.
Please call 314–842‑1867 ext. 230 to RSVP.

76th Anniversary Free Day
2019-02-08 10:00 - 16:00 | Campbell House Museum, 1508 Locust Street, St. Louis, MO, 63103
In celebration of the 76th Anniversary of the opening (Feb. 6th, 1943) of Campbell House and Robert Campbell’s 215th Birthday (Feb. 12, 1804) — we will be offering free tours on Friday, February 8th and Saturday, February 9th! Our hours for both days will be 10-4 p.m. (last tour starting at 3:30).
No reservations are required. We will have plenty of docents here ready to give tours.

76th Anniversary Free Day
2019-02-09 10:00 - 16:00 | Campbell House Museum, 1508 Locust Street, St. Louis, MO, 63103
In celebration of the 76th Anniversary of the opening (Feb. 6th, 1943) of Campbell House and Robert Campbell’s 215th Birthday (Feb. 12, 1804) — we will be offering free tours on Tuesday, February 8th and Saturday, February 9th! Our hours for both days will be 10-4 p.m. (last tour starting at 3:30).
No reservations are required. We will have plenty of docents here ready to give tours.

2019 Annual Lecture
2019-04-28 14:00 - 15:30 | St. Louis Public Library (Central Library), 1301 Olive Street, St. Louis, MO, 63103, United States
Taking Possession: The Politics of Memory at The Campbell House
Presented by Dr. Heidi Aronson Kolk
In Taking Possession, Dr. Kolk explores the complex motivations for safeguarding the Campbell House as a site of public memory in an otherwise fragmented and turbulent city. The lecture illuminates some of the processes by which civic pride and cultural solidarity have been manufactured at the site over more than 168 years, showing how closely linked are the acts of
memory and forgetting, nostalgia and shame.
Sunday, April 28, 2019 at 2 p.m.
St. Louis Public Library, Central Library’s Auditorium
Lecture is FREE and open to the public. Reservations are not required. Street parking is free on Sundays.

8th Arias in the Afternoon
2019-06-09 13:00 - 16:00 | Campbell House Museum, 1508 Locust Street, St. Louis, MO, 63103
Join us for an afternoon fundraiser benefiting both Union Avenue Opera and the Campbell House Museum. Experience the magnificent restored interiors of the Campbell House and the new exhibit A Bold and Dashing Life: Robert Campbell and the Fur Trade while enjoying musical entertainment by Union Avenue Opera artists.
A light lunch, catered by The Social Affair, will be provided along with complimentary wine, Virginia Campbell’s Champagne Roman Punch and Roman Punch Sorbet provided by Clementine’s Creamery.
Tickets:
Patron $75 each (includes a $35 tax deduction)
Adult $40 each
Call 314-361-2881 to purchase tickets.
Free Parking in the lots directly next door to the Campbell House and FREE street parking around the house.

Washington University Libraries Lecture with Heidi Aronson Kolk
2019-09-19 16:30 - 17:30 | John M. Olin Library
West of downtown St. Louis sits an 1851 townhouse that bears no obvious relationship to the monumental architecture, trendy condominiums, and sports stadiums of its surroundings. Originally the residence of a fur-trade tycoon and now the Campbell House Museum, the house has been subject to energetic preservation and heritage work for some 130 years.
In Taking Possession: The Politics of Memory in a St. Louis Town House, Heidi Aronson Kolk, assistant professor in the Sam Fox School of Design & Visual Arts, explores the complex and sometimes contradictory motivations for safeguarding the house as a site of public memory. Crafting narratives about the past that comforted business elites and white middle-class patrons, museum promoters assuaged concerns about the city’s most pressing problems, including racial and economic inequality, segregation and privatization, and the legacies of violence for which St. Louis has been known since Ferguson.
The talk will take place in John M. Olin Library, Rm. 142, and will be followed by a special reception.

Lucas Place Walking Tour
2019-10-21 13:00 - 15:00 | Campbell House Museum, 1508 Locust Street, St. Louis, MO, 63103
Join the staff of the Campbell House Museum for a walking tour of the 1875 neighborhood of Lucas Place, St. Louis’ first private place and an enclave of Gilded Age wealth and nineteenth century elegance. Spanning from 14th to 18th Streets in Downtown St. Louis, participants will walk a street once lined with expansive homes, today the site of a resurgent early twentieth century business district. Tours will begin and end at the Campbell House Museum.
Tickets are $10 and CHM Members are Free.
Please call 314-421-0325 to check for ticket availability.

Lecture with Heidi Aronson Kolk
2019-10-22 19:00 - 19:30 | Left Bank Books, 399 N Euclid Ave, St. Louis, MO, 63108
West of downtown St. Louis sits an 1851 townhouse that bears no obvious relationship to the monumental architecture, trendy condominiums, and sports stadiums of its surroundings. Originally the residence of a fur-trade tycoon and now the Campbell House Museum, the house has been subject to energetic preservation and heritage work for some 130 years.
In Taking Possession: The Politics of Memory in a St. Louis Town House, Heidi Aronson Kolk, assistant professor in the Sam Fox School of Design & Visual Arts, explores the complex and sometimes contradictory motivations for safeguarding the house as a site of public memory. Crafting narratives about the past that comforted business elites and white middle-class patrons, museum promoters assuaged concerns about the city’s most pressing problems, including racial and economic inequality, segregation and privatization, and the legacies of violence for which St. Louis has been known since Ferguson.

A Spirited Holiday Past
2019-12-07 10:00 - 15:30 | Campbell House Museum, 1508 Locust Street, St. Louis, MO, 63103
Twenty-eight historic sites, museums, and privately-owned homes are once again joining together to present a grand holiday tour. For this one-day event, each venue will be decorated in a festive flair and serving refreshments. Many sites will also have special entertainment, whether it be a costumed skit, music, or seasonal activity.
Guests are invited to create their own tour or utilize the themed tours provided on the Historic Saint Louis webpage. Themed tours cover a variety of historic topics, geographical areas, and story connections. Historic resources celebrated on this special day embrace a wide span of traditions, celebrate early American history, highlight county living, and more. Create a new holiday tradition of your own as you enjoy a new tour each year. No matter the path chosen, guests of all ages are sure to enjoy the holiday spirit of yesteryear.
Each site is individually priced with some having a minimal fee and others being free of charge. To learn more about each site and what they offer, please visit their website www.historicsaintlouis.org.

Museum Expansion Kickoff
2019-12-20 11:00 - 11:45 | Campbell House Museum, 1508 Locust Street, St. Louis, MO, 63103
Please join us for an informal ceremony to mark the kickoff of construction for the Museum’s expansion on Friday, December 20 at 11 a.m. Executive Director Andy Hahn will deliver brief remarks about the project. Archaeologist Joe Harl and general contractor Jeff Clark will both be in attendance to answer questions about the project.
One of two cisterns reveals its shape during archaeology.
Coffee, hot chocolate and a few treats from the Campbell cookbook will be served in the kitchen following the ceremony. Take the opportunity to see this year’s Christmas display and the Museum shop will be open.
The old YMCA parking lot adjacent to the Museum will be available for parking for this event. The event is free and no reservation is needed.
Click here to read more about the archaeology at the museum in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.

Connecting Local History
2020-03-28 10:00 - 11:00 | Ulysses S. Grant National Historic Site, 7400 Grant Rd., St. Louis, MO, 63123

Annual Campbell House Museum Lecture -- POSTPONED
2020-04-26 14:00 - 15:30
**POSTPONED**
Life in the Fur Trade

Presented by Jim Two Crows Wallen

Join renowned story teller Jim Two Crows Wallen as he immerses you in the Rocky Mountain Fur Trade of the 1820s and 30s through his first person interpretation. Find out if you would have been tough enough to survive the perilous journey from St. Louis to the Rocky Mountains. The captivating stoires of the extraordinary mountain men Jim Bridger, Jedidiah, Jim Beckwourth and Robert Campbell will come alive.

FREE and open to the public. No reservations. Street parking is FREE on Sunday.

St. Louis Public Library, Centrals Library’s Auditorium

1301 Olive Street

St. Louis, MO 63103

(please use the Locust St. entrance)

Lucas Place Walking Tour
2020-05-04 13:00 - 15:00 | Campbell House Museum, 1508 Locust Street, St. Louis, MO, 63103
Join the staff of the Campbell House Museum for a walking tour of the 1875 neighborhood of Lucas Place, St. Louis’ first private place and an enclave of Gilded Age wealth and nineteenth century elegance. Spanning from 14th to 18th Streets in Downtown St. Louis, participants will walk a street once lined with expansive homes, today the site of a resurgent early twentieth century business district. Tours will begin and end at the Campbell House Museum.
Tickets are $15 and CHM Members are Free.
Please call 314-421-0325 for any questions, tickets can be purchased via the Eventbrite link that is below.
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/lucas-place-walking-tour-tickets-89082336667

Annual Free Tour Weekend
2021-02-12 10:00 - 2021-02-13 16:00 | Campbell House Museum, 1508 Locust Street, St. Louis, MO, 63103
In celebration of the 78th Anniversary of the opening of Campbell House (Feb. 6, 1943), Robert Campbell’s 217th Birthday (Feb. 12, 1804) and Virginia Campbell’s 199th birthday (Jan. 25, 1822) — we will be offering free tours on Friday, February 12 and Saturday, February 13!
See the new Museum expansion, recently restored Dining Room and Hall Tree and the new special exhibition “Fabric of Time: Campbell Family Textiles.”
Our hours for both days will be 10-4 p.m. (last tour starting at 3:30).
To maintain a safe environment reservations are required as all tours will be single groups. Please call 314-421-0325 or email to make your reservation.

Spring Member & Friends Open House
2021-06-04 - 2021-06-06 | Campbell House Museum, 1508 Locust Street, St. Louis, MO, 63103
Members receive 20% off in the Museum Store, which will be stocked with new summer merchandise. Come see all that is new at Campbell House!

All are welcome, reservations will be required.

More information to follow.

Free parking is available on the lot directly next to the house.

Missouri Bicentennial Ice Cream Social
2021-08-10 10:00 - 16:00
Enjoy a special culinary tour that takes you back to the 19th century via historic recipes, culinary artifacts and dining customs from St. Louis in the Gilded Age.
The tour ends with a scoop of Clementine’s Creamery special Missouri bicentennial flavor Midnight Pleasures Chocolate.
$15 per person.

Lucas Place Walking Tour
2021-10-01 13:00 - 15:00, 2021-10-04 13:00 - 15:00 | Campbell House Museum, 1508 Locust Street, St. Louis, MO, 63103
Join the staff of the Campbell House Museum for a walking tour of the 1875 neighborhood of Lucas Place, St. Louis’ first private place and an enclave of Gilded Age wealth and nineteenth century elegance. Spanning from 14th to 18th Streets in Downtown St. Louis, participants will walk a street once lined with expansive homes, today the site of a resurgent early twentieth century business district. Tours will begin and end at the Campbell House Museum.
Tickets are $15 and CHM Members are Free.
Ticket link will be active soon!
Please call 314-421-0325 for any questions.
