703 West Broadway: 125 Years of History at a Crossroads
A demolition permit has been filed for 703 West Broadway. The vote takes place at the next Historic Preservation Commission meeting on May 5, 2026. They can only vote to delay the permit for 45 days; the Commission has no power to ultimately stop the demolition.
The residence is a two-and-a-half-story Late Victorian Queen Anne style, a fact evidenced by the windows centered within the nested pent gable. This indicates a finished third-level ‘half-story’, historically used as domestic quarters for live-in help. This architectural layering—where a small window is framed by a wraparound ‘skirt’ roof and tucked inside a cascading gable system—demonstrates a level of 1900 craftsmanship that remains structurally intact despite modern surface updates.
A photograph from twenty years ago reveals a detail lost to recent ‘modernization’: the original windows in the nested pent gable featured delicate cross-hatched glazing. This high-style Victorian touch proves that the ‘half-story’ was designed with the same care and elegance as the main floors. While those specific sashes may have been replaced, the opening—and the history it represents—remains. We aren’t just looking at an old house; we are looking at a masterclass in turn-of-the-century craftsmanship.
(Photo, left, courtesy of Google Earth Pro)
Other striking features of the house are its tall, commanding height and the dramatic two-story three-sided projecting bay windows that anchor the front of the house. While it has had some updates over the decades—like newer siding and windows—the house still maintains the original shape, grand porch, and stately wooden columns from more than 125 years ago. It is a ‘contributing’ piece of our history, meaning it is essential to the character of the neighborhood.
The house is located at the northwest corner of West Broadway and North Glenwood Avenue. It was built at the turn of the century on a three-acre lot in Garth’s Addition to Columbia which was approved on 9 June 1899. West Broadway was referred to as the Columbia and Rocheport Gravel Road on the subdivision plat! The early address of the house was 603 West Broadway. The address was changed to 703 West Broadway between 1956 and 1960. Although the National Register of Historic Places nomination form for the West Broadway Historic District indicates the house was built in circa 1908 by Dr. Porter Mitchell (1859-1948), I have found references to the house in old newspaper advertisements as early as 1902.
Dr. Mitchell and family only lived in the house for a couple of years before trading it in 1910 to R. R. Dunn of Callaway County who exchanged his farm valued at $8,500 for the Mitchell property on Broadway. By 1920, the Frank Pape family lived in the house, and they remained there for at least 20 years. Frank Pape (1862-1951) said in a newspaper interview in 1922 that he moved to Columbia partly on account of the schools and partly because he had relatives living in and around Columbia, but he continued to live here because he had not found any other city that offered so many inducements. Mr. Pape had moved from St. Louis to Columbia where he was a salesman for the Brown Shoe Company.
(Photo, right, from the draft report of the Historic Survey of Garth’s Addition, Columbia, Missouri)
Next the home became the stately residence of another family with deep Missouri roots. Barney C Stephens (1891-1970) and his wife lived in this house from approximately 1947 until at least 1960. He was the proprietor of Barney Stephens Grocery store on North 8 th Street and the first cousin of Temple Stephens. Barney and Temple belonged to a large Moberly family of grocers. Barney was a dairy farmer near Moberly and in 1927 he rose early, built a fire in the kitchen stove and went out to milk. A little later his wife got up to prepare breakfast and found the house in flames. Her three small children were in an adjacent upstairs room, but she couldn’t get to them. She jumped out a window and began to scream for her husband but by then the house was engulfed in fire and he was also unable to get to them. All three children died. So, in 1928, Temple Stephens opened a second grocery store in Columbia at 21 N 8th Street and put his cousin Barney in charge of it to give him and his wife a new start in life. The couple eventually opened their own grocery store at 27 N 8th Street in 1944 and moved into 703 West Broadway by 1947.
When we lose a house like 703 West Broadway, we aren’t just losing lumber and glass; we are losing the ‘front door’of our city’s westward expansion. This home watched the Columbia and Rocheport Gravel Road transform into the bustling West Broadway we know today. From its nested gables to its origins as a three-acre estate, 703 West Broadway is a foundational piece of West Broadway. A 45-day delay is more than just a pause; it is a window of opportunity to find a savior for this landmark. We have just 45 days to decide if we will let this century-old sentinel be reduced to landfill, or if we will honor the craftsmanship that has anchored this corner for 125 years.
SOURCES:
Historic Survey of Garth’s Addition, Columbia, Missouri
National Register of Historic Places nomination form for the West Broadway Historic District
Google Earth Pro
CoMo Preservation is devoted to helping homeowners, landlords, and institutions prevent the destruction of historic architecture. Original period styles might be replicated but will forever lack the social history of authentic structures. Preserving historic places and spaces gives people a sense of place and boosts Columbia’s economy. You can get involved by volunteering, signing up for our mailing list, attending an event, becoming a member, or donating.
