This home was built by a minister and Civil War veteran

With the cooperation of the Southeast Iowa Union/Mt. Pleasant News, The Mt. Pleasant Historic Preservation Commission will be publishing, every week or two, peeks at some of the featured homes in the 1909 book, Mt. Pleasant Beautiful.

In the series, the 1909 picture will be contrasted with one of recent vintage. The Commission has been collecting information for the eventual issuance of a new book updating the information on the still standing homes from the 1909 publication.

You can test your knowledge of historic Mt. Pleasant with this column. The identity of the featured home will be published with the next featured home. The last featured home was the Becker House, 604 North Adams St.

This week’s home was built in 1893 by Rev. Thomas and Eliza Myers.

Rev. Myers was a Civil War veteran and was educated in the ministry at Garrett Biblical Institute and Southwestern Kansas College, after receiving an undergraduate degree at Iowa Wesleyan.

When the couple located to Mt. Pleasant in 1892, he became involved in the operation of the college.

In 1897, he was elected financial agent for the school and under his leadership stabilized what had apparently been a questionable financial situation at the college.

The Mt. Pleasant Daily News editor, C. S. Rogers wrote in 1900 that Myers had “straightened out the tangles and given the school credit and standing among business men”.

Eliza passed away in 1910 at age 67 and three years later, Thomas sold the home and moved to Agency (where he had been raised) to live out his life at the home of one of his sons.

Buyers in 1913 were Samuel and Hena Piper.

Piper was a farmer and continued his agricultural interest after moving to town. In later years, they moved to Des Moines to be near family.

By the 1930s, the house was occupied by Dr. John Hunt, a dentist and widower. He had his offices at the house.

The family had previously lived and raised their family at 608 East Clay St., a home previously featured in this series. He died in 1941, 22 years after the death of his wife.