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Washington couple restoring historic site for Airbnb
When boyfriends Clay Whisler and Corey Ringle started fixing up home for their Airbnb business, they set some ground rules about how much work they were willing to put in. That all changed when they found something that justified an exception to the rule.
“I told myself I was never going to do a two-story Airbnb, and here we are,” Whisler said. “There’s more cleaning, up and down the stairs, but we’ll make it work.”
The home in question is a historical site, the former residence of Ola Babcock Miller: Iowa’s first female secretary of state and founder of the state highway patrol. Its living room was also the wedding place of George Gallup, founder of the Gallup poll and Miller’s son-in-law.
Whisler said the house would fill a niche in the local hospitality market.
“We knew that there was a need for short-term stays for people that wanted a group experience in town,” he said. “So we decided we were going to turn it into a short-term Airbnb, renovate it, stay true to the history … and basically any kind of group gathering that you want to have, this is going to be a perfect spot for it.”
The historical value of the place is not lost on the two.
“I think it’s cool to have a place that we’re redoing that’s going to be a living, breathing museum,” Ringle said. “Somewhere people actually come and stay and get a dose of the history.”
Whisler sees the project as a form of community improvement.
“We’re very passionate about bettering Washington,” he said. “I’m on the hotel/motel committee, and they did a survey of Washingtonians of what they wanted to see done with the town and the number one response … was they wanted to see people improving houses that were run down. If you want better, you’ve got to step up and do it yourself. This is our third house we’ve fixed up.”
Most of those changes are cosmetic, but that doesn’t mean they were easy. The list of improvements is extensive, and includes taking down wallpaper, painting, reworking bathrooms and lots of cleaning. Add to that more modern amenities like TVs in the bedroom, and possible billiards or Ping-Pong downstairs.
“A lot of these old houses get chopped up, turned into apartment buildings or something like that,” Ringle said. “This has been kind of untouched and kept the same, but at the same time kind of neglected. It had some water damage, and things like that, that take a lot of time.”
Comments: Kalen.McCain@southeastiowaunion.com
Clay Whisler (left) and Corey Ringle in front of the historic home they're renovating for a large-group Airbnb. (Kalen McCain/The Union)
One feature of the house is sleeping porch, a type of room antiquated by the invention of air conditioning. (Kalen McCain/The Union)
The kitchen is nearly finished with renovations. While it looks more modern than the rest of the house, Whisler and Ringle said they used mostly materials that would have been used at the time it was built. (Kalen McCain/The Union)
Whisler and Ringle said this living room was the wedding place of George Gallup, something they're still seeking photo evidence of. (Kalen McCain/The Union)
Part of the home's former food storage area is now set up as a small eating space complete with a mounted telephone that likely would never have been seen in the house, but which adds to the aesthetic nonetheless. (Kalen McCain/The Union)
Some renovations are more work than others. This room used to be — and eventually will again serve as — a bathroom. (Kalen McCain/The Union)
Whisler and Ringle move a broken down sink. Much of the secret to such an extensive repair project is teamwork. (Kalen McCain/The Union)
The historical home of Ola Babcock Miller, Iowa’s first female secretary of state and founder of the state highway patrol. (Kalen McCain/The Union)
