Cray Historical Home Museum/ Hetherington House

Webster Wirt Hetherington emigrated from Pennsylvania to Atchison as a child in 1859. The local businessman's father, William, later became mayor of Atchison and founded the Hetherington Exchange Bank in 1859. The bank was incorporated as the Exchange National Bank of Atchison in 1882. W. W. began working at the bank as a clerk in 1871 and later became a cashier and a partner in the bank. W.W. married Lillie Miller, an Iowa native, in 1875 and the couple had five children: Ruthanna, Mary Louise, Wirt, Gail, and Harry Hale. W.W. spent $6,500 to build this mansion in 1879 and 1880. When his father died in early 1890, W.W. became the bank's second president. Unfortunately, his life was cut short and he died in 1892 at age 42.

W.W's widow, Lillie, leased the house to B.P. Blanchard in June 1894. In 1895, B.P. Blanchard was a 45-year-old white man who was born in Missouri and living in Atchison's Third Ward. The widow returned to live at the mansion by 1910 when she was head of a household (age 50) including her son, Wert (29); daughter Gail (26); and a cook named Fannie Cassey (30). In 1930, Lillie (75) was still head of the household and the home was valued at $10,000. Her single son, Wert (49), and widowed daughter, Gail Allen (46) shared the house; Gail had married at age 29. Lillie owned the property until she passed away in 1937.

One of the couple's sons, Wirt, owned the mansion until his death in 1962. Wirt graduated from a military school in Michigan in 1900 and returned to Atchison. He entered the family's banking business and advanced to cashier and then director of the bank by 1930. By 1940, the house's estimated value dropped to $7,500 when Wert (59) was head of the household. He shared the mansion with his widowed sisters Ruth Todd (62) and Gail Allen (56); and a white unmarried servant, Rachel Schuler (23). In the week prior to the 1940 census, Wert had worked 45 hours as a banker; Rachel worked 65 hours as a maid.

The carriage house has been converted into a gift shop and is supposedly haunted. A theater in the shop shows a movie on local architecture. There is an admission fee of approximately $5 per person to tour the restored mansion's three floors. The museum is open on an irregular schedule; it's best to call ahead to check. If you visit, ask who Evah C. Cray was (the museum is named after them) - the websites describing the museum don't say. If you'd like a clue, there's a date for the museum on a plaque on the front lawn; can't make it to Atchison? The plaque is visible in a YouTube video of the front of the museum, set to catchy jazz piano music (see the link below).

Hall, Charles. Pankratz, Richard. NRHP Nomination for Peabody House/ Hetherington House. National Register. Washington, DC. National Park Service, 1973.

Ingalls, Sheffield. History of Atchison County, Kansas. Lawrence, KS. Standard Publishing Company, 1916.

Kansas Historical Society. W.W. Hetherington family papers, Kansas Historical Society Archives. January 1st 2020. Accessed July 20th 2020. https://www.kshs.org/archives/40379.

Kansas Historical Society. B.P. Blanchard in Atchison 3rd Ward, V. 12:99, Kansas State Census, 1895. December 31st 1895. Accessed July 21st 2020. https://www.kshs.org/genealogy/genealogy_censuses/newsearch.

Loughlin, Amanda. 005-0260-00026 Hetherington, W.W., House, 805 N 5th St, Kansas Historic Resources Inventory. Accessed July 20th 2020. https://khri.kansasgis.org/index.cfm?in=005-0260-00026.

US Census. Household of Lillie Hetherington at 805 5th St., Atchison, KS Ward 3, dwelling 109, family 115. Washington, DC. US Government, 1910.

US Census. Household of Lillie Hetherington at 805 5th St., Atchison, KS District 3, dwelling 98, family 102. Washington, DC. US Government, 1930.

US Census. Household of W.W. Hetherington at 805 5th St., Atchison, KS District 3-4B, dwelling 85. Washington, DC. US Government, 1940.