John Manson Munro House

Two-term Cuba mayor John Manson Munro built this stately home around 1888. A fine example of Queen Anne architecture, the structure is one of the biggest houses in Cuba. The home was built of red brick and features overhanging rooflines, dormers, many original doors and windows, a large wraparound front porch, and a porch in the back. Inside, the house has retained much of its original woodwork, plaster finishes, doors, and stairs. Added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2014, it remains a private residence today.

John Manson Munro was born on August 2, 1859 in Calborn, Canada to a Scottish father and Irish mother. They moved to Cuba, Missouri in 1862. As a young man, Munro graduated from the Steelville Normal and Business Institute. He may have taught for a short time before getting a job at a threshing machine company in St. Louis. Eventually, before he was 20 years old, he started his own business selling hardware and farm machinery. He married his wife, Laura, in 1888 and they had two children.

Before serving his first term as mayor from 1898-1902, Munro served as city alderman and as a member of the city council. After his stint as mayor, he joined the school board and became its president. He helped establish the Peoples Bank of Cuba around 1901 and was later elected bank president in 1917. Munro was elected mayor once more in 1918 and served until 1918. He also worked for the Waters-Pierce Oil Company and became the region's first bulk distributor of gasoline and kerosene. In his later years, the governor appointed him him as Superintendent of the Commissary of the Missouri State Penitentiary. Munro's life came to an abrupt end in 1941 when a car hit him as he was walking near the house. It appears the house remained vacant thereafter until the early 1970s.

Bivens, Matt. "Munro, John Manson, Residence." National Park Service - National Register of Historic Places Nomination Form. October 29, 2014. https://npgallery.nps.gov/GetAsset/fdcd7a78-2806-4d2f-a012-0deda2d5ca2f.