Springfield Seed Co Office and Warehouse

Constructed in 1936, this historic building housed the Springfield Seed Company, one of the first florists to deliver flowers via telegraph orders and the first Springfield florist to become a Florists Telegraph Delivery Association member. The florist's Commercial Block building is also unique for its architecture, as it stood as one of only five large-scale commercial buildings in Springfield comprising steel-reinforced concrete and brick construction.

Springfield's location in the Ozarks and its abundant water sources appealed to its early founders in the 1820s as a suitable location for farming. As the town expanded to include mass transportation, notably the railroad after the Civil War, agriculture as a commercial enterprise arose as a booming industry. Indeed, the railroad allowed local farmers to export produce, livestock, supplies, and manufactured goods to regional and national markets. The ag-business, combined with other developing industries in the growing city, allowed Springfield to earn the nickname "Queen City of the Ozarks" by the late nineteenth century.

Springfield Seed Co. Office and Warehouse arose in the commercial center southwest of the Public Square, just south of the rail lines and near substantial farming operations southwest of the city, which made it attractive for agricultural businesses. Numerous commercial buildings with ag businesses appeared in the district during the late nineteenth century, as well as smaller related operations like bakers and dry goods stores. Some companies occupying commercial buildings during the 1880s and 1890s include Lewis Dick's Feed Yard and the Hay Market, M. Scharff & Bros. Liquor Distributorship, The Farmers & Merchants Bank, and Koenigsbruk & Boehrner (est. 1888), a wagon, buggy, feed and farm machinery manufacturer; Richard R. Ricketts acquired the Koenigsbruk & Boehrner building in 1896 as the home for his Springfield Seed Company.

Ricketts, born in Hannibal, Missouri, in 1870, moved to Kansas City as a young man to work as a traveling seed salesman. In 1895, he moved to Springfield with his wife Martha and established Ricketts & Walker, a floral retailer. Around the same time, he developed a greenhouse known as the Pioneer Floral Company, the city's first greenhouse operation. One year later, Ricketts reorganized Ricketts & Walker and changed the company name to Springfield Seed Company. Also, in 1896, he acquired the Koenigsbruk & Boehmer building one block south of the Pioneer Floral greenhouse. Originally established as a retail seed and floral business for local farmers and neighborhood residents, Springfield Seed Company grew rapidly and expanded its operations to become both a seed retailer and wholesaler and, eventually, one of Missouri's largest retailers and wholesale floral suppliers.

One unique aspect of the Springfield Seed Co. involved its home delivery service, notably when it took orders via telegraph; it became the first floral retailer in Springfield to become a Florists Telegraph Delivery Association (FTD) member. By the late 1920s, the company marketed itself as "Springfield's Telegraph Florists" or "Springfield's Pioneer Telegraph Florist." The delivery services helped the florist experience exceptional growth, so the company had to expand its commercial building and add two warehouses. 

Ricketts also held a prominent position at the Farmers & Merchants Bank in the district. The bank opened in 1893 under the direction of John Y. Fulbright, whose family co-founded Springfield and operated significant farming interests southwest of Springfield. After Fulbright died in 1912, Ricketts took over as bank president, a position he held for numerous years; the bank enjoyed substantial financial growth with Ricketts as bank president. The Seed Company and banking success gave the Ricketts considerable wealth, allowing the couple to move from their modest home to a lavish Italianate-style estate in Springfield's most affluent neighborhood. 

In 1936, Springfield Seed Company replaced its operations building with the now-historic and expansive 40,000-square-foot, three-story steel-reinforced concrete and brick building. The timing of this construction coincided with the "semi-retirement" of Richard R. Ricketts as president and the succession of his son, Fred G. Ricketts, who became company vice president in 1928. The Springfield Seed Co. Office and Wholesale Building is one of only five commercial buildings in Springfield of concrete and brick construction and only one of two built during the Great Depression, when few commercial construction projects occurred. The move to the large facility proved relatively short-lived because, in 1949, the Springfield Seed Company relocated to a smaller two-story brick Commercial Block which was constructed in 1920, likely indicative of the company's decline in business. Seven years after moving out of the historic building, in 1956, the Ricketts family sold the business to Bert and Vance Curnett, who had been company employees since the 1920s. The brothers continued to operate the business under the same Springfield Seed Co. name. The floral operation continued into the late twentieth century but weathered several financial issues and underwent corporate restructurings. 

Alexander, Kathy. "Springfield, Missouri – Queen City of the Ozarks." Legends of America. October 2024. https://www.legendsofamerica.com/mo-springfield/.

Burton, Richard Lee Burton "Registration Form: Springfield Seed Co. Office and Warehouse." National Register of Historic Places. mostateparks.com. 2006. https://mostateparks.com/sites/mostateparks/files/Springfield%20Seed%20Co.%20Office%20and%20Wholesale%20Bldg.pdf.

Green County Historical Society. "A Brief History of Greene County . . ." greencountyhistoricalsociety.com. Accessed March 13, 2024. https://www.greenecountyhistoricalsociety.com/brief-history-of-greene-county.