T-R PHOTO BY ROBERT MAHARRY A 150th anniversary celebration of the Binford House, located at 110 N. 2nd Ave., will be held on Sunday from noon to 4:30 p.m. with food, entertainment, games and tours.

In 1874, Angelica and Thaddeus Binford moved into their nearly completed Italianate-style home at 110 N. 2nd Ave., likely not knowing that 150 years later, it would be a hub of local history and event meeting space. To honor this anniversary, Celebrate the Binford House will take place from noon to 4:30 p.m. on Sunday with food, entertainment, games and tours.

Trudy Wilson (who will dress as Angelica), will lead tours of the Binford House. Michelle Roseburrough will guide visitors through the nearby Glick-Sower House (also known as the Susie Sower House), and Julie Jontz Lang will take people inside the Taylor #4 School House.

“I love that Binford House is including the Historical Society of Marshall County for this celebration, and I’m personally thrilled to resume giving tours at the Sower House, because I love being able to introduce people to these historic spaces,” Roseburrough said. “It’s an opportunity to share the story of these early families, but more importantly, to share the story of Marshall County’s history. I hope people walk away from the tours with a stronger sense of place and pride in our community.”

Thaddeus helped organize the Fidelity Savings Bank and the Marshalltown Telephone Company. He was a director of the Pilgrim Hotel Company and the Tremont Company. He was also an officer of the company that built and operated the Odeon Theater. At the time of his death in 1917, he was the oldest practicing attorney in Marshalltown. Angelica was a member of the Witenagemot Club and the Spinning Wheel Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) and was a proponent of women’s suffrage. Their children were Margaret, Luella (who died in infancy), Maymie, Ruth, Eugene and Jessie.

After Angelica died in 1929, Jessie inherited the home and kept an upstairs bedroom to use on the occasions she was in town. Jessie gained national fame for her 60-year career at Hull House in Chicago as a social worker, and was regarded as a disciple of Jane Addams. Jessie helped start the Juvenile Protective Association. Knowing the Marshalltown Federation of Women’s Clubs needed a meeting place, in the late 1920s, Jessie offered the house to the organization, with the stipulation that it would never be mortgaged or sold, and used for the purpose of a meeting place for these organizations. While the Federation used the residence throughout the ensuing decades, the deed was not turned over to the group until 1965. Jessie died in 1966.

“The house survived a tornado and a derecho, so we decided we should really celebrate that the house is in pretty good shape, considering those two disasters that we had here in Marshalltown,” said Federation board member Peggy Kelly. “When Jessica left the house to the Federation of Women, there were 33 clubs that existed in Marshalltown, and so they all took turns holding their clubs at this house. We’re down to one club now as of today, and that would be the Hawthorne Club.”

In 1984, the residence was added to the National Register of Historic Places. To get into the spirit of the era, old-fashioned games will be offered throughout the day on the grassy area south of the Binford House. At noon, there will be a bubble gum blowing contest, followed by a gunny sack race at 1 p.m., egg race at 2 p.m. and three-legged race at 3 p.m.

Enjoy live music at the pavilion. At noon, Billy Wilson will perform Irish music, followed by Junior Y Su Norteno at 1 p.m., then the MHS jazz band at 2 p.m., and Sweet Adelines at 3 p.m. Bring a lawn chair.

Kelly noted that some bleachers would be set up for sitting and enjoying refreshments. Burgers will be grilled and sold by Marshall County Cattlemen’s Association. Snow cones and cotton candy will be available for 50 cents apiece.

A hand-sculpted Santa will be raffled off. Tickets are $5 each or five for $20. At 4 p.m., watch the “Heroes Tug of War” match with participants from local police/fire/sheriff departments.

Celebrate the Binford House is sponsored by the Assistance League of Marshalltown, the Marshalltown Area Chamber of Commerce, Binford House and Home Federal Savings Bank.

“We wanted to partner with the Binford House on their 150th anniversary, because of the rich impact the family has made on our community and its place as a favorite stop for bus tours coming to our community,” said Chamber Tourism Director Dylan Does.

The Binford House is available to rent for special occasions and events. The in-house caterer is Missy Sharer Pieters. Throughout the year, it hosts teas and has an open house during the Holiday Stroll. New this year is a Binford Dinner Passport, which provides 12 evening dinners during 2024, the second Saturday of each month. Each dinner features a uniquely themed five-course meal.

Kelly said the Federation recently paid to have the hand railing on the staircase repaired. Eventually, the public will be allowed to view the upstairs. The next project will be painting the trim on the house’s exterior.

“Our goal is just to preserve this historic home and provide social and educational opportunities to the community,” Kelly said. “We want people to be aware that this house was left to the women of the city, and that we want to take good care of it and make sure it’s still here 100 years from now.”