Rhinehart Ranch: a historic Missouri house built in 1907

View of the house from the east (1980).Photo byL. Morrow/NRHP Nomination Form.

The Rhinehart Ranch home is northwest of Eminence, Missouri (Shannon County). This two-story home had a one-story rear wing and in front, a double verandah. On November 14, 1980, it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Even if you don't live in Shannon County, this is more history to appreciate if you live in Missouri. At the time this house was nominated for the National Register, the owners considered demolition, "but have decided to try to make a home out of it, and are beginning to invest in maintenance."

In the early 1900s, the Rhinehart Ranch was known for its progressive farming. It also became popular for its hospitality. Later, it was also known as Spring Valley Ranch. The ranch is also near a now ghost town known as Ink, Missouri located at the intersection of Missouri Route N and County Road 328.

The ranch house is surrounded by the big horseshoe bend of Spring Valley, a tributary of the Upper Current River. DeForest Rhinehart, of German descent, was an immigrant to Shannon County from Phelps County. He cared for the land he was very attached to. For some 30 years, his place was a center of trade and influence. The Depression, however, caused him to go back north away from the Ozarks.

In 1900, DeForest and Susan Rhinehart's family moved to the Spring Valley Ranch from their farm in Phelps County. DeForest's brother, Frank, was a farmer in Dent County and for five years, partnered financially with DeForest. Frank later sold his interest to DeForest.

The ranch was previously owned by well-known men from Shannon County. A tie and timber contractor named W.H. Powell could have built the two-story house the Rhineharts lived in. Interestingly, the Rhinehart house was one of the first buildings to have a concrete foundation in Shannon County.

Cloth wallpaper was used on the interior walls, and some of it was still intact upstairs from 1934 when the house was nominated for the National Register. In the mid-1950s, knotty pine paneling was installed on the lower level.

Life for the Rhineharts would take place in Ink, Missouri. Sometimes they would go to Eminence, but it was a 2.5-hour trip just one way. The main source of income for the Rhineharts was cattle which involved purchasing trips to Arkansas.

The Rhinehart cattle drives normally involved either DeForest and his son, Cordell, a hired cowboy, and a shepherd dog named Jack. When they had the cattle to Spring Valley, they would brand them and Shannon County farmers would buy their cattle for $5 a head or more.

The Rhinehart Ranch was the first in Spring Valley that used the crop rotation method in growing corn and hay. Flooding in Spring Valley was also a challenge because it would involve repairs and more hard work.

The crops of corn and hay were usually grown on 240 acres in the horseshoe bottom. Rhinehart was also one of the first farmers to build a wooden silo. He even built a pipe system going across his bottom field to provide water to his cattle.

The Rhineharts had 12 children. Five of them were born at the ranch and nine lived to maturity. Three school districts bordered the ranch: Forest Glen, Flatwoods, and Ink. Interestingly, the teachers from the three schools boarded with the Rhineharts. The ranch was also used for a place of recreation for the younger people.

Rhinehart took care of his land that he appreciated. He wouldn't let anyone touch the old forests that he owned.

The Rhineharts were affected by the 1929 stock market crash. They ended up moving close to Sedalia. His ranch in Shannon County was purchased by the Bunker-Culler Lumber Company.

In 1955, at the age of 87, Rinehart was in a truck accident on his way home and died as a result. Later, the 2,000 Rinehart Ranch was purchased by the Frescoln and Nelson families. They cared for the historic home and were involved in livestock investments and the timber industry.

Thanks for reading!