Klines blend old and new in Lincoln Street house
Staff writer
There's something fascinating about watching a house being moved on a huge flatbed and pulled by a powerful semi-truck.
Imagine what it would be like to move a two-story house using a team of horses.
The Marion home of Norma and Jerry Kline, 222 E. Lincoln, took just such a move in the early 1920s. Originally located on Main Street where Marion High School now stands, the house was moved a little more than a block away to make way for the new school.
Today the home, built in the late 19th-century, stands as a monument to its first owners, early Marion settlers Edward R. and Elizabeth Trenner, and a testament to the dedication of other owners and the Klines in updating and maintaining the house.
Despite the fact the home was turned into an apartment building for a time, the original woodwork and most of its ornamentation — both inside and outside on the porches — remain intact.
When the Klines purchased the house in 1996, it was in good shape but desperately needed redecorating.
"It had always been my dream to own a two-story house. We had a cute bungalow on Cedar but I wanted a challenge," Norma recalled.
Although she wanted a "challenge," the Klines had certain requirements when looking for a home.
"My mother was living with us at the time and we needed a bedroom on the first floor. And Jerry and I knew one of these days we weren't going to want to be climbing up to the second floor all the time either," she said with a laugh.
Norma said she and Jerry looked at several houses, but none were quite what they were seeking — until they found the historic Trenner home.
"The house hadn't been redecorated in 30 or 40 years, but I walked in and saw the woodwork. Then I stepped in front of this beautiful fireplace and I fell in love," Norma said gesturing to the embellished fireplace located in the living room.
"I saw the possibilities," Norma said. "We made an offer. It was accepted and 90 days later we moved in. And I don't think we've ever been sorry."
The woodwork, which looks like walnut, is a stained yellow pine.
"This isn't like today's pine. It was a hardwood," Norma explained.
After purchasing the home, the Klines began remodeling. One of their first jobs involved removing dark paneling from the walls of the living room.
"It took us so long to get that paneling stripped off and removed that we just decided to wallpaper over the paneling in the other rooms," Norma explained.
The Klines also discovered the original walls of the home were not made of plaster, but with concrete.
"You can imagine what it's like trying to do electrical or other type of work when you have to drill through those," Norma said.
The home itself is just a little under 3,000 square feet and includes four bedrooms and two-and-one-half baths. During the 1950s, former owners Mr. and Mrs. W.J. "Bus" Hassinger, added an addition to the back of the house, Norma said.
Besides the original woodwork, the home features a built-in cabinet in the dining room complete with the original "wavy" glass and the two stunning fireplaces. Tiles located around the opening of each firebox feature Greek ornamentation and design. The centerpiece tile is embellished with the facial profile of a Grecian woman.
The early fireplaces were the home's only source of heat and were fired with coal. In later years, a hot-water heat, baseboard register system was added. Hassinger, the former owner, was a plumber, Norma said.
The home was built for Edward R. and Mary Trenner in the latter part of the 1800s although the exact date is a little blurry.
An employee with the Marion County Appraiser's office, Norma said she researched information concerning the house. Records show the house was built in 1881. However, a City of Marion map dated 1879 — which Norma has displayed in her library — shows the house at its original high school site.
Edward R. Trenner was Marion's earliest abstractor. The business he founded continues to exist today, known as Hannaford Title Co.
Norma said Edward Trenner was practicing law in Tennessee before he returned to his home state of Ohio. While there, he married Elizabeth.
"They were married one month before they left Ohio and moved to Marion," Norma said, "Could you imagine what that must have been like for a young bride?"
When the Trenners built their home, strict attention was given to detail both inside and outside the house.
"This is a Victorian home, but it's not quite a Queen Anne (style)," Norma said. "It doesn't have quite the ornamentation. It's a fairly modest house, there's no leaded or stained-glass like some of the other historic homes have.
"But obviously, the Trenners had a little bit of money."
The Trenners also had good connections. Mary Trenner's parents were in the lumber business in Ohio.
"I think she had her parents send lumber out here which was probably used in the home," Norma said.
The Trenners died in the early 1900s. None of their children remained in the area and the property was sold to others.
At some point in its history, the house was divided up into apartments. Norma said Marion resident Margaret Wolf recalls spending a lot of time at the house as a little girl playing with a friend who lived in one of the apartments.
"So, I'm assuming it was converted in the late nineteen-teens or early 1920s," Norma said.
The house was divided into three apartments. When the Klines purchased the house in 1996 the home still had three kitchens remaining from its days as an apartment house. The two kitchens on the main level were adjoining, while the third kitchen was located on the second floor.
"The upstairs kitchen was awful. The ceiling was falling down and there was an old icebox," Norma said. "We just closed the door to that room until we were ready to redo it and used it for storage."
Today, the former upstairs kitchen is used as a guest bedroom.
The original home did not have bathrooms. Two — one upstairs and one downstairs — were added over the years. The Klines added a half-bath off what is now their laundry/mud room. Norma believes the main downstairs bathroom, off the bedroom originally was part of one of the kitchens.
In decorating the home, Norma has kept the house true to its Victorian roots, but has managed to keep comfort in mind. Antiques are placed harmoniously with recliners and new furniture has an "old" look in terms of style.
The home's light fixtures all blend with the Victorian period, but only one — located in the library — is original to the house.
Besides the living room, the main floor also is the location of the library, which serves as a computer/family room, and boasts the second fireplace.
Today the home's only kitchen, located on the east side, is a sunny place with cream-colored walls and light cabinets in a "French country" look. Complete with all the modern conveniences, the kitchen features a huge Chambers range top — which is probably 40 years old — that looks modern and works as well as a new one, Norma said.
"When we moved in everything was as gold as gold could be," Norma said.
Entering the house through the front door, located on the west side of the house, visitors enter the foyer. The original wooden staircase leads to the second floor.
Unlike most older homes, the upstairs bedrooms are all fairly large with plenty of room for today's larger bedroom furnishings.
"The smallest bedrooms are about 14x15-feet or 14x16-feet," Norma said.
The upstairs bathroom was originally a bedroom or sleeping porch. A walkout window — which the family does not use — allows access to a porch area.
During the late spring and summer, Norma enjoys spending time outdoors working on the various perennial beds. One area is devoted entirely to Kansas perennials. The backyard also includes a fish pond. The front of the house is enhanced by a period-appropriate black wrought-iron fence, which the Klines recently installed.
One of Norma's dearest possessions — displayed in the living room — is a copy of an early Marion postcard which shows the home at its original location on Main Street.
"A lady from Highland brought her postcard collection to the Marion Historical Museum. They recognized our house in one of the postcards," Norma said.
Although the woman would not part with the card, she did send it to the Kansas Historical Society who made copies which were sent to the local museum. Norma received one of the copies.
"What's funny is about one or two years ago there were a couple of people out in the hall at the courthouse. These people were wondering what was going on at the depot (Santa Fe) because that was when the city was remodeling it for the library.
"We visited awhile and come to find out she was the woman who had the postcard of my house," Norma said with a laugh. "I told her if she ever wants to sell it, she knows where to find me."
Norma said she enjoys showing her home to others.
"I can't imagine how many people I've taken through tours in this house," she said with a smile. "I think our historical homes need to be shared."
