The Baers had been searching for a house for six months in 1975 when Barbara and her mother drove past a tidy red-brick residence in Olivette. “That is the house you should buy,” her mother said, even though it was not on the market. But it was for sale a month later, and they purchased it the first day it was offered.
Built in 1924 for the daughter of a couple who lived nearby, the Baers have made many cosmetic changes, but the integrity of the original floorplan remains. One door was added off the kitchen for passage into a breakfast room that had been a first-floor bedroom. Bathrooms have been renovated but not enlarged, and original tiles have been restored to their original pure white luster. The unfinished attic in the story-and-a-half home was made into three bedrooms and a full bath. “We have been here long enough that we have redecorated one bathroom three times,” Jim says.
Many pieces of Barbara’s grandparents’ furniture are put to daily use, and include an antique radio cabinet used as a sideboard in the dining room.
A favorite color is what the Baers refer to as “colonial Sturbridge blue.” In the kitchen, a blue ceramic brick floor contrasts nicely with the original Geneva white metal cabinets. Living room walls are white with blue trim, and a large rug in front of the fireplace has heavy blue floral accents. Still, the dining room is burgundy, and what was a sleeping porch off the living room has been converted into a cozy, year-round television room with windows on three walls.
In the master bedroom the Baers had told a painter they wanted white walls and blue trim, but he misunderstood and reversed the colors so the walls are blue and the trim white. “We were surprised when we walked in, but we love it,” Jim says.
Barbara’s grandmother taught her how to needlepoint, and almost every room displays an intricate, framed scene she has done. An upstairs hallway features the family history presented in 50 framed portraits. “We used it to teach our children about our history,” Barbara says.
Soon after moving in they noticed two stained-glass windows on the western wall of the home that did not appear on the inside. A contractor discovered they had been covered by drywall. Now exposed, the flower-design is matched by a hanging stained-glass lamp in the room the Baers had custom-made to match.
For all the renovations necessitated by the age of the home, the Baers have retained radiator heat on the first and second floors, though the central air conditioning ductwork they installed would accommodate forced air heat. “It is so quiet and warm; we love it,” Barbara says.
They also retain what may be the last gravel drive in Olivette. “I think it is better for the trees,” Jim says.
“We have probably spent three times what we paid for this house in the improvements we have made,” Jim says.
“This is a ‘back door’ house,” Barbara says. “Everyone we know enters through the back porch door. If the front doorbell rings we know it is a stranger.”
Jim served in the Navy from 1967 to 1970, and an American flag waves proudly from the open front porch where he enjoys relaxing every evening.
The home has had only four owners in 93 years. Several years ago a handwritten letter arrived addressed to “present occupants.” It was from a woman in Atlanta who was the daughter of the original owner and had grown up in the house and wanted to bring her two grandchildren to see it. “She told us a lot of stories about growing up here. As she left she thanked us for taking such good care of her childhood home,” Barbara says.
Jim and Barbara Baer
Ages • He is 73 and she is “younger.” The couple have been married for 47 years.
Occupations • Jim reported on high school sports for KMOX radio for 20 years and the Journal newspapers for 17 years. He served as an Olivette councilman for six years and mayor for one year. He is now a substitute teacher. She has been a developmental therapist in the neonatal intensive care unit at Mercy Hospital for 20 years.
Home • Olivette
Family • A daughter and son-in-law live in Omaha and have boys, ages 14 and 12. A son and his wife live in Chicago with 2-year-old twin boys.
