Grand Opening of the Ginger House Museum

The Ginger House Museum Opens in Independence

The Ginger House Museum

The Ginger House Museum at 100 W Moore Street, Independence, Missouri, is the birthplace of famed actress and dancer Ginger Rogers. The Museum opens to the public on August 21 after a 3:00 pm ribbon cutting ceremony by the Independence Chamber of Commerce, and will celebrate the grand opening until August 31.

Marge and Gene Padgitt with Three Trails Cottages, Inc. own the property and have been restoring it since they purchased it in February of 2016. The Padgitt’s own several businesses including HearthMasters, which is a chimney and fireplace restoration company, and Three Trails Properties, which is a real estate investment company. Gene Padgitt is the general contractor for the Ginger House Museum project. The interior has been restored to as close to original as possible with the addition of museum displays which include photos, posters, clothing and items that Ginger Rogers owned, and her family history. The exterior of the home and landscaping will be completed in the spring of 2019.

The home was designated as an Historic Landmark Property by the City of Independence in 1994 when Ginger Rogers visited for her birthday celebration.

Ribbon Cutting with the Independence Chamber

Audrey Elder, author of “Guide to Selling Historic Properties for Real Estate Agents” and 29 historic property books including “100 W Moore Street,” was recently hired to manage the Ginger House Museum. Audrey is the co-owner of Past to Present Research LLC. Past to Present specializes in historic research, education and sustainability consultation. After recently leaving a twelve-year career in real estate, Audrey now teaches continued education on working with historic properties for realtors in Missouri and Kansas as well as training presentations specific to historic preservation and sustainable community building in historic districts. Audrey served three years on the City of Independence Missouri Heritage Commission, is a member of many local historic societies, Missouri Main Street member, founder of sustainability community group Meaningful Living and Co-Chair of Education Outreach for the Oregon California Trails Association.

Museum hours are 1:00 pm – 6:00 pm Wednesday – Saturday and 12:00 pm – 5:00 pm on Sunday from April 1 to September 30. From October through March the Museum will be open for private group tours by appointment. Prices are $8 for  ages 13 and over, $6 for seniors and military, and $4 for ages

Grand Opening Cake

5 - 12. The museum is seeking volunteer docents to work part time on their own schedule. For more information visit www.thegingerhouse.org or call 816-833-1602.

Ginger Rogers Festival a Success

The first Ginger Rogers festival hosted by The Ginger House Museum July 13-15, 2018 was a big success.

We were thrilled to be able to have several amazing speakers at the event including Audrey Elder of Past to Present Research who has done extensive research on the property and wrote the book "100 W Moore Street"; Tom Talbert with Tom Talbert Video, who shared his amazing story about video taping Ginger Rogers in 1994; Gene Padgitt, with HearthMasters, Inc. who is the general contractor responsible for the restoration of the property; Linda Lee Sutton, with Linda Lee Sutton Original Dolls who created the Fancy Feet Doll approved by Ginger Rogers; and your's truly, who discussed Ginger's unique history and family tree.

We were especially pleased with the keynote presentation by Roberta Olden, who was Ginger Rogers' assistant for the last 18 years of her life. Roberta shared many of her interesting stories about the time she spent with Ginger and answered many questions from the audience. Roberta donated some very unique items to the museum that were owned and worn by Ginger Rogers. Some items were sold at the fundraising auction, but most are going on display in the museum.

Among the items on display are two stunning ball gowns (one is the blue dress Ginger wore to the 1967 Academy Awards ceremony), one red and yellow polka dot dress that Ginger is shown wearing in a photo on the back of a book, a negligee set that Ginger designed for JC Penney, the key to the City and proclamation from the 1964 "Ginger Rogers Day" event in Independence, and gloves and purses. A pair of shoes and pair of boots that Ginger wore were among several items that sold at the auction.

Christine McDonald donated a beautiful pink gown with feathered sleeves to the museum, which will be on display soon.

Joann Carlson donated many items to the museum which are now on display. Vivian Miner also donated many clippings and other items, and we have books, magazines, an collectibles that were donated by multiple individuals.

An "everyday" skirt, blouse, and jacket are on loan from Mrs. Marilyn Stewart. This item was purchased at the estate sale in California.

We hosted a Ginger Rogers Fan Club meeting at the museum on Sunday morning so attendees could take the first tour of the house. Even though all of the displays are not yet up, the crowd seemed to enjoy seeing all of our hard work. It was so nice to be able to see people face-to-face that we've been communicating with via social media, and to be able to speak with other die-hard Ginger Rogers fans!

The museum security system and camera system are installed and we are currently working on anti-UV light display cases for the gowns.

We are gearing up for our grand opening on August 16 at 4:00 pm  with a ribbon-cutting ceremony with the Independence Chamber of Commerce. The museum will be open to the public on August 17. For more information and tickets visit www.thegingerhouse.org.
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Marge Padgitt is the Director and owner of The Ginger House Museum, and the President and Director of the Local History Preservation Society which is a not-for-profit organization who handles donations to the museum. mp@thegingerhouse.org.