‘A new house in an old body’
Couple’s vision gives familiar face a new life
By Michelle Brooks mbrooks@newstribune.com
The wrought-iron railing outside the second-story balcony at 1106 Vineyard Square had a romantic appeal to Geri and Greg Bemboom years ago when they lived across the street and would look out their front room window. But that was about the only stunning feature the stucco, Mediterranean-style home had to offer visually, they recalled. Today, the Bembooms look out to see their beloved neighborhood from the other side of that ornate ironwork. The Historic City of Jefferson has awarded the Bembooms with the June Golden Hammer for a full renovation to their new home. “We felt like we were coming back home,” Geri said. “It’s nice to move back (to Vineyard Square); we know most everyone here.” Neighbors watched the home sit vacant for many years and fear grew it would eventually be razed. “If it can be saved, it should be,” Geri said. Anyone embarking on such a challenge should research and budget before they begin. But most importantly, they should establish and adhere to a vision, so they won’t get frustrated part-way through, Greg said. “We knew in the end, it would be really nice,” Geri said. The Bembooms moved into the four-bedroom home with a third-story bedroom for future grandchildren in October 2009 after a year of work. The advantage of redoing the entire house is “it feels like a new house in an old body,” Geri said. Before deciding on their paint, the couple brought in lawn chairs and a cooler and spent the day in the barren shell comparing colors in morning, mid-day and evening sunlight to find the perfect fit. “Everyone who knew the house at 1106 Vineyard Square wanted to see something good happen to it, and this month’s Golden Hammer Award goes to the couple that gave it the attention needed to restore its beauty and usefulness,” said Deedie Bedosky, committee chairwoman. The home was built in 1928 by Carl Rohmberg in what was then the new development by Mayme Vineyard. Neighborhood oral history says that Frederick and India Dunlap received the home as payment of a debt during the Great Depression. The Dunlap family owned the home from 1930 until 2004. Frederick Dunlap was elected to the state legislature in 1918 and again in 1920. He was among the first legislative body to occupy the new Capitol. During that time, he served as chairman of the agriculture committee and he introduced the bill to create the Missouri State Museum. Dunlap remained in Jefferson City, organizing the Capitol Mutual Insurance Company in 1922, and by 1938, it was the largest insurance company of its kind in Missouri. His wife, India, served on the Missouri Congress of Parents. And in 1935, she helped organize the Hawthorne Garden Club, the first garden club in the city. The Dunlap Home was named “Dune Vista” from a contest hosted by the club. Under neath years of overgrown dirt and debris, Greg rediscovered some of those outdoor “hidden treasures,” including a fish pond, rock pathways and a souvenir rock post. “My husband is good at catching a vision,” Geri said. So when she said she wanted everything on the first floor, including the master bedroom and the laundry, Greg quickly deduced a solution and so they moved forward with the project. “We’ve always been attracted to older homes,” Geri said. But early in the rehabilitation process, Geri had to really engage her imagination to see where the home was headed, particularly when she stood in the foyer and could look straight up to the second-floor ceiling. A baby quilt in the making at Geri’s sewing machine, sitting on an old-wood table Greg built, sets the tone that in this home vintage novelties are blended with modern knowhow. The foundation and exterior are original, but the infrastructure and insulation are new. The doors, knobs, and some fixtures and trim are original, but the added family room and office are new. The fireplace in the master bedroom, once the living room, is original, but the adjacent cabinets once used as an office now serve in a walk-in closet. And someone would have to have a good eye to see where the 1928 floor ends and the new floor begins. “We love it; we’d do it again in a minute,” Greg said. The Bembooms moved into the four-bedroom home with a third-story bedroom for future grandchildren in October 2009 after a year of work. Stephen Brooks/News Tribune
Greg and Geri Bemboom at 1106 Vineyard Square are the Golden Hammer award winners for renovating this Mediterranean-style home. Stephen Brooks/News Tribune
