Next Saturday September 25  is the the River Suite dinner and music event to support our local chamber of commerce.  We have tickets for our Spring Street guests.  

Always nice to hear from Cheryl Heller Olson.  She will be bringing a new picture by to fill the space of one that sold.  Excited to see a new work!  The Storm Cloud picture went to be home in Houston.  I love being a gallery for Cheryl because she depicts the Kansas landscape so wonderfully.  The second floor guestrooms all have one of her paintings and there are more in the dining area and main hall.  I still remember as we were setting up for the Thanksgiving weekend Christmas tour in 2016 that two of the Prairie PastTime artists called.  First Eric Dyck and then Cheryl.  Dr. Dyck brought a wonderful display of photo's depicting the local iconic scenes perfect for the Spring Street living room.  They have been a wonderful reference for those visiting the area.  The bison in front of the school house at the Tallgrass Preserve with fresh spring grass, the Courthouse with the rising moon, the silhouette of the cowboy and the night burning, the falls overflowing with rainfall and decorated with fall foliage, the mama and baby bison and the Clements bridge reflecting  on a calm  winter day.  Hope everyone is having good week.  Call us soon to book your visit to Spring Street Retreat.  

We offer the Four Season Getaway and the fourth Weekend Getaway free.  We hope Spring Street Retreat will be your home away from home.  This amazing home is located in the charming town of Cottonwood Falls in the beautiful Flint Hills.  This is the perfect place to relax and enjoy this  peaceful  place.  Each of our five guestrooms have king size beds and all spacious and unique.   Our sunny Wildflower guestroom has a fireplace with wonderful sunshine in the afternoons and a cozy seating perfect for a good book.  Our stately Courthouse guestroom also has a fireplace and a door to the veranda for morning coffee.  The Tallgrass Preserve guestroom also opens to the veranda.  And the Symphony guestroom has an extra little alcove for twin bed and we call this our family suite.  Our guests love the spa bath with the beautiful and spacious shower room.  We also have private baths on the main floor and downstairs.  It is a family home and breakfast is provided each Saturday and Sunday morning along with refreshments and snacks.  Our guests enjoy getting to know others and learning about their home towns.  We hope you will visit us soon to enjoy the beauty and changing colors of the prairie.

We completed our  restoration of the Carriage House by securing and  refinished stonework, continued clearing out of debris and such, sweeping, filling low spots with crushed concrete, building a gazebo and hanging solar lights in preparation for a reunion weekend.  When our guests book the 5 guest rooms we can also provide the Carriage House for a small outdoor gathering space.

Since the United State deeded the property June 1, 1860 there has been the list of deed Grantee's (and many mortgages) consisting of John Wintter, Amanda Borders, Mr. and Mrs. John  Shofe, JS Doolittle, Robert Cuthbart, UB Warren, Mary Brockett, Isaac Alexander, HG Davis, Charles Gregory (April, 1907), ED Wilson, Ruth and A Connor, Carl and Iva Cowley and beneficiaries Esther Haskell, Geraldine Arnold, Ruth Crofoot, Holdeman family, and then Kain Palermo in 1977.. Charles  Gregory (built the home when he and Eliizabeth Carter Gregory  were married (please see her picture on the website), but 20 years later he and his brother William had financial difficulties and these proceedings were finalized in May, 1929.

Charles and William came to Cottonwood Falls to operate a mercantile on  Broadway which is currently the home of Tallgrass Antiques.  Charles and William were two young men from New York and due to the tremendous quarry business, as public buildings and universities were being built.  After the proceeding of 1929 this was possibly the home of the  Connor and Cowley families, and then  the Haskell family created apartments in the building in the 1940's.  A number of current community residents remember visiting family or even living in the building. 

According to 2017 personal visit with Elizabeth's great nephew and son of her sister the Carter family had a ranch east of town and her father was a doctor, and her grandfather a district judge appointed by Abraham Lincoln.  Her nephew reported that Elizabeth  relocated to Wichita and near her sister in the College Hill area at some point, but  continued to enjoy the gardening and front porch gatherings of family and friends. 

According to previous owner Jeanette, she and Kain proceeded to return the home to the original floor plan, requiring a careful deconstruction and construction of walls, stairways, and pantry.  Much of this was stored in the basement and attic.  All possible material was utilized in the renovations with all the possible oak gathered and utilized, doors, and painted trim work turned into furnishings for guestrooms.   The original floors on the main and 2nd floor were sanded and restored.  The entry hall stairway to the 2nd floor is believed to be the original.  A matching stair to the attic was built by the previous owner.  In 2017 attic windows were all replaced for better ventilation. 

All other windows are original due to the storm windows built by Kain Palermo protecting  them.  In 2019, these were all taken down, cleaned and hung again,  and the exterior trim work painted.  

The original kitchen is located in the downstairs northwest corner where there is a chimney and an icebox window under the current patio, where I imagine an icebox stood.  I believe there was a practice of somehow gathering ice for this purpose of keeping an icebox cool during the warmer months.  The original sink located on the north wall did unfortunately did not survive when the water and sewage system were connected.   Since my own great grandfather had an ice  business  I can imagine this a little bit.  And, I believe an ice accident caused his death. 

Putting the pieces back together has been an interesting puzzle.  When we were in the trim work phase in the fall of 2016, I asked the carpenter to utilize the  2 pieces of beveled glass that were found leaning against the front window wall, to build a bookcase.  He did a beautiful job building and finishing a new bookcase between front two windows of the living room..  Then the next Saturday, I was again downstairs going through the pile of doors leaning against the wall, and finally against the wall found an exact but wider but exact matching door, and so another bookcase was built utilizing this door.  

I am very grateful for all the workers who have heeded the call and played a part in this process, of building, restoring, and hauling away excess material.   There remains a storage room and attic of doors and wood that we plan to remove next winter, and so please come by to get some material for your next wood working project. 

Delightful weather!   Wonderful horses, amazing animals and  brave  professional cowboys all made for a great show.  The memoir time and the beautiful horse that came out was awesome.  We loved the patriotism and the fun.  Kids got involved each evening too.  A great way to relax an unwind after a hard working week.  Looking forward to next year. 

We love our guests!  It has been a  tremendous pleasure to be your hosts in the Flint Hills.  I must tell you that the hills are exceptionally green right now.  After "the burn" they new grass is springing up lusciously and there are many happy beef cows now grazing in this beautiful part of the earth.  

We do serve our customers all year long and want you to know that the Tallgrass Preserve is open year around and we are too.  As well as the merchants, galleries, and restaurants on Cottonwood Falls main street and Strong City.  It is my hope that all our guests will enjoy each season and so to encourage your Weekend Getaway we want to offer a free Weekend Getaway for your fourth visit.  Who doesn't need time to rest, reflect and recharge and Spring Street, Cottonwood Falls and the Tallgrass Preserve is the perfect place!  

Excitement is high for the upcoming round of special events, but every weekend is peaceful and special in Cottonwood Falls.  And, Prairie PastTimes artists cooperative is also open with so many creative and multi-media  gifts and treasures for your home.  You will love taking some time to see this amazing collection as well as enjoy the Flint Hills Gallery on main street.

The first guestroom or Wildflower guestroom is my favorite to offer our guests in the winter and spring with it's cozy electric fireplace and the warm winter sunshine in the windows.  It is a perfect place for cozy rest and relaxation.
Spinach Tortellini Soup (in large soup pot)_
1-2 head of garlic sautted to golden and soft in Tbsp. olive oil and mash
1-2 large onion chopped and then softened
1 -2 Tbsp. Basil
1/2 Tsp. Cayenne Pepper
1 large can of crushed tomatoes ( plus 2-3 cans of water)
1 bag of fresh chopped or box of frozen spinach
Cheese filled tortellini's added when ready to cook and  eat
Variations:  Fresh herbs, peppers, kale,  red lentils, barley, sausage, beef, chicken.

Part of the vision for Spring Street Retreat  are gatherings of family and friends for weekend visits.  We provide all the comforts of home and  breakfast Saturday and Sunday mornings.  Our five guest rooms with king size beds accomodates 10 people and we have 3 additional single mattresses.   Our living room is a comfortable place to gather to knit  or play games or have a special speaker.  We also have a craft room and table space for sewing retreats.  Lunch can be arranged and catered meals.  To schedule your weekend retreat please email at springstreetreservations@gmail.com.  

This weekend is our weekend to decorate the Christmas trees.   And, continue our celebration  of the seasons in the Flint Hills and of course  Christmas.  We celebrate family love and gatherings of friends.  When we were Country Christmas hosts the vision came to realization with a Thanksgiving tree for the breakfast room and seating for 10 and the summer tree  decorated with flowers, grasses, and cowboy ornaments and a table for 6 in our family room.  And, the winter tree next to the front door and our entry table has seating for 6 so a total of 22 places for a holiday  dinner.  We provide a clean home, place settings, all the comforts of home, 5 guest rooms with king size beds, and 3 extra single beds.  A  wonderful local chef can provide a smoked turkey and all the sides, or your family gathering could each bring a side dish.  Florence Bakery just announced they are accepting orders for their Butterhorn rolls.  We will be offering a second night free for your weekend gathering.  Our trees will be twinkling through the Valentines Weekend. Please call me to book your winter weekend getaway.   So please make plans now  to enjoy a country Christmas gathering this winter in the peaceful beauty of the Flint Hills.  

What a great weekend!   Calico Rose Fabric and Quilts organized another weekend for three days of sewing with friends.   I met quilters from Marion, HIllsboro, Emporia, Topeka, and Saffordville to name a few.  
The community center is spacious, clean, well lit, cool/warm, restrooms 
and a banquet table for each sewer with extra table space as well.  Sue Smith has plans for a December and January retreat.  She is excited  to provide a time for people to finish up their Christmas gifts in December.  
This past weekend we enjoyed the doors open and the sounds of the Friday night football game and the children playing at the park next door all weekend long.  
One of our rewards for all our hard-work are excursions to the  delicious snacks that everyone brings.  And, meals provided by the famous "Emma Chase".  Pork loin, green beans, spaghetti, cinnamon rolls, quiche and breakfast each morning.  
We loved hosting quilters this weekend at Spring Street  and were happy to provide a convenient place for rest for weary quilters.  Please follow our FB page to see pictures of  some of the completed quilts.  I hope you and your friends will join us sometime and hope to see you next weekend at Spring Street Retreat.  It is a beautiful time of year for hiking the Tallgrass Preserve and anything outdoors.

One of the things I love about being a Christian is that I am  growing in my knowledge of God and His word through a daily Bible reading plan, attending church, listening to the many wonderful seminarians and pastors, and experiencing the love and kindness of other believers.  People who have studied God's Word and have experienced God, and the  love of Jesus Christ in their own lives.  In the past few years beginning with Spring Street I encountered the power of prayer in a whole new way.  I have now come realize through this wonderful book about prayer that God's power can be released through prayers that agree with His word.  Including God's word in my prayers is very powerful. This book helped me to realize that God's Spirit is also dwelling in me and every believer and we need to be obedient to this Spirit.  Gal. 5:22 tells us that His spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.   Against these things there is no law.  Many other scriptures teach about being courageous and have a lot of other  beneficial guidance for life on earth. ​I pray this daily for all believers to experience and enjoy the Spirit of Christ  in their own lives.    It would please me greatly if there are more people who will take this journey and I would  welcome any group who desires to begin their prayer journey  at Spring Street Retreat.