CONTRIBUTED PHOTO — Pictured is the Mary and Craig Pfantz home in State Center. It is one of six historic homes available for touring during the Oct. 6 Historical Society of Marshall County historic home tour event.

The Historical Society of Marshall County (HSMC) wants citizens to come home.

That is, the 116-year-old organization — charged with preserving the county’s past – is urging residents to visit six historic and distinctive homes Oct. 6, from noon to 5 p.m. as part of a HSMC fund-raising effort.

Marshalltown is home to four unique properties, while the other two are in State Center.

The homes were built from 1880 to the early 1900s, said Julie Lang of Marshalltown, who is coordinating the event. She is a longtime HSMC board member and enthusiastic about county history.

In Marshalltown, the homes on the tour are owned by Cheri and Gerry Coleman at 301 S. 9th St., Julie and Kevin Hitchins at 308 N. 4th St., Kristyn and Barry Kell at 404 N. 5th St. and Jennifer and Jason Matteson at 608 W. Main St.

PHOTO BY ROBERT MAHARRY — Shown is the Jennifer and Jason Matteson home at 608 W. Main St. in Marshalltown. It is one of six historic residences available for touring during the Oct. 6 Historical Society of Marshall County home tour event.

In State Center, they are owned by Jenny and Beau Hanson at 202 3rd Ave. NW, and Mary and Craig Pfantz at 201 4th Ave. NE.

The Pfantz home is a Queen Anne Victorian house built in 1904 by August and Josephine Riemenschneider. The house is historically significant to the Pfantz family because the Riemenschneider’s were Craig’s great-grandparents.

“Over a period of years, the house was owned by five different families before being purchased by us in 1994 for our family,” said Mary Pfantz, who also is an HSMC board member.

The Pfantzs completed an extensive restoration of the house including recreating the two-story wrap around porch, doing period appropriate painting, replacing the decorative shingles on the tower and re-shingling with new cedar shingles.

The interior is generously decorated with Victorian-era millwork. The home features parquet flooring resembling a Greek key pattern. Most of the light fixtures in the home are original. Other than cosmetics updates and updating the kitchen and bathrooms, most of the interior is also original.

PHOTO BY ROBERT MAHARRY — The Julie and Kevin Hitchins home at 308 N. 4th St. in Marshalltown is another of the six Marshall County residences that will be open for tours on Oct. 6.

Through the years, the property has received much notoriety, said Pfantz. In 1992, the Victorian horse barn was selected by the Des Moines Register as the “Most Beautiful Barn in Iowa.” In 1995, the barn and house were the subject of a P. Buckley Moss print entitled “Our Family Heritage.”

In 1999, the house was selected as the main site for the shooting of a PBS Masterpiece film “Cora Unashamed.” In 2022, the property was placed on the National Register of Historic Places. This included the house, the Victorian -style horse barn, and a small domestic out-building, built in the Victorian-style to complement the house.

An HSMC board member or volunteer will be present at each home to conduct tours.

Tickets are $15 in advance and can be purchased at HSMCs Mowry-Irvine Mansion, 503 W. Main St., Hellberg Jewelers and Lillie Mae’s Chocolates. In State Center, tickets may be purchased at Central State Bank.

Tickets purchased at the door of one of the six homes are $20. Children under 10 are free. One admission is good for all six homes.

Event sponsors are Home Federal Savings Bank of Marshalltown and ProFinish Iowa of Grinnell.

McFarland Clinic of Marshalltown and UnityPoint Health-Marshalltown donated supplies to make the tour possible.

Established in 1908, HSMC is a IRS-certified 501(c)(3) organization. For more information, contact Lang at 641-750-4532.