The Kingdom of Callaway Historical Society was officially charted by the State Historical Society and incorporated by the State of Missouri on July 15, 1960. Membership fees were $1 per year, and everyone who joined the first year — which totaled 573 people — was counted as a charter member.
Committees were established to research various subjects such as historical homes, roads, sites and graves to document the history of our county. Monthly meetings were held in the large second-story courtroom of the county courthouse or other facilities to share the information that had been collected. An informative newsletter sent to the membership reported the findings as well as the business of the Society.
Projects and fundraising events were carried out to develop a treasury with the idea of establishing a museum. But in 1972, word was received that Mrs. Warrene Tuttle Williams had left her family home, located at Seventh and Westminster Ave. in Fulton, to the Society to become such a facility. The home was left in trust and would not be conveyed until after 21 years. The Society opened the Tuttle House Museum in 1973 and continued to operate and maintain the aging home until full possession was given on Feb. 21, 1993.
With mounting preservation efforts, the lack of needed funds as well as inadequate work and storage space facing the Society, the Board of Directors felt another facility would better suit our needs. The Tuttle home was sold in the fall of 1997.
Feeling a downtown location would help to increase our visibility with the local patrons as well as visiting tourists, the former Tutt’s men’s clothing store — located at 513 Court St. — was chosen to house the Society’s museum, which opened there in March 1998.
Since that opening, the Society has found success with a variety of fundraisers, continually receiving donations of artifacts, photos and documents and building our volunteer base to allow us to accomplish our mission of collecting, preserving and sharing the history of Callaway County with present and future generations.
In June 2019, the Society opened its second facility, a research center, at 106 East Fourth St. in Fulton. Visitors are invited to research county, family and community information there with the aid of our volunteers when needed.