HARRY S TRUMAN STATE PARK
Visit the birthplace home of the only Missourian ever elected President of the United States - Harry S Truman. Born May 8, 1884, in a downstairs bedroom of a small frame house in Lamar, Harry Truman was the son of John Anderson and Martha Ellen (Young) Truman.
The Truman birthplace, which the family occupied until Harry was 11 months old, was built between 1880 and 1882. The Trumans purchased the 20- by 28-foot house as newlyweds in 1882 for $685. Visitors today can view its four downstairs rooms and two upstairs rooms, as well as the smokehouse, well and outhouse located in the back. The modest furnishings inside the house and the surrounding landscaping accurately represent a typical home of its style during the time the Trumans resided in Lamar. It has neither electricity nor indoor plumbing.
The United Auto Workers donated the home to the state in 1959 for preservation as a state historic site. President Truman himself attended the dedication on April 19, 1959. The house is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Like Truman's trademark country mannerisms and down-to-earth sensibility, the small home possesses an essence of Missouri hospitality that seems to welcome every visitor with open arms.