Jesse James Home Museum
Jesse James House | |
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| Location | St. Joseph, MO |
|---|---|
| Built | 1880 |
| Architect | Unknown |
| Architectural style | Greek Revival |
| NRHP reference No. | 80002319 [1] |
| Added to NRHP | September 04, 1980 |
The Jesse James Home Museum is the house in St. Joseph, Missouri where outlaw Jesse James was gunned down on April 3, 1882, by Robert Ford.
At the time Jesse James was shot, the house was located at 1318 Lafayette Street in St. Joseph. In 1939, it was moved to a busier Belt Highway location. In 1977, it was moved to a location directly behind Patee House at 12th and Mitchell in St. Joseph, only two blocks away from its original location.
After the killing, the investigation into the death was conducted at Patee House Hotel (formerly the World's Hotel). Mrs. James, her two children, and Jesse's mother stayed in Patee House for two nights after Jesse James was killed.
The house has a large bullet hole on the left wall as you enter from the front. However, the hole was actually much smaller but shavings from the hole for souvenirs have enlarged it. Ironically, the original autopsy recorded that that there was no exit wound. Therefore, the bullet must have remained in Jesse's skull.
The Jesse James Home contains a number of items owned by Jesse James and his family, and new exhibits on the 1995 exhumation of the infamous outlaw, including coffin handles, bits of wood, and a pin Jesse James wore in his death photo, as well as numerous photos taken during the exhumation. In 1995, top forensic scientist Professor James E. Starrs, of George Washington University, conducted an exhumation of the grave of Jesse James. In February, 1996, he announced that DNA tests performed on the remains and compared to the DNA of existing known relatives proved a 99.7% chance that the body in the grave is that of Jesse James.
The home was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on September 04, 1980.
Notes
- ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. 2007-01-23.