Historic Houses on Tour during Daffodil Festival

The HOUSE ON HARRISON STREET was razed in 1959. The connection with the so-called "Maud Crawford House" on Greening is through Walter P Ritchie who built the house. The Ramsey House is connected through the Martha Virginia Ritchie. The Gordon house was built by George R Gordon.

Hope to see y'all at the Great Hall at UMC on Friday and Saturday. I'm NOT hosting the drop-by on Friday evening - too much going on for everyone!

Ramsey-McClellan-Pryor House

The Ramsey House  - Also known as Ramsey-McClellan-Pryor House - Many lovely, elaborate parties were held during Margaret Ramsey's youth. A popular socialite, Margaret was close in age to her cousin Mildred Gordon. Martha Virginia Ritchie (Stanley) Ramsey was Ella Jane Ritchie Gordon's sister and Margaret Ramsey's mother. The family called Mrs. Ramsey Cousin Mattie or Aunt Mattie.
Margaret Ramsey's half-sister was Marian Ramsey Brown (married W.W. Brown).Margaret Ramsey's tragic death is explained in the chapter about oil in South Arkansas and it involves Mr. and Mrs. W.W. Brown, Josephine Gaughan, and Anne Brown who were taking a lovely Sunday afternoon drive.

Gordon-Zoerner House

The Gordon House  -  Also known as Zoerner House or former Methodist Parsonage - Built by Geo. R. Gordon, brother of the Gordon Girls, son of Charles T. Gordon and Ella Jane Ritchie Gordon. He worked with his uncle George L Ritchie in Ritchie Supply. Geo. R. Gordon served as Mayor of Camden and as Ouachita County Judge.
The house was built in early 1920's and stands today after several remodels. After Geo. R. Gordon died, Emma Sue Gordon rented out rooms and created apartments to supplement her income. One of the roomers was Miss Eppie Gardner, one of Camden's well-known teachers.
The Methodist Church later owned this house as its parsonage and my classmate David Ivey had the pleasure of living there in the mid-1960's.

Both the Ramsey and the Gordon houses are open during the Camden Daffodil Festival.

Ritchie-Crawford House - Built by Walter P Ritchie at the height of the oil boom,it was mortgaged heavily during the Great Depression. When the bank took the house, Clyde Crawford bought it and he and his wife Maud lived there. Maud Crawford, the first and only female lawyer in Camden, mysteriously disappeared in March of 1957, from that house. My grandmother used Mrs. Crawford as her attorney as did several of Mildred's "ice cream and coke float," Lawrence Welk watcher friends. Many Camden families were connected to this mystery.