Uriah Spray Epperson (1861-1927) hired eccentric French architect Horace LaPierre to design the monumental house.

Soon after moving into the home, Barse died on December 20, 1922, of a perforated gall bladder at the age of 47 years, before construction of the organ in the house was completed.

Local organist, Powell McCullough Weaver (1890-1951), no relation to Mrs. Epperson, organized the dedication recital and was assisted by local soprano, Winifrede Repp Railey (1890-1972), who was the heiress of the Duff & Repp Furniture Company, an important furniture business in the Midwest at that time which was headquartered in Kansas City.

[3] Supposedly, Uriah had a psychiatric breakdown after Barse died and murdered his wife and then killed himself inside the house, therefore entrapping all of their souls together as a family in the afterlife.

In 1978, a campus police officer reported seeing an arm in a blue suit coat materialize and turn off a light.

One light, however, remained lit, and then the patrolman saw an arm clothed in a blue suit reach out and claw at the switch.