Peggy Smith-Hake's
"Window to the Past"
The Continuing Saga of Ha Ha Tonk
by Kelly Warman-Stallings
(Published to "Window to the Past" in January, 2018)
​
Peggy wrote a beautiful story about the mansion at Ha Ha Tonka and the Synder family who built it. When I ran across some old photos and more history of the house, I decided to write more about this marvelous place.
The saga begins when Robert McClure Synder, Sr. visited the area known as Ha Ha Tonka in 1903 and fell instantly in love with his Ozarks surroundings.
​
Old Store at Gunter's Springs, Mo.
Ha Ha Tonka, Mo
In 1904 Synder purchased 2,500 acres [including a small lake and spring] from Robert G. Scott, who had the property surveyed for a possible railroad route in the early 1890s.
For some reason, Mr. Scott changed his mind and instead kept the land, at least for the next nine years. Perhaps the beauty of the surroundings that captured Robert Synder's heart had also touched his?
In 1895, Robert Scott changed the small settlement's name from Gunter's Springs to Ha Ha Tonka. Not long after Robert Synder bought this parcel of land, he began extensive improvements. By 1905 the construction began on his European style castle; he brought in stonemasons from Scotland and installed a European manager to oversee the project that was designed by Kansas City architect, Adrian Van Brunt. Synder had envisioned the property to include the castle, a carriage house, nine greenhouses and a private water tower.
​
All too soon the excitement of the purchase came to an end when Robert Synder, Sr. was killed in an automobile accident on Independence Ave in Kansas City. For the next 16 years Mr. Synder's dream home sat unfinished high atop the beautiful bluff.
In 1922, Synder's three sons - Robert, Jr., Leroy and Kenneth - resumed work on the mansion. Their plans to finish the structure was not as elaborate as their father's original plans, but they did manage to complete construction by the early 1930s.
Robert, Jr. moved into the castle not long after completion and lived there until his death in 1937. It was said that while he lived there, he had amassed thousands of books about local and regional history of the area.
​
The two surviving brothers were forced to take other financial steps with the mansion and leased the property to local woman who would open and operate a hotel for a few years. It was said that during this time many local residents, as well as the guests that frequented the hotel, attended grand parties and other gatherings at the castle.
​
When the Great Depression struck, the family business - which included wholesale grocery and real estate - seriously began to decline and then the court litigations (fighting the construction of Bagnell Dam) occurred, the family's vast fortune soon was nearly depleted.
​
However, in 1942 tragedy struck when sparks from one of the mansion's fireplaces ignited the roof and set the castle on fire. Within hours of the blaze beginning, it was said that the mansion was completely gutted. The nearby carriage house had also been trapped in the spreading flames. All that remained after the devastating fire was the outer walls of the castle and the nearby 89 foot water tower.
​
Once again the Synder castle was abandoned for the next 36 years. While the water tower was practically destroyed by vandals in 1976, it has since been restored to its original state by the Missouri State Parks division, which purchased the entire estate in 1978 and opened it to the public as an official State Park. Not only does Ha Ha Tonka have an intriquing history, but it has outstanding geologic features, including sinkholes, caves, a large natural bridge, sheer bluffs and Missouri's 12th largest spring. The ruins of the Synder mansion overlook these wonders and offer an impressive view of Lake of the Ozarks and Ha Ha Tonka Spring. Today, Ha Ha Tonka receives thousands of visitors every year.
​
Some photos that show a few interior rooms inside the Synder mansion:
​
Ha Ha Tonka circa 1920s