Historic Muskogee Mansion Might Be Moved Out Of State

The Fite Mansion has been a Muskogee landmark for more than a century, but an Ohio company wants to move it. 

Now, Muskogee residents are worried about what's next for the historic home. 

Historians say that the Fite Mansion has been in Muskogee for more than 100 years, but in order to preserve this historic location, some big decisions are going to have to be made.

It's a glorious looking building, that has a long history. It's a Georgian revival mansion with servants' quarters.

The Fite Mansion has been part of Muskogee's history since 1905 and the Historical Preservation Committee's Chairman Brent Trout says the privately owned building has been through some wear and tear over the years. 

"It's been passed from owner to owner, each with their own agenda or intentions," Trout said. 

He said that after 40 years of being passed around, the house is no longer livable.

"If we want to do something, we need to do something. Preservation is not an option, preservation is action and we are not taking action right now," Trout said. 

Ohio company ResErections, Inc. made a proposal to purchase the property and rebuild the house in another location. 

"He wants to take the building, take it apart piece by piece, label each piece and transition it somewhere it would be kept, restored and taken care of," Trout said. 

The deconstruction project could take up to six months and bring at least $2 million into the city. 

But, this means the landmark, the mansion, could be rebuilt outside of Oklahoma. 

"You have to decide, does that take away the history? It will still be the Fite Mansion. Does it have to be in Oklahoma to be that?" Trout said. 

Trout said that there will be a town hall meeting scheduled for the community to discuss this project but those dates haven't been decided yet.