Sappington-Concord Historical Society will keep ownership of Ross Wagner’s farm

In October, members of SCHS voted in a new board

By Ashlynn Couch, Staff Reporter

January 22, 2026

The 1.58-acre property at 9148 Sappington Road once had a chicken coop and orchard on-site. The line of trees to the left was where the orchard once stood.

The last time that members of the Sappington-Concord Historical Society (SCHS) gathered, the meeting culminated in a heated debate over what to do with Ross Wagner’s farm: a 1.58-acre farm off Sappington Road with a history reaching back to the 1800s.

The original intention of SCHS’s Board of Directors was to transfer the property — for free — to Lindbergh Schools, to use as part of the Lindbergh Farmers Club. At the Oct. 22 SCHS meeting, lines were drawn between those who wanted to keep the property and a board that wanted to give the land away.

The meeting ended with a decision to postpone the vote on what to do with Ross Wagner’s farm. But, according to past SCHS board president Stephen Hanpeter, the issue has already been resolved: the Board of Directors has decided not to offer the farm to Lindbergh Schools. Hanpeter says the board met in the wake of the lively Oct. 22 meeting and made the decision together.

For many of the board members, this will be one of their last big decisions for the historical society: in October, SCHS members voted in a new president and vice president, as well as four new directors. Jimmy Devoto will step up as president with Brett Tintera at his side as vice president. Both men were vocal advocates for keeping the Ross Wagner property under SCHS ownership.

These new additions to the board will be sworn in at the historical society’s January meeting, which will take place on Jan. 28 at 3 p.m. at the Ulysses S. Grant National Historic Site, 7400 Grant Road. Accompanying the swearing-in will be a presentation by historian and curator Nick Sacco, titled “The Great Divorce: St. Louis City-County Split of 1876.” Sacco will swear in the Board of Directors.

As for the future of the farm, decisions have yet to be made and publicized. In the fight to keep the Ross Wagner property, members raised a multitude of ideas for how the land could be used. Hanpeter says there is supposed to be a strategic planning meeting.

“Maybe that’s where they will discuss development of the farm,” Hanpeter said. “I don’t know who will be involved in that or when it will be held. Maybe we will learn more at the Jan. 28 meeting.”

For more background on the historical Ross Wagner property and the fight to keep it, check out prior reporting by The Call.