This magnificent Victorian mansion, listed on the National Register of Historic Places, was started circa 1902 by John M. Bayless. He moved here from Missouri. He also built a three-story Opera House, the Sequoyah Hotel, and an athletic building with an indoor swimming pool. Only the Belvidere remains today. He soon brought his wife and 7 children to Claremore. He died in 1907, six months before the mansion was finished. Many of the materials used to build the mansion were brought from the 1904 St. Louis World's Fair.
In the 1930's, the mansion was purchased and made into apartments. It is presently owned and is being restored by the Rogers County Historical Society. The mansion is decorated for Christmas season around the first of November until the middle of December. It is filled with arts and crafts, antiques, gifts...all for sale. Call for the "Christmas At The Belvidere" schedule. New at the Belvidere is a year-round Victorian gift shop, featuring new and antique furniture and gift items.