The home at 500 NW 15th was a rare example of Cape Dutch (South African) design. Oliver B. Kee and his wife, Rose, decided to build a new home on this lot in the spring of 1906. Oliver was the president of the Security Loan and Investment Company and was involved in mortgage banking, real estate development and other business ventures.

To design the home, they hired the architectural firm of Van Meter and Schmitt, which already had built well-known structures such as the first J.W. Jenkins’ Sons Music Company Building, the Epworth College Building, and the Military Academy west of town. As one reporter wrote in March 1907, they had recently gained attention for introducing for the first time the “Dutch style” of architecture. The Cape Dutch influence was no doubt the contribution of senior partner, G.W. Van Meter, a South Afrikaner by heritage who completed his training at the Architectural College at the University of Illinois and migrated to Oklahoma City in 1902, just as the boom was gaining momentum.

For the Kee home, Van Meter used elements of the Cape Dutch design, a style distinguished by oversized, curvilinear gables that gave the home an imposing scale unlike Spanish Colonial homes being built at the same time. This stucco house features a segmental pediment of the portico, distinct decoration above the windows on the main floor, as well as two small portable dormers. A sunroom added to the east side employs similar roof and parapet treatment.

The Kees remained in the distinctive home until 1917, when, under the supervision of architect W.I. Hawk, it was extensively remodeled. The living room was altered, the sun porch enclosed, and a new kitchen was built.

The home was later sold to Claude T. and Fleur Sigmon. Claude was a longtime owner of Sigmon Furniture located at 22 Park Avenue in Oklahoma City.Claude was born October 11, 1879, in Texas and Fleur was born in Hempstead, Texas in 1880. Claude and Fleur were married in 1907.Claude died December 23, 1955, at the age of 76. Fleur died September 11, 1967, at the age of 87.

In 1968 V. Ross Brown purchased the home subject to a life estate in the garage apartment in favor of Will Hamilton, who had been the Sigmon’s handyman, gardener and butler. Hamilton died in 1980, and Brown married Judith Hankins that same year. Ross was an oilman and long-time resident of Heritage Hills. Judith was a theatrical agent and labor negotiator from New York. The Browns modernized the electrical and plumbing systems and extended the kitchen and upstairs sitting room. Fran and Gary Derrick became the fourth owners purchasing the home in 1986.

For the Derricks, the house has been a focal point of their social life. Each of their three daughters had her wedding reception in the backyard. The house has hosted numerous Easter parties and extended family Thanksgiving dinners. While their daughters now have their own homes, Fran and Gary’s home remains a popular landing spot for the children and grandchildren, who continue to enjoy the comforts of home sweet home.

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