An unknown -- at least to me and Mankato fire officials -- literary landmark in Mankato has burned to the ground. Intentionally, reports the Mankato Free Press. 

It was a yellow brick house on the corner of James and Fairfield. And even fans of the Maud Hart Lovelace series of books about Betsy and Tacy may be surprised to learn it was the home that belonged to the real-life man upon whom Lovelace based the fictional character of Mr. Meecham, a dignitary in her fictional town of Deep Valley.

The owner of the house offered it up for fire-fighting practice, and on March 7, it was, indeed, torched and used for hose practice.

An active member of the area's Betsy-Tacy society noticed the smoke, and was very worried that it was coming from one of the two main houses featured in the books: Betsy's house or Tacy's house, both on Center Street (which was called Hill Street in the books).  The society is working to renovate both of those houses, which are featured in special “Deep Valley” tours. http://www.betsy-tacysociety.org/default.asp

The Mr. Meecham house apparently also had been part of the tour, until March 7.