Darren Sharpless prepares to lower the staircase to the tree house he built behind Perry’s Liquor Store in Rock Port.

The deck is very spacious and allows for growth of the branches that run through it. It also provides a beautiful view of the countryside behind it.

Tree houses are built on the foundation of childhood fantasies and adventurous spirits. Whether boy or girl, most of us have dreamed of having our own private space in the treetops to call our own and survey the landscape. For one local man, his lifelong dream of having a tree house finally became a reality when he decided to take on the job himself.

Darren Sharpless of Rock Port, Missouri, always wanted a tree house, but he lived in the Virgin Islands. They just don’t grow trees down there like in the Midwest. So, after he and his family moved here seven years ago and purchased Perry’s Liquor Store, he decided to make that lifelong fantasy a reality. He’s not a stranger to construction, having been woodworking since age 16 and later laboring as a general contractor, building home additions and garages; but this was the first tree house and the biggest thing he’s built for himself.

Using a sugar maple behind Perry’s Liquor Store on Hwy. 136, he began creating his tree house masterpiece three years ago. His family from the Virgin Islands and a friend from New York came to help him get started. Using wood purchased from Burke & Sons Lumber Company in Rock Port and using his own ingenuity and the metal fabrication skills of Jesse Kendall with Burke & Sons, he was able to create the hinges needed to not only hold the pieces together, but to also create a one-of-a-kind electric stairway that lifts and lowers as needed. Darren had to come up with his own design for the stairs and used ideas from ships’ ladders and attic ladders to create what he needed. He had to be able to make the deck inaccessible at night by raising the stairs. He accomplished this with the hinges and electric power.

Seven tabs are drilled into the trunks of the tree holding the deck in place and the tree has already began its job of growing around the tabs. The project now spans 16 feet by 16 feet and sits 10 feet off the ground in the front and 20-30 feet off the ground in the back. It can hold up to 35,000 pounds, although obviously that amount of weight is not needed. At least one of the beams is a floater, which allows for movement of the deck as the tree moves. There is also space cut out of the wood around the many branches which allows for their growth and expansion.

His children, Alley, age 10, and Ryan, age seven, have enjoyed their time spent in the tree house and Darren has had all sorts of requests for the use of the deck, including a child’s birthday party. The deck is rather spacious and affords a beautiful view of a field, tree line, and windmills in the distance (and the occasional wildlife walking through). Though this portion of the tree house is finished, Darren would like to keep building, adding a second floor. For now, Darren welcomes all to come take a look. You might just get your own ideas about how to make your tree house dreams come true!