8-K

                                  UNITED STATES

                       SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

                             Washington, D.C. 20549

                          ----------------------------

                                    FORM 8-K

              Current Report Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the

                       THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

                        Date of Report: November 25, 2003

                          BUTLER MANUFACTURING COMPANY

                          Butler Manufacturing Company
                              1540 Genessee Street
                           Kansas City, Missouri 64102
                              Phone (816) 968-3000

                      Incorporated in the State of Delaware

                          Commission File No. 001-12335

                I.R.S. Employer Identification Number: 44-0188420




ITEM 5.  TERMINATION OF AGREEMENT TO SELL LESTER DIVISION

On May 15, 2003, Butler Manufacturing Company announced that it had signed a
letter of intent to sell substantially all of the assets of the Lester Building
Systems business to a management team headed by John Hill, the current Lester
division president.

During the third quarter of 2003, the company and the buyer executed definitive
agreements, which called for the transaction to be completed by November 21,
2003. The closing was subject to receipt of consent from the company's senior
lenders, which was not received by November 21, 2003. On that date, the buyer
and seller executed an agreement terminating the sale.

The company intends to operate the business for the foreseeable future.
Nevertheless, the Lester assets will continue to be held for sale as the company
and Lester's existing management team are both interested in ultimately
consummating a sale transaction.

The Lester division is part of the North American Building Systems Segment, and
designs, manufactures, markets, and erects pre-engineered wood-frame buildings
for a variety of end uses. Principal offices are located in Lester Prairie,
Minnesota, with sales, engineering, and manufacturing facilities in Charleston,
Illinois and Clear Brook, Virginia.



                                   SIGNATURES


Pursuant to the requirement of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the
registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the
undersigned thereunto duly authorized.



BUTLER MANUFACTURING COMPANY

November 25, 2003                          /s/ Larry C. Miller
- -------------------------                  ------------------------------
Date                                       Larry C. Miller
                                           Vice President - Finance, and
                                             Chief Financial Officer


November 25, 2003                          /s/ John W. Huey
- -------------------------                  ------------------------------
Date                                       John W. Huey
                                           Vice President, General Counsel
                                             and Secretary


                                  EXHIBIT INDEX


99.1     Butler Manufacturing Company Announces Termination of Agreement to
         Sell Lester Division

EX-99.1

                                                                    Exhibit 99.1


         KANSAS CITY, MO, Nov. 25, 2003 -- Butler Manufacturing Company
(NYSE:BBR) announced today the termination of the previously announced agreement
to sell substantially all the assets of its Lester Building Systems business to
a management team headed by John Hill, the current Lester division president.

         During the third quarter of 2003, the company and the buyer executed
definitive agreements, which called for the transaction to be completed by
November 21, 2003. The closing was subject to receipt of consent from the
company's senior lenders, which was not received by November 21, 2003. On that
date, the buyer and seller executed an agreement terminating the sale.

         The company intends to operate the business for the foreseeable future.
Nevertheless, the Lester assets will continue to be held for sale as the company
and Lester's existing management team are both interested in ultimately
consummating a sale transaction.

         The Lester division is part of the North American Building Systems
Segment, and designs, manufactures, markets, and erects pre-engineered
wood-frame buildings for a variety of end uses. Principal offices are located in
Lester Prairie, Minnesota, with sales, engineering, and manufacturing facilities
in Charleston, Illinois and Clear Brook, Virginia.

         Butler Manufacturing Company is the world's leading producer of
pre-engineered building systems, a leading supplier of architectural aluminum
systems and components, and provides construction and real estate services for
the nonresidential construction market.

                       -----------------------------------

         Statements in this press release concerning the company's business
outlook or future economic performance; anticipated profitability, revenues,
expenses or other financial items, together with other statements that are not
historical facts, are "forward-looking statements" as that term is defined under
the Federal Securities Laws. Forward-looking statements are subject to risks and
uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those
stated in such statements. Such risks and uncertainties include, but are not
limited to, industry cyclicality, fluctuations in customer demand and order
pattern, the seasonal nature of the business, changes in pricing or other
actions by competitors, and general economic conditions, as well as other risks
detailed in the company's 2002 Annual Report to Shareholders on page 16