All Entries Tagged With: "historical societies"
Florissant House Tour scheduled for Nov 28
The lovely Dr. Millman House at 693 Lafayette is one of 12 historic buildings featured on Historic Florissant's upcoming Christmas house tour.
If you’re looking for an excuse to attend Historic Florissant’s 2010 Christmas house tour, I have one very good reason to buy a ticket: Casa Alverez.
One of five private residences featured this year, the beautiful French Colonial home was built around 1794 for the king of Spain’s military storekeeper, Eugenio Alverez, and it offers a rare chance to see “poteaux sur sole” (or vertical log) construction. It also happens to be the second oldest house in St. Louis…and that includes county and city!
Taille de Noyer, located on the McCluer High School campus, is just slightly older but only Casa Alverez remains on its original site. And it still has a cistern! In other words, don’t miss the opportunity to visit this amazing historic gem!
A side view of Casa Alverez, with the oldest part of the house to the left
Also worth a look are the four other vintage houses on the tour: the delightful Joseph Peters House (c.1912), the Dr. John Millman House (c.1887), the recently renovated Louisa Garrett House (c.1853), and an adorable 1920s bungalow on rue St. Marie. Among the non-residential offerings are seven buildings: the log cabin at Tower Court Park, the old Wiethaupt General Store (now Dooley’s), Union Church, Hendel’s Market Cafe, Albers Mercantile (now Stems), the St. Stanislaus Museum, and the Franz Gittemeier House, current home of Historic Florissant.
You can actually buy tickets at that last stop – 1067 Dunn Road. They’re $10 each and also available at Korte’s and Dooley’s in Old Town Florissant. The tour itself is Sunday, November 28, from 2-6pm, and your ticket includes a coupon for free wine at Hendel’s! For more info, call (314) 921-7055 or email historicflo@aol.com.
The Louisa Garrett House at 280 Washington
The Joseph Peters House at 990 rue St. Francois
Florissant’s Gittemeier House celebrates 150 years
A small crowd gathered on August 1st to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the Franz Gittemeier house in Florissant.
In 1860, fresh from seven years of mining gold dust in California, Franz Gittemeier returned to St. Louis and built his wife, Gertrude, a stately home. The red brick two-story sat on 50 acres of rich Florissant farmland, and for decades it served as a comfortable residence for the German-born Gittemeiers, their 10 children and later their grandchildren.
The property was purchased by Ms. Mae Pondrom in 1938, whose family also lived there for many years. But by 1990, with most of the original estate pieced out for commercial development and the house in serious disrepair, Shell Oil bought it and planned to tear it down for a gas station.
The bulldozer was literally at the front door when the local nonprofit Historic Florissant, Inc. stepped in, promising to rehab the old home if only Shell would spare it. Sure enough, the company did. And with the help of a $65,000 bank loan and lots of volunteer labor, Historic Florissant also lived up to its end of the bargain, beautifully restoring the Gittemeier House.
Of course, the gas station still went in next door, leaving the home perilously perched on a steep retaining wall. But what’s important is that the landmark survived and has since become the office and bookstore of Historic Florissant.
Located at 1067 Dunn Road, it’s a place that every local history buff, architecture fan and (some would say) ghost hunter should visit, if only to soak up the ambiance and say hello to Rosemary Davison, the 90-something preservation pioneer who initially founded Historic Florissant and still maintains an active role in the group. If you want to know something about Florissant history, including local genealogy, you will probably find it at the Gittemeier House.
Many thanks to Rosemary and everyone at Historic Florissant for preserving this 150-year-old gem for all to enjoy! And a big high-five to reader Pam Lee for providing the photo above!
Newer homes shine in upcoming Florissant House Tour
Thirteen buildings, old and new, are featured in the 50th annual Florissant Valley Historical Society House Tour on June 13
If you’re hoping to view some of Old Town Florissant’s historic gems during the Florissant Valley Historical Society House Tour, you might be a bit disappointed. The oldest home on this year’s tour dates from 1951. But don’t despair! Seven local homeowners are swinging open their doors, and from what I can tell, the tour will focus less on architecture and more on the personal style of eclectic NoCo residents. Which is great!
Here’s what you can see:
• 546 N. Lafayette – Built in 2004, the Di Salvo home is one of the newer residences in Old Town. It features an open layout with a great room, as well as lush gardens.
• 435 rue St. Joseph – Built in 2004, the sprawling Paubel home (above) will wow you with its beautiful landscaping, including a goldfish pond and waterfall.
• 1373 rue St. Louis – Built in 1952, the adorable Healy home showcases its owners’ love of bold color and architectural salvage.
• 1316 rue St. Louis – Built in 1951, the Gettemeier home is a simple, classic 50s ranch, right across the street from the Healys at 1373.
Talk about curb appeal! The Healy home on rue St. Louis has it in spades!
• 1345 Lindsay Ln – Built in 1957, the Ryan home is another fabulous 50s ranch, filled with World’s Fair glassware and other antiques.
• 43 St. Stanislaus Ct – Built in 1984 on land once owned by St. Stanislaus Seminary, the Gladbach home is bursting with German nutcrackers, Irish china and many other collections documenting travels around the world.
• 1216 Riverwood Place Dr – Built in 1990 and extensively remodeled, the Erlich home boasts a living room that was converted into a conservatory for a grand piano!
Also included in the tour are several historical sites, including the St. Stanislaus Museum @ 3030 Charbonier, Taille de Noyer on the campus of McCluer High School, the Chappel House art gallery @ 4560 Washington, the Gittimeier House (home of Historic Florissant Inc) @ 1067 Dunn, and the Sacred Heart museum @ 751 N. Jefferson. And don’t forget to swing by Hendel’s Market Cafe, 599 rue St. Denis, for a wine tasting!
Tickets for the tour are $12 and you can buy them at any of the seven homes on the day of. You can also pre-purchase at Dooley’s Florist, Korte, Village of the Blue Rose, Florissant Marketplace and the Gettemeier House. The house tour is scheduled for Sunday, June 13, noon-5pm.
This 50s charmer on Lindsay Lane also has a lovely backyard garden.
For the Love of Jennings
Linda Schmerber, Jennings city historian, proudly shows the community's flag, which was designed by a local 8th grader in 1964.
Jennings is a city that most would say has “transitioned.” In the past 40 years, its population has changed so dramatically that what was once an all-white, middle-class suburb has now become a place where nearly one-quarter of the residents live in poverty and 79 percent of the community is African-American.
At its peak in the late 1950s and early 60s, Jennings had nearly 20,000 residents (5,000 more than today). It also boasted four Catholic parishes, and up until 1960, two thriving school districts. The city was incorporated in 1946 but its roots stem back to 1839, when James Jennings, a Virginia farmer and merchant, purchased 3,000 acres bordered roughly by I-70, Riverview Drive, 367, and Lucas & Hunt.
James Jennings worked his land with the help of 40 slaves, and when he died of tuberculosis in 1855, his property was divided between his wife, Ann Montague Jennings, and their six adult children. When Ann died in 1868, her land was subdivided and developed into homes, churches, farms and businesses – some of which still exist today.
It’s these historic treasures and the proud legacy of the Jennings family that Linda Schmerber has been fighting to protect for the past two decades. A Jennings resident for 48 years (off and on), she joined the Jennings Historical Society in 1987, served as president for 17 years, and now volunteers as the city’s historian and archivist.
A former Jennings landmark that no longer exists: the Janet Theatre
Are you getting ready for the big day? NOCO is a proud sponsor of the 3rd annual Live Well Ferguson 5K