Gittemeier House
{{Short description|Historic building in Missouri, United States}}
{{Use American English|date=December 2022}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=December 2022}}
{{Infobox building
| name = Gittemeier House
| address = 1067 Dunn Road
| location_city = Florissant, Missouri
| location_country = United States
| coordinates = {{Coord|38|46|27.86|N|90|19|7.64|W|type:landmark_region:US-MO|display=inline,title}}
| completion_date = {{Start date and age|1860}}
}}
The Gittemeier House is a historic building in Florissant, Missouri, built by Franz Gittemeier in 1860. The house has been preserved and now serves as the headquarters of Historic Florissant, the local historical society.
Description
The Gittemeier House is a red-brick, two-story farmhouse{{Cite news |last=Tighe |first=Theresa |date=2001-02-15 |title=House |page=78 |work=St. Louis Post-Dispatch |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/115059721/house/ |access-date=2022-12-23 |issn=1930-9600 |via=Newspapers.com}} sitting on {{convert|0.4|acres}}. It was built in the Federal style, noted for simple design with Southern influences. It is located on what is now Dunn Road in Florissant.
History
Franz Gittemeier was born in Westphalia, Germany, in 1826. He immigrated to the United States in 1850. Franz was hired as a farmworker near Bridgeton, Missouri and soon decided to mine for gold in California. He mined gold for seven years and came back to Florissant, Missouri with enough gold to purchase {{convert|50|acres}} of farmland and build the two-story Gittemeier House in 1860.{{Cite news |date=2019-07-05 |title=Gittemeier House |work=St. Louis Post-Dispatch |url=https://www.stltoday.com/gittemeier-house/article_4cf48637-7303-5020-9989-f53e1d37a3fb.html |access-date=2022-12-21 |issn=2574-9544}}{{Cite web |title=History |url=https://historicflorissant.com/about/history/ |access-date=2022-12-21 |website=Historic Florissant, Inc.}}{{Cite news |last=Ross |first=Gloria S. |date=2014-10-02 |title=Rosemary Straub Davison: Longtime Activist Put A New, Familiar Face On Old Town Florissant |work=St. Louis Public Radio |url=https://news.stlpublicradio.org/economy-business/2014-10-02/rosemary-straub-davison-longtime-activist-put-a-new-familiar-face-on-old-town-florissant |access-date=2022-12-23}}
Franz and his wife, Gertude, raised ten children in the house. They prospered and he eventually owned {{convert|500|acres}} of land. According to family legend, each of Franz's children received a farm and $10,000 ({{inflation|US-GDP|10000|1891|r=-3|fmt=eq}}) upon his death on September 7, 1891.
In 1938, Mae Pondrum purchased the property. Mae and her descendants occupied the house until 1990.
In May 1990, Shell Oil Company acquired the property for $175,000{{Cite news |last=Librach |first=Phyllis Brasch |date=1997-05-26 |title='Saved' Gittemeier House Helps Save The Past |page=73 |work=St. Louis Post-Dispatch |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/115059282/saved-gittemeier-house-helps-save-the/ |access-date=2022-12-23 |issn=1930-9600 |via=Newspapers.com}} ({{inflation|US-GDP|175000|1990|r=-3|fmt=eq}}) to build a convenience store, gas station, and car wash. Shell was planning to destroy the house, but instead donated the property to the non-profit Historic Florissant for restoration due to the community's desires to preserve the house.
A ceremony was held on July 30, 1991, where Shell presented the keys and deed to Rosemary Davison, president of Historic Florissant.{{Cite news |date=1991-08-01 |title=Company Donates Old Home |pages=[https://www.newspapers.com/clip/115063837/company-donates-old-home/ 103], [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/115063863/ 104] |work=St. Louis Post-Dispatch |access-date= |issn=1930-9600 |via=Newspapers.com}} Shell made the stipulation that the exterior of the house would be renovated within a year.{{Cite news |last=Tighe |first=Theresa |date=2001-02-19 |title=Tenacious woman helps maintain Florissant's historic buildings |page=75 |work=St. Louis Post-Dispatch |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/115060055/tenacious-woman-helps-maintain-florissan/ |access-date=2022-12-23 |issn=1930-9600 |via=Newspapers.com}} Historic Florissant convinced a bank to lend them $65,000 ({{inflation|US-GDP|65000|1990|r=-3|fmt=eq}}) to restore the house.
Today, the Gittemeier House is used by Historic Florissant as an office, resource center, and archive.{{Cite web |title=Historic Old Town Florissant |url=https://florissantoldtown.com/old-town-florissant/ |access-date=2022-12-21 |website=Florissant Old Town Partners}} It is also available by appointment for small events and gatherings.{{Cite web |title=About |url=https://historicflorissant.com/about/ |access-date=2022-12-21 |website=Historic Florissant, Inc.}}
See also
- National Register of Historic Places listings in St. Louis County, Missouri, which includes a number of other historic houses in Florissant
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- [https://historicflorissant.com/ Historic Florissant]
Category:Houses completed in 1860
Category:Houses in St. Louis County, Missouri
Category:Historic sites in Missouri