County of building: St. Louis County
Location of building: W. Argonne Dr. & Clay Ave., NE corner, Kirkwood
Built: 1878 - 1920
Style: Vernacular
Original Occupant: Upholstery, paint store & General Store
Current Occupant: Blush Boutique
"157-159 W. Argonne. Leo E. Heinzelmann’s General Store. ca. 1878. Major renovations, ca. 1920s. Architect, unknown. Contractor, unknown. Contributing.
Built prior to 1878 as two separate buildings, even by 1903 the facades had been combined. In the 1890s, George Couch used the building for an upholstery, wallpaper and paint store. By 1899 Leo Heinzelmann had opened a general store in the building after his bakery across the street had a fire. After moving, Heinzelmann expanded his bakery business to that of a general store and an historic photo dating to approximately 1903 shows the building with large signs painted on awning skirts for “Leo E. Heinzelmann’s Groceries, Hardware, Meats, Feed, Vegetables” as well as a similarly worded painted sign on the west wall of the building (facing Clay Avenue). In city directories by 1910 his business was promoted as a general merchandise and meat store. Starting in 1922, Heinzelmann also ran a drug store in the west side of the building (159 W. Argonne), a listing that was repeated in the 1926 city directory, but by 1928 it
had been taken over by Gus Kinkhorst, who continued to operate a pharmacy in the building into the 1930s, although the business seems to have suffered like many did during the Great Depression and the building was vacant in 1938 and 1943 in city directory listings. By 1949 the building housed J. Horn’s furniture store (in 157) which lasted at least through the mid-1950s. In the west portion of the building (159), by 1949 Hills Apparel had opened, which was replaced
with a laundromat in the 1950s and by 1970 this housed the Colonial Lamp Shop. From 1930, at least through 1938, L. Heinzelmann ran a real estate company from the building, addressed as 104 N. Clay Avenue (upstairs over the west storefront) and then converted his operations to an insurance agency at least through the 1950s. By 1962, his widow, Lulu Heinzelmann had died and the estate passed to their heirs. Today, the building is vacant.
"Physical evidence seems to indicate that most of the second floor above 159 W. Argonne was originally used as some sort of lodge hall, since it has a cove ceiling over the entire space, but between 1926 and 1928, this was converted into apartments. Upstairs of 157 W. Argonne was also used as apartments, with its first listings in city directories in 1922 having Leo and Lulu Heinzelmann as its occupants and given the Craftsman interior treatment to the apartment, it was
probably remodeled for them in the 1920s, but they relocated their residence to their other building (directly north, 108 N. Clay) by 1930. Since the directories did not clearly indicate residential use prior to 1922, they may have lived above their business in earlier years as well. After they relocated, the apartment continued to be leased until recently. It is likely that the interior upgrades in the early 1920s, coincided with the replacement of the lap siding by a
modern stucco veneer and the removal of the wrap-around second floor balcony that provided a covering for the sidewalks." ~ NRHP Nomination Form
"The property owners in the district have had a long tradition of updating their buildings, beginning with the 1899 update of the 1875 Heinzelmann Bakery, but especially epitomized by the stucco coatings popularized in the 1920s and 1930s. Some of these were frame buildings
with balconies that covered the sidewalks, such as the circa 1878 Heinzelmann General Store (157-159 W. Argonne), that then were “modernized” by removing the balconies and applying stucco.
"The Heinzelmann General Store Building (157-159 W. Argonne) across the street is even more typical of the buildings in the area as a stand alone vernacular style two story storefront. It has display windows on the front and regularly spaced sashed windows on the second floor. Like many of the buildings in the district, the Heinzelmann
General Store has also been covered in stucco, which was applied in the 1920s." ~ NRHP Nomination Form, PDF pages 9 & 51
"157-159 W. Argonne. Leo E. Heinzelmann’s General Store. ca. 1878. Major renovations, ca. 1920s. Architect, unknown. Contractor, unknown. Contributing.
The Heinzelmann General Store is a large two story stuccoed building. The front façade has two entries and large display windows. There are additional entrances in the northwest corner and along the north side along with elevated multipaned windows that open onto a courtyard shared with the building at 108 N. Clay. The stucco was probably applied in the 1920s and a historic balcony that served as a canopy over the front sidewalk was removed around that time. The building retains its original wood framed display windows and entries—the one to the east is accessed by a series of broad steps because of the change in grade and the one on the west is angled on the corner, with a large solid wood (not cast iron) round support column holding up
the corner of the second floor. Even before the walls were stuccoed, what had been two buildings had been joined in use, with the shared balcony and a gabled roof over the west storefront, but the side gabled roof of the east storefront was modified into a flat roof with a short mansard. Physical evidence on the interior indicates that most of 159 W. Argonne was originally some sort of lodge hall, a single room, then converted into apartments between 1926 and 1928, but those
partitions were removed recently. The apartment above 157 W. Argonne is still partially intact, including some of its Craftsman millwork, probably added in a remodeling in the 1920s." ~ NRHP Nomination Form
"The facade of this building accommodates two storefronts on the first level.
"159 features a storefront angled to the intersection which contains double wood doors with large single panes of glass, flanked by sidelights containing a pane of glass with a wood panel below. The Clay Street elevation also features a large multi-paned wood storefront window which is part of this storefront. 157 features a wooden storefront which matches 159 in style. Large single pane storefront windows span the entire facade except where entry doors are seen. On the southeast corner of the facade (155) a single-leaf
six-panel wood door with a transom accesses the second story.
At the second level 159 contains two regularly spaced wood windows, with wood sashes, double-hung, two over two; flat-topped, with wood sills. A tiled gable with return projects above. 157 contains three windows whose openings have been reduced to contain standard-size windows with wood infill panels at the top. These windows are wood, with wood sash, double-hung, two over two, flat-topped with wood
sills. The small window above 155 shows evidence of having been a door opening; it now contains a wood window with wood sash, double-hung, four over four, flat-topped, with wood sill. All second level windows are covered by aluminum storm sash. The roofline of 155-157 features a roof-like overhang which is covered with asphalt shingles.
The Clay Street elevation contains an entry to the basement level.
This building contains the Heinzelmann's General Store which was established in 1899 by Leo E. Heinzelmann. There had been a fire in the building at 156 W. Argonne/Main, where the family operated the family business; Heinzelmann's Bakery, which 'was founded by Rudolph Heinzelmann in 1875. Leo Heinzelmann reopened an expanded business in this building. It featured a Second story balcony which spanned the facade and wrapped around onto the Clay Street elevation; now removed.
The roofline above 155-157 was a side gable. Clay tiles have been added to the 159 roofline and a stucco finish has been applied to the original wood horizontal lap siding." ~ Kirkwood Historic Survey Phase II, page 215