County of site: Warren County
Location of site: MO-94, Katy Trail, Peers
Store Built: 1893
Architect: George Glosemeyer
Listed: January 29, 2018
The Person:
Charles Peers, a lawyer and newspaper printer in Saint Louis and later Warrenton, Missouri, born in Troy, Missouri, in 1844.
Charles E. Peers(Democrat) Warrenton, Warren County, Missouri, a native Missourian; born May 2, 1844, Troy, Lincoln County: he filled the position of circuit attorney from 1868 to 1872, said office having since been abolished by law; was a member of the 27th General Assembly: In 1888 was appointed by Governor Morehouse to fill vacancy on the bench of the St. Louis Court of Appeals: appointed by Governor Stone a member of the committee to visit State Institutions, and make report to the 38th General Assembly, being chairman of the committee: was president pro tem, of the Senate during the session of the 39th General Assembly. Lawyer: widowwer." ~ Official Manual of the State of Missouri
The Place:
Peers: A village in the southern part of Charrette Township, in the southern part of the county. It was laid out after the completion of the M.K. & T. Railroad in 1892. Henry Massman was the first citizen to locate here. The post office was started about 1894 or 1895. Named for Judge Charles E. Peers, who was born in Troy, Missouri, May 2, 1844 and was the son of Major Edward J. and Cytha (Stone) Peers. He came to Warrenton in 1865 and became editor of the WARRENTON BANNER. He was admitted to the bar in 1866, and elected to the state legislature in 1872. He was attorney for the Wabash Railroad and for the M.K. & T. Railroad." ~ PORT. & BIOG. REC., pp. 285, 486-88; Warren County Highway Map, 1936
"Peers is situated on Sec. 22, Twp. 45 N, R. 2 W.
The post-office was discontinued pre 1905." ~ General Scheme of Missouri, 1905, Taft, p. 115.
Town of Peers:
The town of Peers was a railroad town named after Judge Charles E. Peers,
an attorney for the railroad and founder of the Warrenton Benner.
17
The 2-story vernacular frame general store has a three-bay
front façade with an entry also on the second floor. Its original porch has
obviously been replaced. Windows have pedimental surrounds and an ornate truss
is at the peak of the gable end.
[There are] shows two small 1-story frame structures on stone
foundations. The one on the right may have been a church or meeting
house having a three-bay front façade with a double leaf entry topped by a
transom. The doors appear original with paired Gothic styled windows.
These structures are antebellum in style." ~ Survey of the MKT Railroad
"Mail is via Marthasville; population 25." ~ Rand McNally, 1974.
"The Glosemeyer General Store is a two story rural general store located along the Katy
Trail in the former depot town of Peers at 16011 Concord Hill Road, Marthasville, Warren
County, Missouri. The building was constructed by George Glosemeyer in 1893, designed to be
a commercial space on the first story and a single-family residence on the second story. It was
opened for commercial use in 1896. The main building is approximately 2,300 square feet and is
slightly L-shaped. It features a front gabled roof made of tin. The original white wood
weatherboard siding covers both stories of the south façade’s exterior wall and the second story
of the north façade’s exterior wall. The remainder of the building’s exterior walls are covered by
white vinyl siding over the original clapboard following the flood of 1993.
"The general store is in excellent condition. Its interior floor plan remains unchanged since
1917 after the east and west wings were added. The exterior has retained the same appearance
since the 1940s, when the original front porch was replaced due to flood damage. The white
vinyl siding on the north, east, and west façades has been designed to look like the original white
wood weatherboard siding that still covers the south façade and part of the north façade.
Additionally, the surrounding land remains largely unaltered. The store stands just steps away
from what was once the Missouri, Kansas, Texas Railroad line, known as the “Katy.”" ~ NRHP Nomination Form