County of building: Saint Charles County
Location of structure: N 5th St., 1st house S of Washington St, E side, St. Charles
Built: 1870-1890
Architect: Unknown
Architectural Style: Side Gabled
Original Occupant: Frank Bortfeld
Map
"50. 126 North Fifth Street; Side Gabled; circa 1880; Contributing
Facing west, this 1½-story, painted brick, side-gabled house has a gabled dormer on the front slope that has two 1/1 wood windows. The brick walls are in a 5-course common bond and the foundation is stone.
The 3-bay façade has a central Craftsman door with 3 vertical lights set above 2 tall vertical panels, and the transom has been boarded. The door opens onto a semicircular concrete stoop, above which is a shed roof supported by large knee braces. On each side of the entrance are segmental-arched openings that
hold 1/1 wood windows.
a. Garage; Contributing
The 1-story, front-gabled frame garage has a corrugated metal roof, vertical board siding and a poured concrete foundation. The paneled wood overhead door on the east façade may be original. The garage
appears to be at least 50 years old." ~ NRHP Nomination Form
"Built: 18170-1890
Style/Design: Side Gabled
Originally addressed as 112, this house was built prior to 1891 since it is listed in the 1891-92 city directory as the home of Frank
Bortfeld and it appears on the fire insurance map published in 1893, but given the basic design of the house it might be even older. In 1869 when the Bird's Eye View of St. Charles was published, this entire block was undeveloped and further research would be needed to see when this house was constructed. By 1906, when the next directory was published, this was still the home of Fred and Louise Bortfeld. Fred was listed as a carpenter and the lot originally had a carpentry shop at the street front attached to the north side of the house. The city directory for 1906 listed them at 124, which appears to be a typographical error since 124 N. Fifth was the home of the Poser family throughout this same time period. In the 1910 and 1916-17 directories, Fred and Louis Bortfeld are listed as being at 128 N. Fifth (which is the address number for this house on the 1909 fire insurance map), but in the 1918-19 and 1921-22 directories they are listed at 126 N. Fifth while Charles E. Bortfeld is listed at 128 N. Fifth (the house to the north that has since been demolished), living there until at least 1961 and identified as a contractor. In 1918-19 Miss Louis Bortfeld lived with Fred and Louis Bortfeld; she was a clerk at St. Charles “Ldy.” The address numbering did not stabilize
until the building at 128 N. Fifth was built, mostly likely around 1918. This hypothesis is reinforced by the fact that the carpentry
shop built on the larger lot for 126 N. Fifth (and shown on the 1893 map) is moved to the back of the lot, on the north side of the
lot that is later subdivided and becomes the house lot for 128 N. Fifth. In 1925-26, William F. Kamp is listed in the house at 126
N. Fifth and then in 1927-28 and 1929-30 directories, Raymond F. Lessman lived there. The following year, Peter Schierding is listed in the house and in the next three directories, 1936, 1939 and 1941, Mrs. Rosanna Merx lived there. In 1942 the house was listed as vacant. In 1945 and 1948, Alois Boehmer is listed at this address, but by 1950, his wife is listed as the head of the household (Mrs. Margaret C. Boehmer), continuing to live there at least through 1961 when research ended.
"This 1.5 story, painted brick, side gabled house has a gabled dormer centered on the façade with two 1/1 wood sashed windows.
The dormer is clad in lap siding. Centered on the three bay façade is a shed roof supported by large knee braces, a feature that was probably added between 1900 and 1909 when a small one bay porch is first shown on the fire insurance map. Below is a low
half-round concrete stoop. The front door was probably added with the porch roof since both are Craftsman features, common to that era; the door has two tall vertical panels under a square light divided into three panes of glass. On either side of the entry bay there are segmental arched openings with 1/1 rectangular wood sashed windows. On the sides there are additional 1/1 wood sashed windows in segmental arched openings. On the rear there is another gabled dormer, but this one has only one 1/1 wood sashed window. In the back, the one story shed roofed addition on the south side was added between 1900 and 1909 and it is clad with vertical board siding, matching the garage. The shed roofed porch on the north portion of the rear elevation was
enclosed after 1947 but appears to date back to at least 1893. The brick is laid in a 5-course common bond pattern. It appears that the house was “modernized” between 1900 and 1909, adding the rear addition and the Craftsman porch and front door. There are storm windows and storm doors that have been added. Bars have been added to most windows.
"This one-story, end gabled, frame garage has a corrugated metal roof and vertical board siding. It has a poured concrete
foundation and a paneled wood, overhead door facing east that may be original to the building, but the siding may be more
recent. The garage was built after 1947 since it does not appear on that fire insurance map, but appears from its design and door
to have been built in the 1950s and as such is considered contributing to the historic district." ~ St. Charles Historic Survey Phase I, PDF pages 635-638