County of building: Saint Charles County
Location of structure: Jefferson St., 4th house W of N 5th St., S side, St. Charles
Built: 1910-1916
Architect: Unknown
Architectural Style: Colonial Revival
Original Occupant: Unknown
Map
"248. 533 Jefferson Street; Colonial Revival; circa 1913; Contributing
This 1½-story, gable-front-and-wing form brick house has a coursed rock-faced stone foundation. The cross-gabled roof has shed dormers on the front and east slopes and each has paired 1/1 windows. An interior end chimney is at the west end of the front slope of the roof and an interior chimney is offset on the rear slope. The 5-bay façade has 1/1 wood windows in each bay while the entrance, which is an oval-light wood door topped by a transom, is located in the west wall of the front-gabled wing. All of the windows have wooden louvered blinds and cast stone lug sills. In the front-gabled wing, the western window is shorter than the other 2, and each is topped by a tall, round-arched, recessed brick panel with cast stone keystone and diamond-shaped brick ornament within the arch. A gallery extends along the western 2 bays and has a combination shed and flat roof with exposed rafters. The roof is supported by 2 massive fluted columns with simple capitals and the wood deck rests on a rock-faced, parged stone foundation. In the front gable end is a segmental-arched tripartite window with a central 1/1 sash flanked by single-light windows. The opening is topped by a radiating voussoir with cast stone keystone." ~ NRHP Nomination Form
"Built: 1910-1916
Style/Design: Colonial Revival
This house appears to have been built between 1909 and 1917 based upon the fire insurance maps, replacing an earlier building that pre-dates 1893. Maybe the county parcels database date of 1880 was actually referencing the earlier dwelling on the property, but it was smaller than the current building. City directories list various members of the Fred Kruel family from 1891 through 1910 (in 1891-92 it was spelled Kruell), so it is likely that the house was built between 1910 and 1916 when the next city directory was published. By then, it was apparently a duplex, with Rev. John H. Dinkmeyer and William Brockmeyer both listed at this address. They were also both listed in the 1918-19 directory, but by 1921-22, Brockmeyer had moved while Dinkmeyer remained through 1925-26 along with William G. Moehle. By 1927-28, Clarence T. Hackmann resided in the house, staying at
least through 1936, and by then he was married to Helen and they had one child. The 1929 map shows the rear enclosed wing and rear porch changes that still constitute the rear of the house today. There is some confusion created by the city directories since Hackmann is listed as the homeowner in the house next door by 1939, and Walter Wilthoelter was also listed at 545 Jefferson from 1925 through 1936 and then at 533 from 1939 through 1961. It is possible that Hackmann and Wilthoelter switched residences, with Hackmann building a new house at 545 Jefferson since Henry Wilthoelter lived at 545 since 1906
(joined in 1925 by Walter in the old duplex). But it is possible that the city directory listings are switched and Hackmann never lived in 533 and Walter moved into 533 in 1925 (maybe the rear enclosed wing was added for him). This might be clarified by deed research that was not part of the current survey project, but fire insurance maps seem to confirm that the new house next door at 545 was built after 1927 and that Hackmann had lived in this house through 1936, before his new house was built. Then, by 1939, the house was again listed with two households, Walter H. Wilthoelter was identified as the homeowner, but Anthony J. Mispagel was listed separately at this address. By 1950, the identification of the homeowner in the city directory was switched.
The two households continued to be listed at this address and in 1955 another listing is added, for 533a, possibly an indication of
the conversion of the rear wing into another apartment. Both Wilthoelter and Mispagel were still listed in the city directory when
research ended with 1961.
"The 1929 and 1947 maps appear to have one mistake, identifying the house as a one story dwelling while the earlier 1917 map
had identified it as 1.5 stories. The house design is a highly unusual Colonial Revival design, with the massive fluted porch
columns and round arched false transoms, but the wider eaves, exposed rafter tails (which in some ways look like dentils), and
the broad eave, shed dormers are more characteristic of Craftsman designs.
"This 1.5 story, L-shaped, gabled, brick house is divided into two principal bays on the façade by the leg of the L, which creates a
1.5 story gabled projecting wing with the shed roof of the side gable extending over the adjacent porch, nestled into the interior
corner of the L. The shed roof of the porch (which has a non-historic A/C unit on it) combines with a flat roof to create a cornice-like treatment, with the exposed rafters forming a dentil-like pattern. The roof is supported by two massive, fluted columns with
simple capitols, one mid-porch and the other at the outer corner. The wood porch floor rests on a rock-faced, parged stone
foundation. There are two 1 over 1 wood sashed windows with old wooden shutters facing the street, with the entrance facing
west (from the leg of the L) onto the porch. The house retains its transomed, oval light wood door (which is partially obscured by
an aluminum storm door). Above the porch is a shed roofed, wide eaved, shallow dormer with paired 1 over 1 windows. The front
facing gabled wing has three round arched windows with old wooden shutters, although the round arched “transom” is actually a
recessed brick frieze. Like the other windows on the house, these are 1 over 1 windows, covered with aluminum storms. The two
eastern windows are clustered together and the western window has a higher sill. Above, there is an arched window opening with
a tripartite window, the center section sashed. Like the other windows in this wing, there is a keystone in the arch and the
windows have painted stone sills. On the east elevation, which is very close to the adjacent house, there is another shed roofed
dormer. On the west elevation, there are two windows spaced nearly at each corner with a centered second floor window, all with
1 over 1 windows in segmental arched openings with stone sills. The exposed rock faced stone sill has been painted. At the back end of this elevation the roof extends over an enclosed shed roofed wing that spans about two-thirds of the rear elevation and the
asbestos siding (which was probably a c. 1955 replacement siding, possibly part of the renovations done when a third apartment
unit was created within the house) covers both the west and south side of this rear wing added around 1929. There are two doors
on the rear elevation into this rear wing, the west door is a multi-paned, half light replacement door but the east door appears to
be an original 4-paned, half light, wood paneled door. To the east end of the rear elevation is a porch, which is nestled up against
the rear of the brick house, with a nearly at-grade concrete floor and simple porch posts supporting the shed roof extension of the
main roof. There is a transomed rear door and a tall 1 over 1 window on the first floor. The roof edge of the porch is framed by a
pierced wood skirting. There are two shed roofed dormers on the rear elevation, a large one above the porch with two sashed
windows and the other centered on the rear roof with two square light windows. Both dormers have broad eaves. There is also a
brick chimney floor between these dormers near the ridge.
"The rear yard is completely paved for parking." ~ St. Charles Historic Survey Phase I, PDF pages 251-255