Ken Steinhoff, Author at Cape Girardeau History and Photos

April 5, 2013

Klostermann Block

What has been called the “Klostermann Block” never flew above my radar. I guess I never had any business there.

The building on the west side of Spanish Street south of Independence is on the National Register of Historic Places for some of its unique features. If you are interested in Cape history and architecture, it’s worth a read.

Who was Klostermann?

More interesting to me than the building is Louis F. Klostermann, who was born in Germany in 1837. He arrived in Cincinnati in the 1850’s and clerked in a dry goods store there. He came to Cape in 1860 and was wounded in the Battle of Vicksburg in 1862. He returned to Cape and was appointed postmaster. In 1882, he was one of 18 prominent citizens who formed the Cape Girardeau Building and Loan Association.

He served as State Representative in 1884 and 1885. When he returned from doing that, he bought Rockport Hall, the mansion of Josef Hoche on South Spanish. It was torn down in the 1930s to build the Knights of Columbus building.

In 1887, he purchased all the assets of Warren and Bierwirth Manufacturing and Merchandising Company on Spanish Street. He began operating a store there as the “Bee” Store, which was described as “one of Cape Girardeau’s chief mercantile establishments” in 1915. He also owned the former Cape Girardeau Woolen Mill which generated the first electric power in town.

He invested in several manufacturing enterprises, including the Cape Girardeau Box and Veneer Company and the Cape Girardeau Foundry.

This building is all that is left

After the turn of the century, he built the the commercial block next to his “Bee” Store for rental purposes. He had the old mill building enlarged into a modern factory which became the Ely and Walker Shirt Factory Number 2. He invested heavily in the Cape Girardeau Water and Electric Light Company and in the 1906 Southeast Missouri Trust Company. After his death in 1909, his widow continued his commercial activity through 1929, when she sold the buildings.

Of all the buildings associated with Louis Klostermann, only his rental building here remains. His home was demolished for the KC Hall, his Bee Store was destroyed by fire in 1989 and his factory burned in 1913.

April 4, 2013February 16, 2015

John C. Bierk

This is going to sound like a contradiction that John C. Bierk would have marked me down for, but the English professor was one of the handful of instructors I remember from SEMO, but, for the life of me, I can’t recall why.

I had him for Freshman English, the year before I shot this photo of him for The Sagamore (which has been consigned to the dustbin of journalism). He wasn’t an engaging lecturer like Arthur Mattingly, the history prof who taught American History in the present tense and could make you see the enemy sneaking up over the rise. He didn’t have the easy style of speech and debate teacher Fred Goodwin.

He was a man who set high standards for his students and wouldn’t accept anything less than their best. I ran across my old SEMO transcript not long ago, but don’t know what grade he gave me. I had a 3.75 grade point average when I transferred to Ohio University, so I couldn’t have done too badly in his class.

I did quick Google and Southeast Missourian searches without finding much. One surprising thing was that he became a prolific Letters to the Editor writer after his 1957-1987 academic career. He was a lot more liberal than I would have thought from his class demeanor.

Did anyone else have him? What do you recall about him?

April 3, 2013February 20, 2016

Drive-In Then and Now

When Friend Jan and I passed through Logan, Ohio, in February, I mentioned that we stopped to take a photo the derelict Hocking Theater for my readers who are drive-in fans. You can click on the photos to make them larger.

This afternoon I was scanning a bunch of aerials I took while flying with a fire spotter in Southern Ohio in the spring of 1970. I couldn’t believe it, but here was a picture of the place in its heyday. The road under construction is what would become the four-lane Rt. 33 that links Athens to Columbus.

The way it looks today

Here’s a link to the story about passing the place (and our motel-hunting experience in Louisville)..

Other Drive-Ins

The Bloymeyer Drive-In looks like it’s being eaten.
The Jackson Drive-In and the 1938 swimming pool are long gone.
The Hillcrest Inn was across the street from the Star-Vue. Both are history.

April 3, 2013April 3, 2013

Cape Girardeau Sand Company

While cruising around looking for flood photos, I stopped at the Cape Girardeau Sand Company for a couple of shots. David Hente had a good piece on the sand company in the August 30, 1992, Missourian. At that time, Cape Sand had been in business 75 years and was the largest company of its type between Cape and Chester, Ill. (In another month, the river was higher.)

Family-owned business

The company was created in 1919 when Peter Deimund and his son, Linder, launched the business with a capital investment of $5,510. When the story was written, it was still a family business. Members include Linder P. Deimund, Jr., who helped construct a sand conveyor system with his father and who does all the maintenance work; Richard Deimund, the pilot of the sand dredge Miss Catherine; Jerry Beckett, deckhand on the Miss Catherine; Jeff Deimund, clamshell shovel operator; Gary Hester, front-end loader operator in the sand yard, and office manager Sonny Deimund.

Business started at the foot of Themis

The company’s first site was at the foot of Themis Street, then it moved north to Broadway. In 1924, the Deimund family bought riverfront property in the 300 block of North Main Street. This is where I took this photo around 1964. It was supposed to be an arty silhoutte. It ended up neither arty nor a good record shot.

The building in the background with the white on it has a hanging sign that says “North American Van Lines.” Across the front of the building is lettering that says something “& Storage.” I’m going to guess that was Nichols Transfer and Storage listed at 447 North Main Street in the 1969 City Directory. The sand company moved to its final location in the 1300 block of Water Street in 1963.

Red Star and Cape Sand Co

This aerial showing the Cape Girardeau Sand Company and what is left of the Red Star District was taken April 17, 2011. The concrete pad at the left of the photo is what we used to call Honker’s Boat Dock. To the left of Sloan Creek is the area that is being cleared for the Isle Casino Cape Girardeau. The light-colored building at the top center is the Show-Me Center.

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