Commions Building
Introduction
Text-to-speech Audio
This two-story limestone commercial building was built in March 1859 by John Commions. Together with the historic Bellevue Motor Works building to the east, this building reflects the history of the industrial area of town during the 1850s. Many of the limestone buildings scattered among the downtown area on front street were also built in the early 1860s. This building is currently privately owned and used for storage.
Images
Image of the building while in use as a creamery. Note the now absent extensions on the north and west.
The exterior of the building remains largely the same today, with the original transoms over the two entrances still intact.
Sanborn map from 1902 showing this building and other period limestone structures in blue.
Backstory and Context
Text-to-speech Audio
The earliest documented business, Haney & Campbell Creamery and Dairy Supplies, is identified from a 1885 Sanborn map, the 1893 Jackson County Atlas, and a historic photograph. Sanborn maps from the 20th century show it first as a saloon, then a pool hall, and finally, in 1928, as a dwelling. It is currently used as storage.
This building is part of a boom in limestone construction that occurred in the area in the late 1950s and early 1860s. Before this time, the town and the surrounding area had an unsavory reputation due to rampant illegal activities, such as horse stealing, counterfeiting, and even murder. These events peaked with the Bellevue war in 1840 (which took place just one block northeast of this site), where many of the criminals were put on a raft and set adrift down the river. Criminal activity and vigilante justice remained the norm for several years, however, until Canada McCollough reportedly took action. Early local historian Benjamin Gue suggests that McCollough restored law and order, which led to increased investment and commercial development, as represented by the numerous limestone buildings constructed in the late 1850s and early 1860s.
The integrity of this vernacular building is what made it a significant site worthy of inclusion on the National Register of Historic Places. The condition has deteriorated since its nomination, and it is currently in urgent need of repair to the lower courses of stone.
Sources
National Register of Historic Places Registration Form, https://npgallery.nps.gov/GetAsset/3e43481a-8fec-4efb-94e0-b0e0742f1ac1/ (accessed June 24, 2022).
Images of the Past (1600 North Missouri, Marceline, MO 64658: Heritage House Publishing, 1997), page 8.
Benjamin F. Gue, History of Iowa from the Earliest Times to the Beginning of the Twentieth Century, Chapter XXVII.
Sanborn Fire Insurance Map from Bellevue, Jackson County, Iowa. Sanborn Map Company, Sep, 1902. Map. https://www.loc.gov/item/sanborn02577_003/.
Images of the Past (1600 North Missouri, Marceline, MO 64658: Heritage House Publishing, 1997), page 8.
Photograph by Jacob Ohlert, June 24, 2022.
Sanborn Map Company, Sep, 1902.