Gustave Koerner House

The Gustave Koerner House, at the corner of Abend St. and Mascoutah Ave., dates to 1854 to 1855. It replaced an 1849 house which burned down. Gustave and his family lived in the house on Abend St. for forty-seven years. Koerner served in the Illinois House of Representatives and as Minister to Spain. He was a personal friend of Mary Todd and Abraham Lincoln. The Gustave Koerner House became a National Register-listed property in 2004. There is an historical marker on the lawn by the Abend St. sidewalk. As of 2022, non-profits are restoring the vacant house to become a museum on Koerner.

Gustave (sometimes spelled Gustavus) Koerner, a German immigrant, served as Lieutenant Governor of Illinois from 1853 to 1857, under Governor Joel A. Mattison; both men were Democrats. Koerner was an acquaintance of Mary Todd prior to her marriage to Abraham Lincoln and became a friend and colleague of Lincoln. Gustave was married to Sophie Engelmann. He first built a house in Belleville in 1849, but it was destroyed in a fire. The Greek Revival style house was rebuilt starting just weeks after the fire in 1854 on the same foundation. Construction was still going on in January 1855.

Gustave was a lawyer by trade and worked from legal offices in Belleville located on Main between Illinois and Spring streets. Another attorney, Charles P. Knispel, had his office on the same block, according to an 1863 map; they may have shared an office when Gustave was in town. Koerner briefly served in the Union Army during the Civil War, under Colonel Fremont. In June 1862, he was appointed by President Lincoln to serve as Minister to Spain; Gustave wrote Lincoln from Belleville, accepting. Writing from Madrid to the president in March 1864, Gustave requested a leave of absence of four months so that he could return to the U.S. His brother-in-law back in Belleville, Mr. Scheel, had passed away after a long illness. Scheel also had been acting as Gustave's business agent, and there were matters to attend to. Gustave mentioned in the letter that at least some of his family wanted to leave Madrid and return to the U.S., mainly because life was "so extravagantly expensive" in Spain. The Koerners planned to wait until the "hot season" began in June before leaving Spain.

In his later years, Koerner wrote his memoirs; they were published in two volumes years after his death.

After Gustave died in 1896, the house was rented to Fred Paro before it was sold in 1899 to William Winklemann. Wilhelmina Wehmeyer purchased the house from Winklemann in 1918; she rented out the upstairs as 200A Abend St. The Koerner House became a multi-family rental house in the 1920s.

In about 1970, the house was converted into a rooming house for elderly residents. The house was converted into multiple rental flats again in 1984 and has been deteriorating.

Besides structural damage, pest and vandalism damage have threatened the structure. Three and a half of the four chimneys are missing, but stone lintels on the front of the house, a fancy open staircase, and mantelpieces have survived intact. Some work has been done of stabilize and repair the house. Fundraising is ongoing to continue the restoration project.

Anonymous. "Koerner to the Germania...Oil Painting of Illinois' Ex-Lietenant Governor." Chicago Eagle (Chicago) December 4th, 1897. 1-1.

Gustave Koerner House Restoration Committee. Home, Gustave Koerner House Restoration. Accessed November 15th, 2022. https://gustavekoerner.org/.

Gustave Koerner House Restoration Committee. History of the Gustave Koerner Housee, Gustave Koerner House Restoration. Accessed November 15th, 2022. https://gustavekoerner.org/koerners-house/.

Koerner, Gustave P. Letter written to President Abraham Lincoln from Belleville, Illinois, June 7, 1862, Abraham Lincoln Papers at the Library of Congress. Accessed November 16th, 2022. https://www.loc.gov/item/mal1637100/.

Koerner, Gustave P. Letter written to President Abraham Lincoln from Madrid, Spain, March 20, 1864, Abraham Lincoln Papers at the Library of Congress. Accessed November 16th, 2022. https://www.loc.gov/item/mal3169500/.

Waller, Elbert. Waller's brief history of Illinois. Edition 3rd. Galesburg, IL. Wagoner Printing Company, 1910.