I stand corrected...It can't always be that romantic

In an earlier post I had stated that the first owner of the Sugar Loaf House had been a river boat captain. I had gotten that information from both Walter and the next door neighbor who had lived there since a child. So, naturally when telling the history of the house to people I repeated what I had heard. Tonight I received an email from Andrew Weil of Landmarks Association Saint Louis, Inc. telling me that my information may have been incorrect.

"I have some interesting news for you regarding 4420 Ohio. It turns out that the home was built by a man named Frederick E. Adams (of Ohio) and his wife Nellie (From Arkansas). Adams was a molder at an iron foundry, not a riverboat pilot. I found them in the Gould's Red and Blue Book in 1929 and then looked them up in the 1930 census. Sorry, I know it is not as romantic as riverboat captain, but it appears to be the truth." -Andrew

Landmarks is a local non-profit that helps preserve Saint Louis' historic places through education. Andrew is a researcher there who has been very helpful with helping guide me through the history of the mound.

Who I am to change history? It was an honest mistake and I am sure that Walter and the neighbor might take issue with this news. However, for my part in this I apologize and kindly defer to the researchers. I encourage any readers of this blog that are interested in Saint Louis history and historic places to check out Landmarks' website http://www.landmarks-stl.org/

Thanks again Andrew!

Why did Walter want to live there?

I was fortunate enough to be able to talk with Walter for a bit before he left town. I was curious about why he wanted to live there. Did Walter always want to own a Native American Mound? Did Walter even know that is was a mound when he bought it? I wanted to know what the draw was for him. After all, there weren't that many neighbors and there were other houses that were much larger. So I asked, "Walter why did you want to live there?". The answer I received was a marvelous one related to more of Saint Louis' nearly forgotten history.

Walter as a young man belonged to what he called "the poor mans' rowing club". Walter had belonged to the Saint Louis Rowing Club, a club that had teams of rowers that raced competitively. These competitions were called regattas and they were held on the Mississippi River. Walter love to row and so began his love affair with the river.

When it came time for Walter to purchase a house he knew it had to be on the river. The large mansions that dotted Broadway were a little out of his price range so he went on a search. When he came across Sugar Loaf House he knew he had to have it. He approached the current owner and asked if he would like to sell. Unfortunately for Walter he wasn't quite ready to move at the time. Walter gave the man his phone number and 10 years later his phone rang with the opportunity to move to the river. Without any hesitation Walter purchase the home at 4420 Ohio in 1962 and has lived there ever since until a couple weeks ago.

Walter was told by the previous owner that he was now owner of Sugar Loaf but he didn't recognize the importance until people started showing up at his door. Walter over the years has graciously been allowing people access to the mound for various reasons, and keeping an ever watchful eye.

I tried to do some research about the rowing clubs but was unable to find much. If anyone has any information or pictures I would love to view them!

Sugar Loaf Mound:A brief history

The house on Sugar Loaf Mound has been the Strosnider family home for nearly half a century. Walter Strosnider and his wife Eileen waited nearly 10 years for the home on the river that they had always admired to become available. The Strosniders purchased the house in 1962.Since the houses construction in 1928 it has had 3 owners. The first owner was a river boat captain who had the house built into the side of the mound.

Sugar Loaf Mound is the last surviving prehistoric Native American mound in Saint Louis. Saint Louis used to have lots of mounds. In fact, it had so many mounds that it used to be called "Mound City". One by one the mounds were brought down in the interest of expansion and development. Surprisingly, the very thing that saved this mound was the very thing that brought all the others down. When Captain Adams built his house into the side of the mound so he could enjoy the best views of the river he prevented it's likely demolition.

The mound is probably 1,000 or more years old. There is much speculation about what the mound was used for. Some say it was a signal mound, while others say it was used for a temple or burial. Whatever the original use was it is beautiful and so are the views.

I encourage people to come view this property while it is on the market. This may be the only time for another 50 years that you will be able to take in the scenery from the top of this mound. The first open house open to the public will be November 9, 2008 from 12-4 pm.

This blog will be updated with more rich stories and history about the mound, its owners, and Saint Louis history. Please keep checking back!