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Hazelwood Historic Preservation Groups Gets Check to Display Photos
Knobbe House
Stan Busken of Liberty, Mo., visited the City of Hazelwood recently to present the Historic Preservation Commission with a $1,000 donation to be used toward the acquisition of display materials to show photos of the Knobbe family and his ancestors.
He presented the check in front of The Knobbe House, a historic home in Hazelwood’s Brookes Park, which was built by his great-great grandfather John Bernard Henke who was a local German farmer.
About a year ago, Busken was in Florissant for a family funeral and toured The Knobbe House which was newly renovated by the City of Hazelwood. He was pleased with how everything looked, but he noticed there weren’t very many photographs of the Knobbe family and his ancestors.
“Pictures always tell a story,” Busken said. So he set out on a mission to find more photographs, which occupied much of his time last year. With a long-time interest in genealogy, Busken, an American Airlines retiree, began to seek other descendants.
Since his grandmother was born in The Knobbe House back in 1891, Busken began researching her side of the family. He tracked down Joseph and Barbara Knobbe, discovering in the process that they lived just 40 minutes away from Liberty. Joseph is the grandson of Joseph S. Knobbe, Sr. He and his wife were instrumental in having the home preserved in 1995 and moved to Brookes Park from Dunn Road.
After several meetings with Joseph and his cousin, Mel Roettger, Busken was able to make several family connections that led him to finding photos of the 12 children that had lived in the home. During his search, he came across a family newsletter published by another cousin, Jean Henke, proving to be a strong source of information.
“Her research and family photos were a great help to me in putting the pieces of the puzzle together,” added Busken. Of the 12 Knobbe/Henke children, 10 were married at the Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Florissant. He was able to obtain all their wedding photos, dating back to 1901.
Due to hard work and smart decision making, Knobbe became the owner of 300+ acres of rich fertile farm land in St. Louis County in less than 20 years after coming to America. All of the Knobbe/Henke children attended Sacred Heart School, walking three miles to and from school daily.
The St. Louis Historical Building Commission plans to present the 2010 Adaptive Reuse Award to The Knobbe House at the May 11 St. Louis County Council meeting. The presentation will take place before the meeting begins at the St. Louis County Government Center, 41 South Central in Clayton. This award is being given to the City of Hazelwood for saving an old building and giving it new life again with a useful purpose.
The Knobbe House in Brookes Park is available for meetings, rentals and social events. For information on how to make reservations, contact Dave Thomasson at (314) 513-5080 or visit the City of Hazelwood’s website at www.hazelwoodmo.org.
