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St. Louis, MO 63132
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Bonne Terre

Cemetary

Circa 1870 the Bonne Terre Cemetery was established as the resting place for the community. Square stone gate posts stand at the entrance to the cemetery. Originally iron gates stretched between these gate posts, but they are no longer present. Most of the headstones are simple, but there are a few significant above ground monuments and mausoleums. With monuments and headstones dating back to the 1870’s this is the historic cemetery of the community. P.O. 1876-date.

Shepard House

In 1869 Albert Shepard moved to Bonne Terre as an engineer for the St. Joseph Lead Company. Circa 1870 the Shepard House was built, and is now known to be the oldest structure still standing in Bonne Terre. In 1900 the original two-story frame house was moved to its current location on Main Street, just 50 yards from its previous location on School Street. Recently the house has been used as a rooming house. Due to lack of up-keep, the house has slowly deteriorated and renovation plans are currently underway by the Old Bonne Terre Association. P.O. 1876-date.

St. Joseph's County Superintendant's House

This residence was built circa 1870 to serve as the home to the superintendent of the St. Joseph Lead Company. Around 1920 the original stone structure was completely remodeled and reshaped by the addition of 4 new wings, one for each façade. On the same lot on Oak Street are four outbuildings all built circa 1920 as well – a concrete garage, a wood barn, and wood and stucco servant’s quarters and kennel. The present owner of the house, a past superintendent, purchased the building in 1975 from the lead company. P.O. 1876-date.

Lamplight Inn

This two-story residence was built circa 1890 with a Queen Anne character. Originally the building functioned as the St. Joseph Lead Company Clubhouse. Company officials used the clubhouse as a central meeting ground until the early 20th Century. It was during the early 20th Century that the new Clubhouse was constructed and the old Clubhouse was remodeled into its current residential form. Due to lack of alterations the building has its original turn of the century character. P.O. 1876-date.

St. Joseph's Catholic Church Rectory

The parish of St. Joseph’s Catholic Church was established in 1873 and the Rectory was constructed at a cost of $5,500 in 1881. The two-story brick, Italianate residence is located on a rectangular urban lot in a residential area. The offices and living quarters of the priest’s were housed in the Rectory and were used through the 19th century and the early 20th century. The structure of the rectory, being one of the oldest brick buildings in Bonne Terre, has not been altered and therefore retains its original appearance with Italianate detailing. P.O. 1876-date.

St. Joseph's Lead Co. Masonic Hall

The present depot was built to replace one that burned in 1909. At this time it was a depot on the Mississippi River and Bonne Terre Railway, owned by the St. Joseph's Lead Company. Special excursions were arranged by St. Joe's for its employees, and at the height of operations, 12 trains a day arrived at the depot. The depot is a 2 1/2 story frame building on ashlar foundations, with a broad, hipped roof which is sheathed in gray slate.

The building has derived queen Anne architectural style features and also the later Stick architectural style features combined, resulting in a unique vernacular design. In general, it reflects a late 19th century style of construction for small railroad stations throughout Missouri. Although constructed in 1909, it was modeled after the original 1898 depot which it replaced. It was constructed by St. Joseph Lead Company personnel. P.O. 1876-date.

St. Joseph's Lead Co. Natatorium

This one story frame building was constructed circa 1890 by the St. Joseph Lead Company. The building was used to house the library and a swimming pool for employees of the company.

The library was moved circa 1905 to its current location on Main Street. The building continued to serve as the home of the swimming pool until the middle of the 20th Century when the pool was filled in with dirt. The building has been completely renovated in the 1980's and is currently an office for the Kevin Pearce Insurance Agency. P.O. 1876-date.

Harding Insurance Co. Bank

Built In 1890 the Farmers and Miners Bank was formed independently of the St. Joseph Company, to provide the residents of Bonne Terre banking facilities. This stone building was built in 1892 to hold offices and vaults for the bank.

Gradually the St. Joseph Company acquired a significant portion of stock in the bank and the name was changed to the ‘Farmers and Miners Trust Company.’ In 1913 the St. Joseph Company decided to close the bank due to close competition in the area. Recently the site has been used as offices for the St. Joseph Company and various commercial businesses. P.O. 1876-date.

Morgan Mill Furnature

The Moran Brothers Mill, a two-story industrial frame building, was constructed between 1894 and 1900. The mill originally supplied flour and was known as the Moran and Kieth Roller Mills. The mill was built as a steam powered engine and was eventually converted to electricity. The mill has been closed since the middle of the 20th Century. There are no current plans for the mill, but the structure still remains in the same original form today. P.O. 1876-date.

Chat Conveyor Foundation

Erected between 1915 and 1927, the chat conveyor was built to transport the chat from an old mining area to its present location in an abandoned industrial area. The structure of the conveyor consists of reinforced concrete and steep piers which supported the steep conveyor. Rising to over one-hundred feet (100’) in the air, the conveyor was over six-hundred feet (600’) in length.

The chat pile itself consists of loose sandstone and other granules of rock formed into the shape of a large oval. It rose to its current height of over one-hundred-fifty feet (150’) sometime between the early 1920’s and early 1960’s. P.O. 1876-date.

Fire Station

Designated at Hose House #4 this one-story brick building was constructed circa 1900. The fire station was built by the St. Joseph Lead Company and contained only one fire truck and safety equipment. The original wood double doors on the front façade is the only form of fenestration on the building. Originally serving as a fire station for this particular part of Bonne Terre, the building is now used as a garage. P.O. 1876-date.

Accounting Building

This brick building was constructed between the years of 1900 and 1908 to serve as the main office for the Bonne Terre Farming and Cattle Company. The Cattle Company was an offspring of the St. Joseph Lead Company developed in 1881 to handle holdings such as lands, homes and cattle.

In the mid 1920’s the building was redesigned to house the offices for the Mississippi River and Bonne Terre Railroad Company. Recently the building was converted into an accounting firm. Despite these turnovers of ownership the building still retains a significant amount of its Romanesque design. P.O. 1876-date.

Condo Heights Apartments

Built around 1905, this building has a strong Queen Anne influence. Located on a rectangular, urban lot this building originally served as offices for the Mississippi River and Bonne Terre Railroad Company. The building remained for commercial use throughout the early 20th Century and then was converted into apartments for residential use.

With the exception of the frame door at the entrance, the building remains unaltered. P.O. 1876-date.

Conway House

Located on Main Street in a residential area, this house is one of oldest residences in the area. The two-story frame house was constructed between 1900 and 1908 on a stone foundation. This house, known as the Conway House, has not been significantly altered since its construction. P.O. 1876-date.

Library

There has been a library in use in Bonne Terre since 1867, but it wasn’t until 1905 that the book collection was moved to its current permanent location on Main Street.

In the early part of 1905 Dwight A. Jones, with the help of a few others, created a memorial library association. Later that year he had the Bonne Terre Memorial Library built as a memorial to his father. The one-story structure is built out of limestone. P.O. 1876-date.

St. Peter's Episcopal Church

This one-story Gothic Revival style church was built circa 1910 with concrete block construction.

A woman by the name of Emily Conover helped to organized St. Peters Episcopal Church in 1910 with a small congregation. Either later in 1910 or in 1911 the current church structure was built as a place of worship. The same church building serves the congregation today. P.O. 1876-date.

First Congregational Church

The first church in 1878 was founded as a non-denominational Protestant church, and was named the Christian Union Church of Bonne Terre. In 1887 the name was changed to the First Congregational Church of Bonne Terre, but the actual building that stands today was not erected until 1911.

The Gothic and Tudor style church is a duplicate of a church that Mr.Charles B. Parsons visited on a trip to Europe. Mr.Parsons was the superintendent of St. Joseph Company in 1908 and donated the money for the church to be built. P.O. 1876-date.

St. Joseph's Clubhouse

Recently remodeled as a bed and breakfast, this building was originally built in 1915 to serve as the St. Joseph Clubhouse. The clubhouse was designed for use by company officials as a meeting area and a place to welcome visitors. There are several meeting halls for the business related activities that took place, as well as numerous guest rooms and dining halls for the visitors to stay in while in town. P.O. 1876-date.

St. Joseph's Clubhouse Carriagehouse

Constructed in 1916, the purpose of the building was to serve as the carriage house for the adjacent St. Joseph Clubhouse. Housed on a rectangular, urban lot of the south edge of Bonne Terre, the building was originally used to house the servants of the clubhouse, as well as the horses, carriages and automobiles of visitors in the early history of the clubhouse. The two-story section served as the living quarters while the adjacent one-story wing held three garage openings. The building is currently the home of a permanent, private residence, and in 1970 a shed roof and a carport were added to the south façade. P.O. 1876-date.

St. Joseph's Catholic Church

The parish was established in 1872, as a mission church of Old Mines. In 1879, Edward J. Dempsey was named the first pastor of a frame first church, which burned in that year. In 1881, a second church was built for $3,000 on land donated by Desloge Lead Company, perhaps also ministered by Father Edward J. Dempsey. In 1885 the first parish school was built, and in 1888 the priest's resident was built by Father Michael C. Walsh. This second church was essentially abandoned in 1906 when a new church was started under Rev. M. T. Sevcik. This church was not completed until 1916. The basement of the church was finished the first year, and services were held in it until the upper portions of the church could be finished. A second school replaced the old one on same location in 1921. The rectory was not changed. P.O. 1876-date.

Post Office

The Bonne Terre Post Office was built in 1917 at its current location on Main Street. In 1890’s and early into the 1900’s the post office was located on the same site where it lies today, but in a different building. At the time the post office was in the Shepard House. The U.S. Government came into the community in 1916 and determined that a modern post office needed to be constructed. The government acquired the land that the post office was located on and moved the original building, the Shepard House, to its present location on Allen Street. Once the Allen House was relocated construction on the new post office began, and by 1918 it was open for service. Today this building continues to serve the community. P.O. 1876-date.

Centenary United Methodist Church

Organized in 1882, the Centenary Methodist Church congregation has worshipped in several locations. It was not until 1918 that the one-story church was built and the congregation received a permanent home. Built in Colonial Revival style the church has needed and received exterior refinishing in recent years. Services are still held in this original building. P.O. 1876-date.

St. Joseph's Catholic School

This two-story, brick school building was built in 1922 on a rectangular, urban lot which was large for the day, in a residential setting. The St. Joseph Catholic School, designed to serve as a compliment to St. Joseph Catholic Church, was built as a replacement for a school formerly located on the same site. The building contains an auditorium, cafeteria and five classrooms and continues in use today. The school has not been extensively altered and retains it’s original décor to this day. P.O. 1876-date.

First Baptist Church

Organized in 1888, Bonne Terre Baptist Church was constructed in 1926 with a Colonial Revival influence with the help of Pastor J.B. Ragsdale. The other building on the lot located on School Street is an educational building that was built in 1953. The interior of the church has an open arrangement supported by columns throughout. The original alter, baptism pool, and stained glass windows still remain. P.O. 1876-date.

Masonic Lodge

This two and one-half story building lies on a triangular lot at the corner of Main and Church Streets. The brick building was constructed in 1927 by the Ancient Free and Accepted Masons Samaritan Lodge Number 424 under the direction of Anthony Ittner. Ittner was the Grand Master of the Samaritan Temple in 1927. Today the building continues to house Bonne Terre’s Masonic Lodge Hall. P.O. 1876-date.

Heritage Hall

*The stonework below the windows is actually improvised from concrete.