Misplaced Pages

#149850

28-561: It was constructed in 1927, and designed in the Colonial Revival style by the noted Knoxville architectural firm, Baumann and Baumann . The residence carries the name of its early occupant, Benjamin Morton (1875–1952). Morton was the president of the wholesale grocer, H. T. Hackney Company , and served as Knoxville's mayor from 1924 until 1927. The Benjamin Morton House was listed on

56-535: A carpenter and house builder in various growing towns around the region. The Baumanns moved to Knoxville in 1855. During the Civil War , the Baumann house, located on what was then the outskirts of town, was occupied by both Union and Confederate soldiers, and suffered considerable damage. Some of the Baumann children were sent to Charleston, Tennessee , to stay with family friends, while remaining family members hid out in

84-534: A draftsman in 1882, and upon his promotion to full partner in 1887, the firm began operating under the name, "Baumann Brothers." This firm's early work included several large warehouses with ornamented storefronts on Jackson Avenue , campus buildings for the Holbrook Normal College and Baker-Himel School, and elaborate houses, such as Westwood on Kingston Pike and Park Place in Fountain City . In

112-601: A three-horsepower ice cream machine designed by Market Square gunsmith Thomas Burrier. Kern, who had to ship ice in from northern states during warmer months, became a local expert on refrigeration, and served as president of the Knoxville Ice Company during the 1880s. In 1876, Kern commissioned the construction of a new three-story structure, the Kern Building (now The Oliver Hotel), on the southwest corner of Market Square. Designed by architect Joseph F. Baumann ,

140-647: Is buried in Old Gray Cemetery . Wallace Baumann, the son of Albert Baumann, Jr., remained active in Knoxville as a local historian until his death in 2009. KBJM, the successor to the Baumann firm, is currently based in Mt. Juliet, Tennessee . Several hundred structures in Knoxville alone have been attributed to Baumanns' firms. Over a dozen of these structures have been listed on the National Register of Historic Places ,

168-578: The Andrew Johnson Building (1930), and the Knoxville Post Office (1934). Joseph Baumann, the son of a carpenter, began working as an architect in Knoxville in 1872, when he designed the city's first opera house, Staub's Theatre. In 1887, his brother, Albert, became a full partner in the firm, which then began operating under the name, Baumann Brothers . Joseph left the firm in 1913, and Albert worked alone until 1922, when his son joined

196-490: The Civil War . Fighting with the 12th Georgia Infantry, he was wounded in action in Virginia, and sent home to Georgia to recover. In Fall 1863, Kern, now healthy, began his return trip to Virginia to rejoin his fellow soldiers on the frontlines. As he was waiting on a train connection in Knoxville, however, Union forces under Ambrose Burnside occupied the city. Kern was captured, but released on condition that he remain in

224-543: The National Register of Historic Places in 2004. Its grounds include extensive gardens. This article about a property in Knox County, Tennessee on the National Register of Historic Places is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . This Tennessee building- or structure-related article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Baumann family (architects) The Baumann family

252-520: The National Register of Historic Places . William Baumann, the father of Joseph and Albert Baumann, Sr., was born in Kirchheimbolanden, Germany , and immigrated to America in the 1830s. In 1837, he married Catherine Schneider. The family briefly lived in Savannah, Georgia , where Baumann worked as a shipbuilder. By the 1840s, the family had moved to East Tennessee , where Baumann found ample work as

280-636: The Second Empire home of financier Charles McClung McGhee on Locust Street, and Staub's Theatre, the city's first opera house, on Gay Street. In 1875, Baumann designed Odd Fellows Hall (now called the Mall Building, or Hotel St. Oliver) for confectioner Peter Kern , as well as the Third Presbyterian Church, of which the Baumanns were members. Other major commissions during this period included

308-554: The 1880s, Joseph Baumann helped renovate and expand Knoxville's first Market House, a one-story shed-like structure which occupied much of Market Square . The Baumanns subsequently designed an imposing two-story replacement for this building, which was completed in 1897. That same year, the Monroe County Courthouse in Madisonville was completed, one of several courthouses designed by the Baumanns. Later courthouses included

SECTION 10

#1732886339150

336-683: The Blount County Courthouse (1906) in Maryville and the Washington County Courthouse (1912) in Jonesborough . Joseph Baumann left the firm in 1913, and retired from the profession altogether in 1916. He died on April 20, 1920. Albert continued as the firm's sole principal for several years. His commissions included the expansion of Knoxville High School , the original design of which he had provided in 1910. He also remodeled

364-833: The Charles McClung McGhee House (which had been one of his brother's first commissions in 1872) as a Masonic Temple in 1915. Albert's son, Albert "A.B." Baumann, Jr., was born in Knoxville on January 20, 1897. He studied architecture at the University of Pennsylvania under French-born architect Paul Cret , who is credited with spreading the Beaux-Arts style in America (Baumann's chief competitors, Charles I. Barber and Benjamin McMurry, also studied under Cret). In 1922, Albert, Jr., joined his father's firm, which then began operating under

392-650: The Hattie House Hotel (1879), the East Tennessee National Bank (1886), and large mansions for businessmen such as C. J. McClung and James D. Cowan. One of Baumann's most well-known projects, the Church of the Immaculate Conception, was completed atop Summit Hill in 1886. Joseph Baumann's younger brother, Albert Benjamin Baumann, was born in Knoxville on August 30, 1861. He joined Joseph's firm as

420-577: The Second Presbyterian Church. After the war, Baumann and his sons continued working as carpenters, and helped to rebuild Knoxville. Joseph Francis Baumann, the second son of William and Catherine Baumann, was born in Tellico Plains, Tennessee , on January 16, 1844. He initially worked in the carpentry trade alongside his father, but began listing his services as an architect in 1872. That year, he designed two important Knoxville landmarks,

448-552: The brand was popularized in a series of commercials based on the C.W. McCall Old Home Bread commercials aired in the Upper Midwest states featuring a trucker, "A.J.," and a waitress, "Mavis." Kern's Bakery was purchased in 1989 by Sara Lee , which discontinued the brand. In 2008, Food City revived Kern's as part of a campaign to reintroduce once-successful regional brands. Until 2012, the Kern's products were manufactured by Sara Lee at

476-579: The building's first floor housed Kern's confections retail, the second floor housed his ice cream parlor, and the third housed a meeting hall for the local Odd Fellows . Kern held a large banquet to dedicate the building in April 1876. Kern's confectionery was selling soft drinks by the early 1880s, and local historian Jack Neely suggests Kern may have been the first to sell Coca-Cola in Knoxville. His penchant for holding grand banquets and festivals helped Market Square develop into an important commercial area in

504-478: The city until the end of the war. After his release, Kern and fellow German immigrant William Heidel established a bakery at the corner of State Street and Main, which sold cookies made from flour and molasses to Union soldiers. By the late 1860s, Kern had bought out Heidel's share, and had moved the business to a two-story building on Market Square. During this period, Kern added an ice cream parlor (or "ice cream saloon") to his confectionery. The parlor utilized

532-547: The county, including Park City Junior High (1927), Tyson Junior High (1936), and Central High School (now Gresham Middle School ) and Fountain City Elementary School in 1931. All four still stand, and the latter two are still used as schools. Albert Baumann, Sr., died on November 23, 1942, and Albert Baumann, Jr., died on September 19, 1952. Both are buried in Highland Memorial Cemetery. Joseph Baumann

560-509: The firm, which then changed its name to Baumann and Baumann . The firm continued working under different partners following the death of Albert Baumann, Jr., in 1952. It currently operates as Kaatz Binkley Jones and Morris (KBJM). The Baumanns have been called Knoxville's first architectural "dynasty." They designed many of the major buildings constructed in the city during the late 19th century. Several of their works, which range from downtown high-rises to suburban cottages, have been listed on

588-510: The hotel, which honors Kern's life and memory, and celebrates literary culture via its menu. Kern's descendants sold his company to the Brown family in the 1920s. In 1931, the company, moved to a new plant on Chapman Highway, where they focused more on the company's line of breads than on confections. Over the years, Kern's became one of the top-selling breads in East Tennessee. In the 1970s,

SECTION 20

#1732886339150

616-633: The late 19th century. While a member of Knoxville's Second Presbyterian Church, Kern held benefits for the city's Catholic and Lutheran congregations. Kern served one term as the city's mayor, from January 1890 until January 1892. He was also a founding member of the Knox County Humane Society, now known as the Humane Society of the Tennessee Valley. The Peter Kern Library is a speakeasy-style bar accessed through an alleyway adjacent to

644-501: The most recent listing being Minvilla in 2010. Along with their architectural services, the Baumanns also supervised the construction of several notable Knoxville buildings, including the Knox County Courthouse and St. John's Cathedral (designed by J. W. Yost). Joseph Baumann read trade magazines such as Inland Architecture and National Builder , and frequently attended American Institute of Architects conventions, and

672-563: The name, "Baumann and Baumann." One of Baumann and Baumann's largest projects was the Andrew Johnson Hotel , which was built in the late 1920s, and would remain Knoxville's tallest building for several decades. Another major undertaking was the U.S. Post Office (1934) on Main Street, a large neoclassical structure influenced by post office buildings designed by Paul Cret during the same period. The Baumanns designed several major schools for

700-514: The southwest corner of Market Square . Kern served as Knoxville's mayor from 1890 until 1892. Kern was born in Zwingenberg (near Heidelberg ), Grand Duchy of Baden in 1835. He was trained as a shoemaker in his native country, and immigrated to New York in the early 1850s to practice this trade. By 1857, he had moved to Georgia , where he joined the Confederate army at the outbreak of

728-464: Was a German -born American businessman and politician active in Knoxville, Tennessee , USA, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. He is best known as the founder of the confections company that eventually evolved into Kern's Bakery, a brand still marketed in the Knoxville area. The company's former confectionery and ice cream parlor, now called the Mall Building (or Oliver Hotel), still dominates

756-484: Was a family of American architects who practiced in Knoxville, Tennessee , and the surrounding region, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It included Joseph F. Baumann (1844–1920), his brother, Albert B. Baumann, Sr. (1861–1942), and Albert's son, Albert B. Baumann, Jr. (1897–1952). Buildings designed by the Baumanns include the Mall Building (1875), the Church of the Immaculate Conception (1886), Minvilla (1913),

784-673: Was thus aware of the changes taking place in architecture during the 1880s and 1890s. His early designs were typically in the Second Empire and Early English Gothic styles. By the mid-1880s, however, he had transitioned to the more contemporary Victorian Gothic and Queen Anne styles. [REDACTED] Designed by Joseph F. Baumann, 1872–1887 [REDACTED] Designed by Baumann Brothers (Joseph F. Baumann and/or Albert Baumann, Sr.), 1887–1913 [REDACTED] Designed by Baumann and Baumann, 1922–1952 Peter Kern (American businessman) Peter Kern (October 31, 1835 – October 28, 1907)

#149850