The Gustave Koerner House is a historic house located at 200 Abend Street in Belleville,

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...

Built in Greek Revival style

The

Greek Revival Greek Revival architecture is a architectural style, style that began in the middle of the 18th century but which particularly flourished in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, predominantly in northern Europe, the United States, and Canada, ...

house was built in 1848-49 and rebuilt in 1854–55 after a fire. Gustave Koerner, a German immigrant and prominent Illinois politician, lived in the house from its construction to his death in 1896. Koerner served as

Lieutenant Governor of Illinois The lieutenant governor of Illinois is the second highest executive of the State of Illinois. In Illinois, the lieutenant governor and governor run on a joint ticket and are directly elected by popular vote. Gubernatorial candidates select their ...

, sat on the

Illinois Supreme Court The Supreme Court of Illinois is the state supreme court, the highest court of the judiciary of Illinois. The court's authority is granted in Article VI of the current Illinois Constitution, which provides for seven justices elected from the fiv ...

, and was a member of the

Illinois House of Representatives The Illinois House of Representatives is the lower house of the Illinois General Assembly. The body was created by the first Illinois Constitution adopted in 1818. The House under the constitution as amended in 1980 consists of 118 representativ ...

. He was also a political ally of

Abraham Lincoln Abraham Lincoln (February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was the 16th president of the United States, serving from 1861 until Assassination of Abraham Lincoln, his assassination in 1865. He led the United States through the American Civil War ...

during his senatorial and presidential campaigns and convinced many German-American voters to support Lincoln. During the

Civil War A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...

, Koerner served as

United States Minister to Spain The most recent ambassador was Julissa Reynoso Pantaleón, she was sworn in by Vice President Kamala Harris on January 7, 2022, and presented her credentials on February 2, 2022. This is a list of United States ambassadors to Spain from 1779 ...

and thereafter mounted a failed campaign for

Governor of Illinois The governor of Illinois is the head of government of Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its we ...

Museum

The house was added to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

on September 17, 2004. It was converted in 1984 and separated into rental units. It is no longer used for rental units. The Koerner house is being restored to its original appearance by the Historical Society of

St. Clair County, Illinois St. Clair County is the ninth most populous county in Illinois. Located directly east of St. Louis, the county is part of the Metro East region of the Greater St. Louis metropolitan area in southern Illinois. As of the 2020 United States ...

. It will be maintained as a museum.

References

Literature

External links

Gustave Koerner House Restoration
{{DEFAULTSORT:Koerner, Gustave, House Buildings and structures in Belleville, Illinois Houses completed in 1849 National Register of Historic Places in St. Clair County, Illinois Houses on the National Register of Historic Places in Illinois Houses in St. Clair County, Illinois 1849 establishments in Illinois