County of building: St. Charles County
Location of building: N Benton Ave., 2nd house S of Kingshighway, E side, St. Charles
Built: 1928
Architect/Builder: Unknown
Architectural Style: Colonial Revival
Original Occupant: William and Aurelia Kneemiller
Historic District Map
Marker Text:
1928
1120 N Benton
1830 - Part of Lot 11 Nathan Boone's survey of the Commons.
1832 - Part of Tabitha Fultons lease of Commons land.
1841 - Became known as John & Abigail McKnights subdivision.
1886 - Part of Albert G. McKnight's repartitioning of his parents subdivision.
1913 - City lot 158 became 50' wide along Benton Ave. when Julia Emmons (owner) deeded a 10'
wide strip of ground on the north to Ben L. Emmons, her father, whose property on Fifth St.
needed another exit.
1928 - Purchased by William Kneemiller who worked for American Car and Foundry and his wife
Aurelin. They had three sons; Theodore, a wounded veteran of World War I, Edgar, a baker,
and Clarence, a carpenter and a daughter, Esther, a shoe worker.
The house, believed to be build by the Keemillers, is a National Folk House with a massed plan
(more than one room deep). It has a side gabled roof which became accessible over massed
plans because of light weight framing techniques. The models from the 20's and 30's usually
have small entrance porches. This one being Greek Revival with its front facing gable and plain
columns. Another indication of early 20th century creation is the use of double windows.
1945 - The house was owned for 43 years until 1988 by William N. Hollander and Elizabeth.
Mr. Hollander was a foreman at American Car and Foundry.
"Built: 1928
Style/Design: Colonial Revival
The County’s tax parcels database gives the date of construction of this house as 1928, and this appears to be correct. The house is not listed in the 1927-28 city directory but appears in the next directory, which was published for the years 1929-30. The occupants
were William and Aurelia Kneemiller, and he was a laborer.
"This 50’x150’ lot is elevated above the street, and a concrete sidewalk with stairway having 7 steps leads from the street to the portico.
Landscape beds are along the front and sides of the house and shrubbery and a tree are planted in the front yard. A public alley
extends along the north and rear (east) lot lines, and at the northeast corner of the lot is a 1-story, frame, front-gabled, 1-car garage. It has a concrete foundation and weatherboard walls. The garage opens onto the northern alley, but the garage door was open and was not visible. A man door is on the west end of the façade. The garage is shown on the 1929 Sanborn Insurance map and is contributing." ~ St. Charles Historic Survey Phase IV, PDF pages 764-768