I knew there had to be something special about this house. This was the residence of Louis Obert, whose brewery was directly across 12th Street and whose grave I looked at back in October of 2018.
It’s a great example of the more ornate expressions of the Second Empire that was once more common in St. Louis before urban renewal cleared away large portions of the City in the mid-Twentieth Century.
The Oberts lived in the house at least until the 1950s, according to records. Their brewery was very compact, squeezed in the half of the block of Twelfth Street across the street from their house that is now a parking lot for the Anheuser-Busch Brewery Visitors’ Center.
My mom and her husband renovated the house down to the lathe in the 1990s. They commissioned the peacocks in the front door windows. It’s spectacular on the inside too.
This was my great grandfather’s home. We happen to stop by today (3.29.24) for some pictures. Beautiful home. So nice to know that it has been shown so much love!
I don’t have the funds or time to research, but my mother, Dorothy Louise Obert, told me that my grandfather, Joseph Obert ( who was married to Georgia Dorleska Reed), had a brewery in St Louis. He passed in 1934. I think my great-grandfather was Louis Obert. Could he be the Louis Obert of Louis Obert Brewery? Any information would be greatly appreciated.
It’s very possible. His brewery was located just north of the Anheuser-Busch Brewery; the Obert Brewery’s property is now a parking lot for A-B’s visitor center.
I have acquired an old beer tray with a picture of Louis Obert and a picture of the brewery. I found it 55 years ago in an abandoned house on Oakland Avenue.