Hamburg Historic District (Davenport, Iowa)

	Hamburg Historic District
	U.S. National Register of Historic Places
	U.S. Historic district
	Davenport Register of Historic Properties No. 32
	Overview
Location	Roughly bounded by 5th, Vine, Ripley, and 9½ Streets, Davenport, Iowa
Coordinates	41°31′36″N90°34′57″W / 41.52667°N 90.58250°W
Area	79 acres (32 ha)
Architect	Benjamin Aufderheide; Frederick G. Clausen ; Gustav A. Hanssen ; Deidrich J. Harfst; Thomas McClelland; et al.
Architectural style	Late Victorian
MPS	Davenport MRA
NRHP reference No.	83003656 ; 100000541 (decrease)
DRHP No.	32
Significant dates
Added to NRHP	November 18, 1983
Boundary decrease	January 17, 2017
Designated DRHP	November 1, 1999

Last updated August 07, 2023

The Hamburg Historic District, also known as the Gold Coast, is a residential neighborhood located on a bluff northwest of downtown Davenport, Iowa, United States. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1983.^[2] In 1999, it was listed on the Davenport Register of Historic Properties ^[1]^[2] The historic district is where the city's middle and upper-income German community built their homes in the 19th and early 20th centuries. Germans were the largest ethnic group to settle in Davenport.^[3]

Description

Hamburg is located to the northwest of Davenport's central business district. The neighborhood itself goes as far north as Locust Street and to the west as far as Division Street.^[4] It includes the highest concentration of historic buildings and some of the best examples of architectural styles in the neighborhood.^[4] The Mississippi River is located five blocks to the south. There is a gradual slope to the land as one travels to the north. After the alley north of Fifth Street, it dramatically rises into a bluff. It peaks at about Seventh Street and descends less dramatically to Ninth Street. The southern part of this area provides a prominent view of the cityscape and the river. For this reason, it became a prime location for the middle and upper-income Germans who immigrated to Davenport to build their homes. The Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad tracks built along Fifth Street are yet another boundary for the area. The north side of Sixth Street (along the bluff line) that extends from Ripley Street to Gaines Street is known as the "Gold Coast."

At the time the historic district's boundaries were amended in 2017, it consisted of 312 resources, which included 229 contributing buildings, three contributing structures, and 80 non-contributing buildings.^[5] In 2017, the districts boundaries were decreased at its corners because of the number of demolitions that occurred in those areas since 1983. They were increased to include one adjacent property.

The period of significance was also established in 2017 as 1848 to 1926. Of the 219 properties in the district, 140 are two-story single-family residences with a few duplexes mixed in. A couple apartment buildings and commercial buildings are located along Gaines Street. Of the main buildings, 78 were built between 1848 and 1879, 72 built between 1880 and 1899, and 67 were built between 1900 and 1926. Nine were constructed after the period of significance from 1927 through 2016.^[5]

History

German immigrants started moving into the city in noticeable numbers starting in the late 1840s. In 1848, 250 Germans came to Davenport and by 1850, that number rose to close to 3,000, or 20% of the city's population.^[3] German immigration remained strong through the 1880s. The Iowa census of 1890 showed that a quarter of Scott County's residents were natives of Germany.^[3] A disproportionate number of those immigrants came from Schleswig-Holstein, which was in a border and personal rights dispute with Denmark in the 1840s. German “free thinkers” from the two states were leaving in large numbers and many came to Davenport. Their political and philosophical thinking tended to be anti-clerical and secular. It would eventually dominate Davenport politics and set the city apart from communities of similar size in the Midwest.^[6] Other German immigrants to Davenport came from Bavaria, Hamburg, Hanover, and Mecklenburg.^[3] Davenport's small Hungarian community, refugees from the revolution against Austria in the 1840s, generally lived in the German neighborhoods, as well.^[7]

Initially, the native-born citizens of Davenport resented the large numbers of Germans coming to the city and the influence they were asserting. They were also opposed to separate German societies, schools, cultural organizations, and events. Supporting the Temperance movement was one way opponents expressed anti-German sentiments. In 1855, the Know Nothing movement emerged with the goal of keeping local politics to native-born people.^[6] By the end of the Civil War, with the sons of both Germans and non-Germans dying for a common cause, there was a sense of acceptance even though the numbers of Germans coming into the city continued to increase.^[8]

Because of the size of Davenport's German population, their customs dominated the city's economic, cultural, and political life. Many of those who were leaders in civic life lived in the Hamburg District.^[9] The lower income Germans tended to live below the hill and above the factories along the Mississippi River. Their neighborhoods are collectively known as the West End, although they were not all German, and included the West Third Street Historic District. Harrison Street is generally the dividing line between the Germans on the west and the non-Germans on the east side. German influence in Davenport started to wane in the early decades of the 20th century, especially with the onset of World War I. The war, coupled with the younger generation's lack of a distinct German identity, led to the decline of German influence.

Prominent Davenport citizens who lived in the Hamburg District included Henry Lischer, who published the influential German-language newspaper Der Demokrat;^[6] merchants August Steffen and his son August as well as F. Max D. Peterson, who was a partner in the J.H.C. Petersen's Sons' Store; brewers Henry Frahm and Henry Koehler; the Mueller's who owned a large lumber mill; H.H. Andressen who founded the German Savings Bank, which was later renamed American Commercial and Savings Bank; politician and German-American leader Hans Reimer Clausen; grocer Charles Beiderbecke; and financier William H. Weise. All of the above-named men had roots in Schleswig-Holstein, they built significant houses in the Hamburg District, and many of their children married a son or daughter from one of the other's families.^[9]

Architecture

The geographical location of the Hamburg District is a fairly steep bluff north of the downtown area. The sidewalk on Ripley Street is replaced by steps as it climbs the hill. The area has the largest concentration of historically significant houses in Davenport.^[9] As with other areas of the city, the simple Greek Revival style was the first to appear in Hamburg. These homes are generally at the base of the hill. The style is realized in cottages and the more popular two-story, 3-bay front gable homes. Other homes in the district include large Victorian homes in the Gothic Revival, Second Empire, Italianate, and the Queen Anne styles built in the 19th century. Many of these homes crown the bluff and offer vistas overlooking the river valley below. There are also examples of early 20th century Georgian Revival and American Craftsman homes. The historic district is rounded out by smaller and more simple late 19th and early 20th century homes and a few modern dwellings.

The Hamburg Historic District is largely a residential area today. Institutional architecture that existed has largely been torn down or converted to residential use. One such building on West Seventh Street was built for Iowa College, which moved from the area in the 1850s to the present College Square Historic District.^[10] The former German Methodist Episcopal Church remains on West Sixth Street, while Zion and Trinity Lutheran Churches built new buildings outside of the district in the mid-20th century. Many civic, cultural, religious, and commercial buildings that served the German citizens of the city were not built in the Hamburg District.

Contributing Properties

The following is a listing of the more historically and architecturally significant houses in the district by architectural style.^[4] One of the houses is individually listed on the National Register of Historic Places and five are listed on the Davenport Register of Historic Properties. The extant brick streets and allies in the district were added as contributing structures in 2017.^[5]

Craftsman

Deidrich J. Harfst House (1905) 424 W. 7th Street
William H. Korn House (c. 1915) 730 W. 8th Street
Charles E. Meier House (c. 1905) 519 W. Eighth Street

Greek Revival

716 W. 5th Street
Frank & John Bredow House (c. 1876; DRHP-listed) 822 Gaines Street
Goettsch House (c. 1850) 801 W. 6th Street
Christian Jipp Home & Grocery (1868; DRHP-listed) 730-732 Gaines Street
John G. & Angela Otten House (1864) 906 W. 5th Street
Emanuel Rothschild House (c. 1855) 714 W. 6th Street
Hans Stoltenberg House (c. 1870) 911 W. 7th Street
Frederick Wunder House (1858) 916 W. 9th Street

Georgian Revival

Henry Koehler House (1896) 817 W. 7th Street
Dr. Heinrich Matthey House (1900; DRHP-listed) 505 W. 6th Street
Christian Mueller House (c. 1910) 530 Ripley Street
August Steffen Jr. House ("Overview"; 1901) 412 W. 6th Street

Gothic Revival

Charles Beiderbecke House (1881) 532 W. 7th Street
Henry Frahm House (c. 1880) 321 W. 6th Street
Francis Ochs House (c. 1870) 729 W. 6th Street
Henry Christian Struck House (1909) 615 Ripley Street

Italianate

Lambrite-Iles-Petersen House (1856; DRHP-listed) 510 W. 6th Street
Henry Lischer House (1871; DRHP-listed) 624 W. 6th Street
Petersen-Hanssen House (1878) 629 Brown Street
August Steffen Sr. House (c. 1865) 420 W. 6th Street
William J. Wiese House (c. 1895) 709 Brown Street

McClelland

A vernacular house type named for Thomas McClelland, a prolific builder/contractor in Davenport, who built a significant number of them.

John Bahls House (1864) 614 W. 5th Street
Peter Bindschaedel House (1870) 917 W. 8th Street
Frederick G. Clausen House (c. 1865) 630 W. 6th Street
Henry & Franciska Dohrman House (1868) 630 Warren Street
Gustav Hageboeck House (1870) 623 W. 6th Street
Friederich Hartmann House (1868) 604 W. 5th Street
Charles Hill House (c. 1875) 724 W. 8th Street
Lavinius W. Petersen House (c. 1865) 530 Western Avenue

Mission Revival

Louis P. and Clara K. Best Residence and Auto House (1910; NRHP-listed) 627 Ripley Street

Queen Anne

H.H. Andressen House (c. 1865, 1885) 726 W. 6th Street
Carl Beiderbecke House (c. 1890) 510 W. 7th Street
William Hahn - Edward Berger House (1895) 803 W. 7th Street
William Hoersch House (c. 1892) 402 W. 7th Street
Oscar C. Koehler House (c. 1895) 817 W. 7th Street
Claussen-Mueller House (c. 1900) 413 W. 6th Street
Edward C. Mueller House (c. 1895) 429 W. 6th Street
Louis Naeckle House (c. 1895) 703 Ripley Street
Herman Schmidt House (c. 1895) 525 W. 9th Street
George Schriebel House (c. 1855) 732 W. 5th Street
J.O. Seiffert House - A. J. Hirschel House (c. 1890) 532 W. 6th Street
J.C. Struck House (c. 1896) 703 Ripley Street
Hennings Witt House (1894) 604 Gaines Street

Second Empire

Henry Frahm House (c. 1880) 321 W. 6th Street

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References

1 2 3 Historic Preservation Commission. "Davenport Register of Historic Properties and Local Landmarks". City of Davenport. Retrieved March 21, 2023. (Click on "Historic Preservation Commission" and then click on "Davenport Register of Historic Properties and Local Landmarks.")
1 2 3 "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places . National Park Service. March 13, 2009.
1 2 3 4 Marlys A. Svendsen; Martha H. Bowers (1982). Davenport where the Mississippi runs west: A Survey of Davenport History & Architecture. Davenport, Iowa: City of Davenport. p. 1.7.
1 2 3 Martha Bowers; Marlys Svendsen-Roesler. "National Register of Historic Places Nomination Form: Hamburg Historic District". National Park Service . Retrieved April 29, 2015. with photos
1 2 3 Rebecca L. McCarley. "National Register of Historic Places Amendment Nomination Form: Hamburg Historic District". National Park Service . Retrieved March 25, 2023.
1 2 3 William Roba (1982). Fredrick I. Anderson (ed.). Joined by a River: Quad Cities. Davenport: Lee Enterprises. p. 73.
↑ Svendsen, 1.10
↑ Roba, 78
1 2 3 Svendsen, 17.1
↑ Svendsen, 17.3

External links

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[DRHP-1] 1 2 3 Historic Preservation Commission. "Davenport Register of Historic Properties and Local Landmarks". City of Davenport. Retrieved March 21, 2023. (Click on "Historic Preservation Commission" and then click on "Davenport Register of Historic Properties and Local Landmarks.")

[nris-2] 1 2 3 "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places . National Park Service. March 13, 2009.

[Svendsen1-3] 1 2 3 4 Marlys A. Svendsen; Martha H. Bowers (1982). Davenport where the Mississippi runs west: A Survey of Davenport History & Architecture. Davenport, Iowa: City of Davenport. p. 1.7.

[Bowers-4] 1 2 3 Martha Bowers; Marlys Svendsen-Roesler. "National Register of Historic Places Nomination Form: Hamburg Historic District". National Park Service . Retrieved April 29, 2015. with photos

[McCarley-5] 1 2 3 Rebecca L. McCarley. "National Register of Historic Places Amendment Nomination Form: Hamburg Historic District". National Park Service . Retrieved March 25, 2023.

[Anderson-6] 1 2 3 William Roba (1982). Fredrick I. Anderson (ed.). Joined by a River: Quad Cities. Davenport: Lee Enterprises. p. 73.

[7] Svendsen, 1.10

[8] Roba, 78

[Svendsen17-9] 1 2 3 Svendsen, 17.1

[10] Svendsen, 17.3

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v t e Davenport, Iowa
City and Government	History Central Fire Station Davenport City Hall Davenport Public Library Davenport Register of Historic Properties National Register of Historic Places: Downtown, East, West Neighborhoods Scott County Court House U.S. Court House
Landmarks	Figge Art Museum Modern Woodmen Park Northpark Mall Oakdale Memorial Gardens Outing Club Putnam Museum RiverCenter River Music Experience Skybridge Sacred Heart Cathedral Trinity Episcopal Cathedral
Education	Davenport Community School District Kaplan University Palmer College of Chiropractic St. Ambrose University Marycrest College Historic District Central High School Mid City High School North High School West High School Assumption High School
Transportation	Davenport Municipal Airport Sergeant John F. Baker, Jr. Bridge Citibus Crescent Rail Bridge Government Bridge Rock Island Centennial Bridge
Neighborhoods	College Square Cork Hill Crescent Warehouse Hamburg McClellan Heights Prospect Park Riverview Terrace Vander Veer Park West Third Street Village of East Davenport
Parks	Centennial Park Credit Island Duck Creek Park and Golf Course Duck Creek Parkway Emeis Park and Golf Course Indian Springs Park Fejervary Park LeClaire Park Lindsay Park Riverfront Parkway Schuetzen Park Sunderbruch Park Vander Veer Botanical Park Veterans Memorial Park
Other	African Americans Bix Beiderbecke Memorial Jazz Festival Bix 7 Road Race Duck Creek Lock and Dam No. 15 Northpark Mall Quad City Air Show

v t e Historic Districts in Scott County, Iowa
Davenport	Bridge Avenue Historic District College Square Historic District Columbia Avenue Historic District Cork Hill District Crescent Warehouse Historic District Davenport Downtown Commercial Historic District Davenport Motor Row and Industrial Historic District Davenport Village East 14th Street Historic District Gordon–Van Tine Company Historic District Hamburg Historic District Iowa Soldiers' Orphans' Home Marycrest College Historic District McClellan Heights Historic District Oak Lane Historic District Oakdale Cemetery Historic District Prospect Park Historic District Riverview Terrace Historic District Royal Neighbors of America National Home Historic District St. Katherine's Historic District Vander Veer Park Historic District West Third Street Historic District
Le Claire	Cody Road Historic District
Pleasant Valley	Lock and Dam No. 14 Historic District
National Register of Historic Places listings in Scott County, Iowa List of National Historic Landmarks in Iowa

v t e Davenport Register of Historic Properties
Davenport Register of Historic Properties National Register of Historic Places	E. P. Adler House Miles Collins House Davenport Bag and Paper Company Building Davenport City Hall Dillon Memorial First Federal and Savings and Loan Association Germania Miller/Standard Hotel Hamburg Historic District Hillside Hose Station No. 1 Iowa Reform Building Iowa Soldiers' Orphans' Home Jackson School/School No. 6 Antoine LeClaire House The Linograph Company Building John Littig House Marycrest College Campus Mississippi Hotel Oakdale Cemetery Octagon House Old St. Luke's Hospital J.H.C. Petersen's Sons Building W.D. Petersen Memorial Music Pavilion Renwick Building Riverview—Abner Davison Homestead Saengerfest Halle St. Anthony's Church Square St. Joseph's Church & Rectory Dr. Kuno Struck House Taylor School
Davenport Register of Historic Properties Historic District contributing properties	Anken Flats Frank & John Bredow House Peter Bruchmann House Davenport Public Library-Edward Durell Stone Building Henry Deutsch House Hose Station No. 4 House at 821 Ripley St. Indian Springs Park Christian Jipp Home & Grocery Lambrite–Iles–Petersen House Lindsay Park Henry Lischer House Dr. Heinrich Matthey House J. Monroe Parker-Ficke House Prospect Park Charles F. Ranzow and Sons Building Riverview Terrace Soldier's Monument Vander Veer Park Woeber Carriage Works
Davenport Register of Historic Properties	Claim House Credit Island Decker French House Johnson School Mother Goose Municipal Inn Schuetzen Park Street Car Pavilion
see also: National Register of Historic Places listings in Davenport, Iowa

v t e German-Americans in Scott County, Iowa
People	Henry Rohlman Nicholas J. Rusch Henry Vollmer
Commerce	Frick's Tavern Germania-Miller/Standard Hotel Iowa Reform Building Nicholas J. Kuhnen House Henry Lischer House Littig Brothers/Mengel & Klindt/Eagle Brewery Mueller Lumber Company Northwest Davenport Savings Bank Jacob Raphael Building Walsh Flats/Langworth Building Washington Gardens Werthman Grocery Zoller Bros-Independent Malting Co.
Religion	St. Joseph's Catholic Church St. Paul Lutheran Church Temple Emanuel
Social	Saengerfest Halle Davenport Crematorium Eldridge Turn-Halle Hauschild's Hall Northwest Davenport Turner Society Hall Schuetzen Park
Historic Districts	Hamburg Historic District West Third Street Historic District