Gierse House - Historic site in Poplar Bluff, Missouri, 1920s

Image courtesy of Street-level view of 1118 North Main Street, 2025 (Google Street View)

Still Standing

Residential

Gierse House

1118 North Main Street, Poplar Bluff, Missouri

Still Standing

Residential

Gierse House

1118 North Main Street, Poplar Bluff, Missouri

The North Main Street house Charles Gierse moved into in the early 1920s, identified by address, era and building record rather than by a photograph from his lifetime.

Did You Know?

1118 North Main is the address written in ink on the cover of Gierse's copy of Kennedy's 1892 Souvenir of Poplar Bluff, a notation added many years after the booklet was published.

The Story

A new house on North Main

Charles Gierse, the tailor and cleaner whose shop stood at 410 Vine Street, moved into a newly built residence on North Main Street in the early 1920s. The account of his move records 1924, while building records for the address indicate construction at about 1922; the two dates differ by a couple of years and describe the same period. Later records confirm his address as 1118 North Main, the same address written in ink on the cover of his copy of Kennedy's 1892 Souvenir of Poplar Bluff. The 1930 census records Charles, Louise and their daughters living at that address, and 1118 North Main is also the address written in ink on the cover of his copy of Kennedy's 1892 Souvenir of Poplar Bluff.

The house today

The building at 1118 North Main Street is a one-and-a-half-story brick residence with a front-facing gable, a smaller gable over a full-width porch, square columns on brick pedestals, and a chimney on the side. It remains in use as a home.

What can and cannot be established

No photograph from Gierse's lifetime has been matched to this house. The address is documented, the construction date is close to the period recorded for his move, and the building's form agrees with a residence of that era; the identification is presented as probable rather than certain.

The view published here is a recent street-level photograph, credited to its source rather than to the archive.

Gallery

People Connected to This Site

Charles Gierse

Tailor; proprietor of a cleaning and dyeing establishment

Charles Gierse was a Missouri-born tailor and cleaning businessman whose career extended from the early twentieth century into the 1960s. Born in Farmington on November 17, 1883, he entered the clothing trade at a young age and was operating a tailoring establishment in his hometown by 1907. On May 15, 1907, Gierse married Louise M. Schwaner of Fredericktown, Missouri. Their marriage was announced in the May 24 edition of The Farmington Times, which described him as the head of the Gierse tailoring establishment and a prominent young businessman in Farmington. According to his obituary, Gierse relocated to Poplar Bluff on April 1, 1914, establishing a cleaning and dyeing business at 410 Vine Street. His establishment offered garment cleaning, pressing, and related services, including the collection and delivery of customers' clothing. Early advertisements emphasized modern equipment, sanitary cleaning methods, and convenient service. Some identified the business as Gierse Brothers, although the complete partnership structure remains to be established. One of the most distinctive features of Gierse's early advertising was the phrase "The Name With the R." The slogan appeared in April 1914, when another businessman, Charles Giese, was operating a tailoring and cleaning establishment at 208 South Main Street. The two men had nearly identical surnames and offered similar services. Although the origin of the slogan has not been conclusively documented, it may have helped customers distinguish the businesses. In May 1918, a fire damaged Gierse's cleaning and pressing establishment in the Frank Building on Vine Street. Contemporary newspaper coverage reported losses of approximately $1,100, partially covered by insurance. The business subsequently resumed operations. A lighter glimpse into his working life appeared in November 1919, when a newspaper featured the aquarium at his establishment. Gierse reportedly kept approximately fifty goldfish in a large tank, prompting a discussion of whether fish sleep. In February 1924, Gierse moved into a newly constructed residence on North Main Street. The home, reportedly costing approximately $10,000, was subsequently identified as 1118 North Main Street. The 1930 census confirms Charles, Louise, and their daughters living at that address. Gierse continued operating his Vine Street cleaning establishment for several decades. His obituary reports that he sold the business in 1945, subsequently working with other cleaning and laundry establishments before retiring in 1963. His later years were marked by gardening and community interests. A 1969 newspaper profile described his efforts to grow flowers and vegetables for residents of the nearby Lucy Lee Convalescent Home. Charles and Louise celebrated their sixty-sixth wedding anniversary in May 1973. Gierse died at Doctors Hospital in Poplar Bluff on August 5, 1974, at age ninety. His funeral was held at Sacred Heart Catholic Church, with burial in Old Calvary Cemetery in Farmington.

Businesses Connected to This Site

Gierse's Cleaning and Dyeing

Active 1914–1945 under its founder; continued under later management (final closing date not established)

Gierse's Cleaning and Dyeing was a downtown Poplar Bluff garment-care establishment founded by Charles Gierse in April 1914. Gierse had previously operated a tailoring establishment in Farmington, Missouri, before relocating to Poplar Bluff. His new business at 410 Vine Street offered professional cleaning, dyeing, and pressing services for men's and women's clothing. Early newspaper advertisements emphasized modern cleaning machinery, sanitary methods, and careful treatment of delicate garments. Customers were invited to telephone the establishment for collection and delivery of clothing, reflecting the growing convenience of commercial garment-care services. The business promoted its ability to clean suits, dresses, gloves, and other articles requiring treatment beyond ordinary household washing. One of its most distinctive advertising features was the slogan "The Name With the R." The phrase appeared in advertisements during the spring of 1914, including notices published shortly after the business opened. At that time, Charles Giese, an established Poplar Bluff merchant tailor, operated a separate tailoring and cleaning establishment at 208 South Main Street. The similarity between the two businessmen's names, together with their overlapping services, suggests that Gierse's unusual slogan may have helped customers distinguish the establishments, though no contemporary explanation of the slogan has yet been identified. By May 1914, newspaper accounts referred to Gierse Brothers and described improvements to the establishment's cleaning equipment. The precise ownership and partnership arrangements associated with that name remain under investigation; Fred Gierse, a brother of Charles, is a possible but unconfirmed connection. In May 1918, a fire damaged Gierse's business in the Frank Building on Vine Street. Newspaper reports described losses of approximately $1,100, partially covered by insurance. The establishment nevertheless continued operating. The business was sufficiently established by 1926 to receive a prominent listing in the Poplar Bluff city directory under "Gierse's Cleaning and Pressing," with telephone number 682 and the address 410 Vine Street. The same telephone number appears in a 1929 advertisement in The Bluff, the Poplar Bluff High School yearbook, which read "WHEN THINGS LOOK BLACK PHONE 682." Gierse's obituary reports that he sold the cleaning establishment in 1945. Later directories continued to identify Gierse's Cleaners at 410 Vine Street under different management, the 1945 directory listing C. T. Hope as manager, indicating that the business name survived the founder's ownership. Charles Gierse subsequently worked in the cleaning and laundry industry until retiring in 1963. The final operating date of Gierse's Cleaners has not yet been determined. Historical significance: Gierse's Cleaning and Dyeing reflects the development of specialized commercial cleaning services in Poplar Bluff during the early twentieth century, illustrating the introduction of mechanical cleaning equipment, telephone-based customer service, garment collection and delivery, and the increasingly specialized care of modern clothing. The business is particularly memorable for its advertising slogan, "The Name With the R," which provides an intriguing connection to Charles Giese's separate tailoring establishment. Together, the two businesses show how similar names, overlapping trades, and distinctive advertising became part of everyday commercial life in downtown Poplar Bluff.