TOWN HALL GALLERY TELLS THE
MESKER STORY
Presented in partnership with
WILLIAM A. CARSON FOUNDATION
In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the name Mesker was
synonymous with the production of cast and galvanized metal
storefronts that adorned buildings across the United States. The
February 17-May 25 exhibition, STOREFRONTS OF AMERICA: THE
MESKER STORYprovides an overview of this history.
Dutch immigrant John Bernard Mesker sold hardware, stoves and sheet
metal and provided repair services to small towns along the Mississippi
and Ohio Rivers from a flatboat that he had constructed. After cofounding
the Mesker and Busse partnership in Cincinnati in 1847, he
moved to Evansville in 1850 where he opened a stove store and
eventually began galvanizing ironwork for buildings. Upon John
Mesker’s retirement in 1876, his oldest son Bernard (1851-1936) took over
the management of Mesker and Busse, and John’s youngest son Frank
(1861-1952) later joined him.
In 1879, George L. Mesker (1857-1936) entered into
partnership with his two brothers. Three years later, Bernard
and Frank sold their interest in the Company to George and
moved to St. Louis, forming a competing firm, Mesker
Brothers Iron Works. George remained in Evansville to head
Mesker and Busse, which was later renamed George L.
Mesker & Company.
During the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the two
companies set the standard and became the leading
producers of cast and galvanized iron storefronts in the
United States. Both firms manufactured a prodigious
amount of stamped-metal facades and exterior architectural
features that graced buildings in Indiana, Illinois and
around the nation. Although prefabricated architectural
elements were available from a number of manufacturers,
no other companies better exemplified this niche than these
two. Their specialized ornamental sheet metal facades and
cast iron storefront components were conveniently ordered
through catalogs and easily shipped by rail to customers
throughout the country.
George L. Mesker & Company alone sold over 5,000
storefronts through highly successful catalogue marketing. In
1903, the Company advertised that it had furnished
storefronts in every state in the United States, “competing
successfully with local foundries, cornice shops and planing
mills, by furnishing better designs, better material and by
making lower prices.” Often called “Meskers”, these
facades can still be found on buildings throughout the
United States.
In 1916, George Mesker moved from Evansville and resided
in New York and Florida until his death in 1936. Although he
had not lived in Evansville for 20 years, he generously left a
Trust Fund of $500,000 for the improvement of Mesker Park,
40 acres of wooded land at the top of Summit Drive that he
had given the City years earlier. Additional bequests to the
City included funds for the Mesker Ampitheatre, Mesker
Park Zoo and the permanent Mesker Music Trust Fund.
Over the years, as George L. Mesker & Company diversified,
it became George L. Mesker Steel Corporation and, finally,
Mesker Steel, Inc. In 1974, Mesker Steel was sold to Fabsteel
Company of Texas. Financial setbacks led to the closure of
the Company in the 1980s.
Mesker Brothers Iron Works in St. Louis eventually
established itself in the steel sash industry. In 1961 Frank
Mesker, Jr. sold the St. Louis company to his brother John
Mesker. Under John Mesker’s ownership, the company was
sold to Barry Wehmiller Companies, Inc.
Through physical artifacts—including portions of the Straub
Hardware building in the Evansville Museum’s collection—
and original documents, Storefronts of America will recall
these highly respected companies and the dramatic impact
they exerted on architecture throughout the United States.
Storefronts produced by the firms from the 1880s and
beyond can still be found in various parts of the country.
EVANSVILLE MUSEUM
411 S.E. Riverside Drive
Evansville, Indiana 47713-1098
Phone: (812) 425-2406
Fax: (812) 421-7509
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