David R. Francis House
Built 1880
Demolished 1939
Style: Second Empire
Architect: Charles K Ramsey
Neighborhood: Grand Center
City Block: 2289
On 1875 Compton and Dry Map: no
On 1883 Hopkins Atlas: yes
Historical significance: This house was built in 1880 for David R. Francis. In 1883, he became the Vice President of the Merchants Exchange, and in 1884, he became its president. Francis was also one of the most influential politicians from St. Louis in the late 19th and early 20th century. Francis became the Mayor of St. Louis in 1885, and then became governor of Missouri in 1889, serving one term in each position. During his time as the mayor of St. Louis, Francis lived at this house on Vandeventer Place, before moving into the Governor’s mansion in 1889 upon being elected to that position. Francis is the only mayor of St. Louis to have ever been elected governor of Missouri. In 1904, he served as the president of the Worlds Fair in St. Louis, and opened the 1904 Olympic Games, which were held in conjunction with the fair in St. Louis. He is the only American who has ever opened an Olympic Games besides the President of the United States. Francis later became the ambassador to Russia during the Bolshevik Revolution. Francis Park in the St. Louis Hills neighborhood is named in his honor, after he donated farmland to the city for the park. Francis sold the mansion at 16 Vandeventer Place to John H. Douglass, a lumber baron with Knapp, Stout & Co. in the Hyde Park neighborhood. His son, John H. Douglass Jr. was a lawyer, and lived at the mansion until at least 1923. It was demolished in 1939.
Architectural significance: This house was built in the Second Empire style, and featured a prominent tower on its northeast corner. The tower was four stories high as opposed to three, like the rest of the building. It also had a gabled roof in front, a feature not typically seen in Second Empire houses. The house also featured many cast iron embellishments above its windows, and atop the dormers. It was built by Charles K. Ramsey, along with the two neighboring houses on either side in 1880.
David R. Francis