Campaign offers to buy endangered Fruit Belt landmark from City
Meidenbauer House key part of High Street Historic District
The Campaign for Greater Buffalo has offered to buy the endangered city-owned Meidenbauer House at 204 High Street in the Fruit Belt’s High Street Historic District. In a letter to Mayor Byron Brown dated March 3, Campaign -. The city gained control of the property in November 2005. It was featured in a recent Buffalo News article on endangered landmarks.At the time the house came into public ownership it was in good condition and recently inhabited. (See attachment) The property has declined since.
"The recent publicity regarding endangered landmarks, beginning with the Great Northern grain elevator, is especially relevant to the Meidenbauer House as a publicly owned building," said Campaign President Paul McDonnell. "We can't have a landmark owned by the public continue to deteriorate. The public support for saving this building was demonstrated by the many citizens who showed up for the public hearings for the High Street Historic District."
The Campaign is offering a symbolic $1 for the property. The goal is full restoration of the property, an unusual conjoinment of two houses built by a family of maltsters in 1870. In his letter to the mayor, Campaign Executive director Tim Tielman said that "the City has not been able to maintain the building to prevent deterioration. We would like to have the building restored according to the Secretary of the Interior’s Guidelines for Rehabilitation and returned to the tax rolls for the first time in 16 years and relieve the City of this burden."
The Campaign led a years-long effort to create the High Street Historic District, which includes the residential Meidenbauer House, the commercial Shirmer Meat Market at 195 High Street, and the religious Promiseland Baptist Church (Third German Baptist Church) at 225 High Street.
It wouldn't be the first time Campaign members have been involved in directly owning an endangered landmark. Current Campaign Executive Director Tim Tielman was one of three people who put up $1 to buy the Buffalo Central Terminal and set up the Central Terminal Restoration Corporation.
The Meidenbauer House is a rare example of conjoined houses built for an extended family. John George Meidenbauer was the owner of the J.G. Meidenbauer & Co. malting house at 992 Michigan Avenue, south of High Street, and lived at 151 High. He was known as George, to distinguish him from his father, also named John George Meidenbauer, the man who evidently started the malt house. The apogee of George’s life was to build this compound with its spacious, sun-filled grounds and sober Italianate facades.
The structure was completed in 1871, and the sole address of record is 291 Maple. This changes to a dual address notation in 1890, when 204 High first appears in city directories. Then 204 High Street is not listed from 1896 to 1919. The two addresses then continue through 1971, when 291 Maple is no longer used by the company publishing the city directory.
George died in 1872, leaving his widow Hannah and several sons, John W.-, John G.-, John M.-, John P.-, and possibly a John U.Meidenbauer. Hannah continues to live at 291 Maple until her death in the early 1890’s.
John George Meidenbauer, at least the third generation of men of the same name, was born in 1858, and was one of only two Meidenbauers of his generation not to make a career in the family business. To complicate things, the other Meidenbauer to leave the business was John P., who became a druggist for a time, which may have motivated John G. to get a pharmacy degree as well, in 1886.
By 1890, John P. had moved into 291 Maple, and continued to live there through 1910. John G., who never left the compound since he moved in with his parents in 1871, is listed in the 1891 directory under the new address of 204 High Street. In the 1910 directory, both John P. and John G. are recorded as living at 291 Maple.
204 High Street apparently became a rental property by 1920 and up to the death of John. G. in 1941. After an interregnum, Dr. Lyle N. Morgan appears as a resident of both 204 High and 291 Maple in the 1946 directory, meaning he was enumerated there in fall 1945.
Dr. Morgan soon attended the birth of a superstar. According to an associate of the family interviewed during research, Dr. Morgan was the physician who delivered pioneer funk musician Rick James in 1948. James would spend his childhood in the neighborhood.
Dr. Morgan worked and lived in 291 Maple and 204 High until 1966. The property stayed stayed within the family upon Dr. Morgan’s death, passing on to Lyle N. Morgan II. 271 Maple is delisted by the city directory publisher in 1972. Lyle N. Morgan II lived in 204 High Street at least until 1988, when he was in the midst of a battle with the city’s Buffalo Urban Renewal Agency. He had bought model apartment at auction on a piece of BURA land on Erie Basin, which he rented, at the encouragement of the city, to developers. The city tried to evict him after five years and Morgan sued, eventually receiving $50,000 from BURA to leave. He also was rewarded with a legal proceeding from the city over back taxes on the High Street property which culminated in the city taking possession of the property in November 2005.
The property has been neglected by the city during its entire ownership, despite years of effort by The Campaign and Fruit Belt residents to get the city to commit to rehabilitate the building or accept an offer from someone who would. The Campaign has now made the offer itself.
I'm all for it. Has my total support. Keep up the good work!
let me know how i can help. great project!