Heritage House Museum facts for kids
The Heritage House Museum is a special place in Okawville, Illinois, where you can explore three old, historic homes. These homes are the Frank Schlosser Complex, the Dr. Robert C. Poos Home, and the Joseph Schlosser Home. You can take a tour of these houses to learn about how people lived a long time ago in Okawville. The tours are led by the Okawville Chamber of Commerce.
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The Frank Schlosser Complex: A Look Back in Time
Quick facts for kids |
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Frank Schlosser Complex
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Main house
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 Location in Illinois
Location in the United States
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| Location | W. Walnut St., Okawville, Illinois |
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| Area | 0.4 acres (0.16 ha) |
| Built | 1908 |
| NRHP reference No. | 83000337 |
| Added to NRHP | August 15, 1983 |
The Frank Schlosser Complex is on West Walnut Street. It includes the home and businesses of Frank Schlosser and his family. Frank Schlosser was born in Okawville in 1867. In 1890, he opened a shop that made and sold harnesses for horses.
Family Businesses and Home Life
Frank's wife, Sophia, and their two daughters, Elsie and Estelle, ran a laundry business. This laundry was in the back of the harness shop. Many of their customers were guests staying at Okawville's mineral spas. In 1908, the family built their house on the same property. This house was made of wood and had a simple, traditional design. It featured a sloped roof and a welcoming front porch. There was also a two-story barn and other small buildings on the property. This whole complex was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1983.
Becoming a Museum
After Frank Schlosser's daughters passed away in 1982, their home became a museum. Everything inside the house is kept just as it was when the Schlossers lived there. This helps visitors see what life was like for middle-class families in Okawville in the early 1900s. The harness shop closed in 1941, and its contents were kept safe. This means you can see the tools and items just as they were left. The laundry business operated until the 1970s. It still has the old laundry equipment the sisters used. In the barn, you can see the family's old horse-drawn carriage, called a surrey, and a 1930 Buick car. Sometimes, the surrey is even used for special events!
The Joseph Schlosser House: An Old-Style Home
The Joseph Schlosser House is right across the street from the Frank Schlosser Complex. This brick house was built around 1869. Joseph Schlosser, who was Frank Schlosser's father, lived here with his wife and two sons. Joseph was an immigrant from Bavaria, a region in Germany. He ran a cobbler's shop, where he made and repaired shoes, right from his home.
This house is special because it's the last remaining "Old World-style" house in Okawville. These types of houses were built very close to the street. Inside, the house has furniture from the time after the American Civil War. While most of the furniture isn't original to the family, it helps show what homes looked like back then. Today, this house is also the main office for the Okawville Chamber of Commerce and the Heritage House Museum.
The Dr. Robert C. Poos Home: A Doctor's Legacy
The Dr. Robert C. Poos Home is located at 202 North Front Street. This beautiful house was built in 1888 and has a unique architectural style called Second Empire. Dr. Robert C. Poos was a local doctor. He also worked as a staff physician at the Washington Springs Hotel and Bathhouse.
Dr. Poos built another small building on his property. He wanted to use it as his own private bathhouse. However, he couldn't get the special mineral water needed, so the bathhouse never actually opened. Dr. Poos's family lived in the house until the 1980s. In 1991, they generously donated it to the Heritage House Museum. Now, the house is a museum filled with Victorian furniture and items. It also has a collection of old photographs showing what Okawville looked like in the past. The small building that was meant to be a bathhouse now holds a museum of old medical instruments.
