Robinsons occupied Broadway storefront for two-plus decades

Tom and Bob Robinson in front of their plumbing and electric shop, 211 Broadway, circa 1909. At left is Pansy Lear, bookkeeper. The man at far right is unknown. Photo, reproduced from a post card, contributed by Robert Spaun.

MARY LOU MONTGOMERY

The ghost of 29-year-old Harry W. Tessmer may well have lingered in the building at 211 Broadway, when twin brothers, T.C. and R.B. Robinson, opened shop at that address in late November, 1909.

Just months before the Robinson twins relocated their plumbing and electrical business from 417 Broadway to the new site more central to Hannibal’s thriving business district, Tessmer died of suffocation while fighting a fire in the building.

A hoseman for Hannibal Fire Company No. 1, Tessmer was inside the smoke-filled building on April 5, 1909, fighting what was described in the local newspaper as a very smoky fire.

The building, on the south side of Broadway, housed Henry P. Long’s drug store.

In distress, Tessmer cried out for help, a call that was clearly heard on the street. But by the time the smoke cleared enough for his comrades to assist him, the breath was gone from Tessmer’s body. He was found near the prescription counter, with the fire nozzle still clenched in his hands.

April 6, 1909: “It was at first thought that Mr. Tessmer had been thrown into the cellar when the floor gave way and several men started down that way to find him, but had to return on account of dense smoke. About 10 o'clock a crew started in from the rear of the building to search for the missing man. Finally, Allen Larson, a lineman, found the man close to the prescription case at the end of the counter. The nozzle of the hose was still grasped in his hand. Carefully and tenderly he was carried out through the rear (and an) effort was made to restore  him to consciousness by some while (others) rushed off to locate a physician. Dr. Farrell who arrived in a moment after Tessmer was taken from the building, stated that the smoke was so dense the man had only lived five minutes after his cry for help. The body of the unfortunate man was removed to the undertaking establishment of O’Donnell Brothers.

The original (cause of) the fire, which broke out in the basement, is unknown.”

(O’Donnell Brothers embalmers and undertakers, Thomas and Robert O’Donnell, operated their business at 403 Broadway.)

Tessmer, born 1880, was the son of Franklin and Elizabeth D. Tessmer. In January 1913, Franklin Tessmer died after being crushed between two cars while working as a brakeman for the CB&Q Railroad. Father and son are buried together at Mount Olivet Cemetery.

The building, owned by Mrs. Dick Settles, was subsequently repaired, but after the fire, Mr. Long made the decision to close down his business. The Robinson twins, born in 1884 to Thomas and Belle Ayres Robinson, took advantage of Long’s decision, in order to move into the key downtown business building.

On Aug. 22, 1909, the Robinsons made the public announcement in the Hannibal Morning Journal, that they had moved their store to 211 Broadway, and were open for business.

In what is likely to be a grand-opening photo, Robert B. Robinson, left, and Thomas C. Robinson were pictured alongside their bookkeeper, Pansy Lear, at far left, and an unidentified employee, at right.

Thomas C. Robinson was married to Essie Turner on Aug. 10, 1909. They had one daughter,  Frances Turner Conner Figueroa (1919-2014). T.C. Robinson died in 1959.

Robert B. Robinson was married to Kathryn Pledge Glascock on June 8, 1910. Robert and Kathryn had three daughters, Isabelle Gentry Robinson Conner (1912-1980); Margaret Pledge Robinson Vandiver (1915-2000); and Mary Louise Robinson Spaun (1916-1983). R.B. Robinson died in 1932, at the age of 48. Cause of death was a cerebral hemorrhage. He was buried at Barkley Cemetery, New London.

T.C. Robinson continued the business after his brother’s death. T.C. and R.B. Robinson Electric, Heating and Plumbing Co., was located at 211 Broadway in 1932; 114 S. Main in 1934; and at 207 S. Main in 1935.

Bookkeeper

Pansy Lear (1888-1971) graduated from Hannibal High School in 1907, the daughter of Anna and (the late) Benone B. Lear, who had worked as a CB&Q conductor.

She was a classmate of Alice Elisabeth Robinson (Stewart 1889-1969), the Robinson twins’ youngest sister. Miss Lear worked for the Robinson brothers for several years.

In December 1907, Pansy and her brother, Joe Lear, purchased the former Homer Adams property at 326 Hope Street.

Pansy lived much of her life at 326 (later renumbered 2006) Hope Street, with her mother and brothers, during their lifetimes.

She was a sister of Wallace E. Lear, a Hannibal house painter, who died in August 1948. At the time of his death, he was living with Pansy and their widowed mother, Anna Bark Lear, at the aforementioned address on Hope Street.

Anna Lear died in 1963.

Pansy Lear died March 6, 1971, at the age of 82.

The building at 211 Broadway served as home to a number of businesses. A sampling:

1871: A.C. Grimes, restaurateur;

1877: John S. Moore, restaurant;

1885: Jno. F. Wollner, musical instruments;

1897: William B. Humrich, druggist; 

1937-1967: Eagle Store, men’s clothing;

1976: D&W Cafe;

1982: Silver Dollar Cafe;

1990: Vac Shack.

Current: The building has been demolished and the land is owned by the City of Hannibal.

Note: Robert B. Robinson is the grandfather of siblings Mary Lou Montgomery, Robert Spaun, Sarah Fletcher and Shirley Schindler, and the late Becker Spaun. Robert Spaun assisted with the research for this story.

T.C. and R.B. Robinson advertised their relocated business in the Sept. 25, 1909 edition of the Hannibal Courier-Post. newspapers.com

The Hannibal Weekly Journal listed the names of Hannibal Firefighters in its May 18, 1901 edition. Note that Harry W. Tessmer was included on that list.  newspapers.com

Mary Lou Montgomery, Suburban Newspapers of America Editor of the Year, Dailies, 2010, retired as editor of the Hannibal (Mo.) Courier-Post in 2014. She researches and writes narrative-style stories about the people who served as building blocks for this region’s foundation. Books available on Amazon.com by this author include but are not limited to: "The Notorious Madam Shaw," "Pioneers in Medicine from Northeast Missouri,” “Hannibal’s ‘West End,’” “Oakwood: West of Hannibal,”  and “St. Mary’s Avenue District.” Montgomery can be reached at Montgomery.editor@yahoo.com Her collective works can be found at www.maryloumontgomery.com