Historic Pella Trust

2 days ago

Sharp-eyed viewers might recognize this building from 615 Main Street. It sits directly west across the street from the police station/Public Safety Complex and was originally home to the Henry Van Maren family. It is currently occupied by the GROOM Barber Lounge. This building might also be mistaken for its twin, which is located at 1005 Broadway.

This property is on the National Register of Historic Places and it is believed to have been constructed in the early 1860s, which would place it in the 15-20 oldest buildings remaining in Pella.

When he was 12 years old Henry Van Maren, along with his parents, immigrated to Pella with the original Holland colony. Van Maren helped construct the original Central College building in the early 1850s before making blacksmithing his livelihood for the remainder of his life. He operated his blacksmith shop across the street from his home, where the public safety complex is now located, for nearly 60 years.

After Henry's death in 1923 his daughters lived in the house until they sold it to John Vander Linden in 1928. John was a service station operator who had the home converted into a gas station. For the next 30 years the building served as the Diamond Service Station, which sold D-X gasoline and oil products, until John's death in 1957.

By the early 1960s the building was being rented out to a variety of businesses. Over the next 40 years renters included: Mick Paltzer's watch & clock repair; Davis Barber Shop; KNIA radio's remote studio; H&R Block; Grandma's Yarn; Pella Travel agency; and Franklin Life insurance.

In 1980 Lucille Crawford purchased the building and lived upstairs while she rented out the lower floor. In 2005 local preservationist Wayne Stienstra purchased the building from Lucille and had the building placed on the National Register.

This prominently located building has a long and extensive history that is intertwined with Pella's heritage. The Historic Pella Trust is thankful that its history is well documented and hopefully this property will be around for decades to come. By the way, if you're interested, the building is once again for sale. -BB ... See MoreSee Less

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Historic Pella Trust

1 week ago

Historic Pella Trust welcomes the new owners of Pella Books, De J and Debbi De Jong!
The De Jong's collectable and pre-owned book business is located in the historic Soul Sleeper's Church at 824 Franklin Street, Pella, Iowa! This is across the street from the post office with their own parking lot along the side of the church.
The De Jong's have been busy displaying and cataloging the book inventory after buying the book business from Alfred Post.
Stop by Pella Books and visit with the new owners, Debbi and De J De Jong; it is a very entertaining place to browse the book topics you love! ... See MoreSee Less

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Historic Pella Trust

3 weeks ago

Last weekend a wonderful group of hardworking Central College football players volunteered at Tuttle Cabin to help clean up the flower beds, rake the lawn, replace mulch and plant heritage plants next to the new Tuttle walkway.

The same group of football players, along with a half-dozen other Central students, also helped plant more than 13,000 tulip bulbs at the Fair Haven Memorial Garden flower beds.

Tireless HPT board member Duane Rempe donated his time to oversee and assist with both projects.

Pella is fortunate to have such willing partners to help in preserving our community's rich heritage. It says a lot that Central College, its students and athletes are so invested in the community. Henry P. Scholte, who founded both the town and the college, would be extremely proud of what his labors produced.

Thank you again to Central's football players, students and administration for your valuable contributions to the community! They are deeply appreciated. ... See MoreSee Less

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Historic Pella Trust

1 month ago

Today the HPT features some South Pella history. The mission statement of the Historic Pella Trust calls us to promote sites important to the heritage of Pella. This is one of those important, long-gone sites. The Thomassen Store was located on the current site of Jimmy John's and State Farm Insurance at 606 The Thomassen Store was located on Oskaloosa Street, north of Pella Corp. and the old RR Depot. The original Thomassen's Store burned on February 13, 1930. It was a general/grocery store that also sold Diamond gasoline - perhaps a forerunner of modern day convenience stores. It was quickly rebuilt and the new, modern brick store reopened in July of that same year. The store went on to be used as a restaurant and later a bar, before being demolished around the turn of the last century. The current building was erected in 2002.

The Thomassen name was a prominent one that was often associated with flourishing businesses around Pella for many decades. -BB ... See MoreSee Less

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