Fountain Street cabin makes most endangered places list

Missouri Preservation announced its 2014 List of Most Endangered Places on Tuesday, including the The Franz Schmidt Cabin at 818 N. Fountain St. in Cape Girardeau.

The endangered sites were identified at a Missouri Preservation news conference at the Henry Blosser House in Malta Bend, Missouri, which also is included on the list, a news release said.

The Most Endangered Historic Places Program works to bring awareness to threatened historic resources statewide. The program annually spotlights imperiled historic resources and solicits nominations from around the state, evaluates the merits of the submissions, and announces the Most Endangered list. Throughout the year, Missouri Preservation provides technical assistance, advocacy and planning support for the listed properties.

Jim Blakemore, a local retired contractor who has helped preserve other historic places in the area, made efforts to uncover the original building of The Franz Schmidt Cabin and find a place to move it with permission from its owners, sisters Mary Cotner and Marilyn Landewee.

Cotner and Landewee bought the house several years ago in hopes of renovating it, but found repairs were too costly.

Efforts to reach Blakemore were unsuccessful Tuesday. City planner Ryan Shrimplin said the structure was condemned by the city in 2011 and was turned over to the city prosecutor's office, but he did not know the current status of the case. The city prosecutor's office did not return a phone call Tuesday.

Pertinent address:

818 N. Fountain St., Cape Girardeau, Mo.