“If The Great Gatsby was based in Missouri, this is Estate where it would be set.”
Slideshow images are courtesy of
The Charles Trefts Collection at
The State Historical Society of Missouri.
The story of the Desloge family is one of extraordinary wealth, industrial power, political intrigue, and high society. And it is all set in Missouri. The business aspect of their story includes lead mines, railroads, mineral rights, and real estate. The social legacy spans from secret societies to entertaining world leaders at their many homes. In fact, a small mining town still carries the family name today. Imagine a Gilded Age drama set in Missouri. The Desloge family would have the starring role. It would all be set at the Vouziers Estate in St. Louis County near Florissant.
The Desloge legacy in Missouri dates to 1823 when Firmin Rene Desloge moved here two years after statehood. Firmin was a nobleman from France. He came to join his uncle and immediately set up a retail business near Potosi. Shortly after establishing the store, he built a smelting furnace. He wanted to take advantage of the vast lead holdings in the area. His two companies, Missouri Lead Mining and Smelting Company, and the Desloge Lead Company, succeeded. They opened in the right place at the right time. Lead was becoming increasingly valuable to the American economy as the country entered the industrial age. At that time, he controlled some of the biggest mines in the country.
The details of the family business are complex, but this part is easy to explain. After selling mining operations to the St. Joseph Lead Company, the family then developed a new mining town nearby. They cleared the land, built houses, and set up shop again. This development became known as Deslogetown, which later became the town of Desloge.
The family also expanded into railroads and other industries tied to mining and kept growing. The next round of companies that sold to St. Joe’s netted the family a fortune. The sale was for $18 million. This transaction gave the Desloge family a net worth of about $50 million. This amount was on par with the Vanderbilt and Mellon families.
One business started by Louis Desloge was Watlow, which is still in business today. That business was founded in 1922 to produce electric heating elements for the shoe industry. The family also provided the money for the Firmin Desloge Hospital, which is now St. Louis University Hospital.
The family legacy also lives on in the Iron Belt today. The family-owned thousands of acres of land in and around St. Francois and Reynolds Counties. They donated more than 2,000 acres to the state of Missouri in 1955 which includes Johnson’s Shut-Ins State Park. They also provided a 2,300-acre island in the middle of the Missouri River for a nature preserve. Pelican Island is in north St. Louis County and only accessible by boat. It lies about a mile from 16805 New Halls Ferry Road, which is the address for the Vouziers Estate.
The mansion called Vouziers (Voo-zee-ay) was built in 1926 on the bluffs overlooking the Missouri River near Florissant. The estate was the perfect location for St. Louis royalty looking to get away from the city. The estate was situated in the rural countryside with river access and thousands of acres to explore. The mansion was commissioned by Joseph Desloge, Sr. and was built to look like a French chateau. The family entertained world leaders, business executives, and royalty at the massive compound.
Vouziers was more than just a showplace; this was a home for the family. The 15,000-square foot 10-bedroom manor was where Joseph raised four children. There were elaborate gardens and a horse farm on the eastern side of Halls Ferry Road. The home even had a 4,000 square foot ballroom built into a hillside. That’s where they hosted extravagant parties “out in the country.”
There were also tennis courts, a swimming pool, stables, and the carriage house.
The estate remained in the family until 1977 when it was sold to the Kroeger family. However, the Desloge’s kept nearly 1,000 acres in the area for personal use. The mansion was later sold to Boeing, which converted the campus into a leadership training facility. The property was put on the market again including the 284 acre campus and 301,000 square feet of corporate space.
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Can you tour the Vouziers estate?
I don't think so. It is only for Boeing corporate groups is what I was told.
It is now the Augustine Institute. You can email them and they will give you a tour. I did that and had a great afternoon. I saw the underground ballroom, now chapel.