The amazing Edward S. and Mary Anatolie Albert Lilly House in Missouri was built in 1897

Photo byNyttend, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.

The Edward S. and Mary Annatoile Albert Lilly House at 129 South Lorimier in Cape Girardeau, Missouri was built in 1897. This amazing two-and-a-half-story home displays the architectural style of Late 19th and Early 20th Century Revivals: Colonial Revival.

One of the exterior attractions is the full-width wraparound front porch with classical columns and porte cochere. There is also a carriage house on the property. The foundation is sandstone and the walls are brick and sandstone.

This house was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on June 20, 2008.

The house

The Lilly House includes a full basement. The porte cochere is on the north side of the house. The local contractor of the house was Henry Ossenkop and William Regenhardt was the stone mason. The interior of the house features Colonial Revival elements.

As late as 2019, it appeared greenery was added to the front of the house and it was being well-manicured.

Photo byGoogle Maps screenshot.

Backstory

The Lilly House is important because of its architecture. It was built between 1896 and 1897 for Edward Samuel Lilly (1851-1909) who, as a well-known businessman, owned one of the largest hardware stores in Southeast Missouri. Edward's wife was Mary Anatolie Albert.

The house is close to the Mississippi riverfront and the downtown commercial district. Imagine when it was completed, it was likely one of the most attractive homes in the city. It's one of the few properties that still has a carriage house on the property.

The house includes stained glass windows. Most of the original materials in the house's interior include wooden floors, pocket doors, wood trim, plaster walls, and five of the original six original fireplaces. The fireplaces contained original features such as decorative tile. The Lilly House still has the Colonial Revival style staircase that features a landing.

The foyer.Photo byT. Foley via NRHP Nomination Form.

Edward Lilly came to Cape Girardeau in early 1871 so he could become a partner in his Uncle Phillip Reily's hardware store. Before moving to Cape Girardeau, he lived in Connewago, Pennsylvania and Maryland.

Edward's ancestors on his father's side immigrated to America in 1730, settling in Pennsylvania. His ancestors on his mother's side came from Ireland in 1785.

In 1880, after Edward's uncle died, he took over the ownership of the hardware store and it became Edward S. Lilly & Co.

Edward's wife, Mary Albert, belonged to one of Cape Girardeau's pioneer families. She was born in Cape Girardeau in 1858. Her parents were from France and came to Cape Girardeau in 1852 from Kentucky. Mary was educated in France and St. Vincent's Academy in Cape Girardeau. She was also a member of the United Daughters of the Confederacy, which still exists in Virginia.

Mary's brother, Leon J. Albert, was the president of Sturdivant Bank. He also served as mayor and lived across the street from Mary and her family.

Edward and Mary had eight children. Their only daughter died at age 16. After contracting pneumonia, Edward died on August 25, 1909, at age 58. Mary continued to live in the house until 1922 or 1923. After that, she moved to Centralia, Chicago, Illinois, and St. Louis, Missouri. Two of their sons were in Chicago.

In 1933, Mary returned to Cape Girardeau and was admitted to St. Francis Hospital. She died on February 19, 1934, at age 75 from heart disease.

The house lives on.

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