Pommer House and Piano, Deutschheim historic site
The Pommer House at Deutschheim state historic site. Caroline Pommer came to Hermann in 1840. She was a widow, age forty-six, with six children. She and her husband had been active members of the German Settlement Society of Philadelphia and he there built pianofortes, violins, and guitars at their shop on Third Street. When they moved to Hermann, his two eldest sons were piano makers trained in the tradition that he had learned in Germany and their intention was to produce pianofortes in Hermann. That never came about because it was a frontier town. There wasn’t as much demand for pianos as there was for general furniture, but the example we have here is one of the beautiful pianofortes that he built in Philadelphia. And you’ll see on the mark above the keys his name: Charles Pommer, P-o-m-m-e-r, Philadelphia, executed in mother-of-pearl. And it shows how detailed their work was and how skilled they were as craftsmen. They weren’t just simple craftsmen. They were very exquisitely designed and executed in their traditions and in—as they had been trained in Germany and for the market in Philadelphia, which they brought to Missouri. The Pommer family made many contributions to the state of Missouri, including his grandson, William Henry Pommer, who ended up founding the music department at the University of Missouri-Columbia. So the Pommer pianoforte is representative of the family, both in the building of this house at Deutschheim—the Pommer-Gentner house—but also the contributions of the family to the state.
