George Braun was born in Berlin, Germany, on September 9, 1835.  He came to the United States at an early age and lived in St. Louis before coming to Denison at the age of 44, in 1879.  In St. Louis, George had been employed with the Anheuser Busch Brewing Company, successor of Mr. W.W. Salisbury. (The Denison Daily News, September 9, 1879, pg.4)  In Denison, he was appointed agent for that company, which at the time controlled virtually all sales of beer in the city.  Here he established the Depot Saloon near the MK&T Depot.  In addition to the saloon enterprise, he also established the Northern Lake Ice Company, selling northern lake and river ice...and erected an ice house in Denison, (Denison Daily News, April 7, 1880, pg.4) which led to the sale of fish, oysters, celery, and other rare foodstuffs that were almost unobtainable on the sun-blistered Texas prairie.
On June 13, 1873 Phillips Schuchert, a fashionable boot & shoe maker on Main Street, from the Denison Town Company Lot 7 in Block No. 24 in Denison, Grayson County, Texas and notarized by Robert S. Stevens, president of The Denison Town Company.  In a few months Mr. Schuchert sold his business house, adjoining McDowell's livery stable, together with the lot to Mr. J.M. Shredder.  Mr. Shredder transformed the building into a harness shop. (The Denison Daily News, September 29, 1879, pg.3)

In November 1883 Mr. Braun commenced work on his ice factory to be erected at the foot of Gandy street near the Missouri Pacific freight depot.  (The Sunday Gazetteer, Sunday, November 4, 1883, pg.4)
George Braun constructed a home on the southwest corner of Austin Avenue & Morton Street between 1882 and 1883.  The house was completed by fall 1883 when Mr. and Mrs. Braun entertained a few friends at their elegant residence on Thursday evening, November 22, 1883.  (The Sunday Gazetteer, November 25, 1883, pg.4)  It remained there for 108 years before being moved by owner Joe Pollaro to a site north of Munson Park in the year 2000.  It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

The Sunday Gazetteer
Sunday, May 7, 1893

Monday, May 1, 1893 - Workmen began tearing away the Geo. Braun residence, corner of Austin Avenue and Moton Street, this morning prepatory to the erection of a much larger and finer building.

The Sunday Gazetteer
Sunday, June 11, 1893

Sunday, June 4, 1893 - Mr. George Braun's new residence, corner of Austin avenue and Moton street is assuming an imposing appearance.  When finished it will be one of the prettiest homes in Denison. 

"Geo. Braun's fondest hopes were realized last Tuesday at ten minutes to 2 p.m. by the birth of a boy.  It is reported that when the sex of the little stranger was announced to him, he jumped up 3 feet and shouted, "sugar, by damn."  He telephoned at once to the ice house to reduce the price of ice 1c per pound, and thus carried joy to nearly every household in the city.  Braun is a brick and don't you forget it." (The Sunday Gazetteer, Sunday, July 22, 1883, pg. 4)

Since the great houses of St. Louis had been designed in the fashionable Italianate style, a house of similar opulence was selected for the Braun family.  This is one of the few known examples of this style in Denison.  Designed by architect-builder John B. McDougall, also designer of St. Patrick's Church and St. Xavier's Academy, the two-story residence was constructed of wood with a pier-and-beam foundation supporting the balloon framing.  As with many buildings of this style, the roof is flat, with elaborate cast-iron balustrades and finials around its perimeter.  An elegant belvedere that once graced the entrance pavilion was removed many years ago because of deterioration.  Braun brought in carpenters from his native Germany to construct the house, as well as a Bavarian woodcarver to create the ornate fireplaces and woodwork that grace the interior.  An original detached greenhouse has since been removed.

The George Brauns were foster parents to Franz Kohfeldt (1885 - 1938), who was orphaned soon after being born of German immigrant parents in Illinois.  The Brauns were family friends and brought Franz with them to Denison in 1879.  He managed the Brauns' ice and wholesale food business, briefly sold fish in the MK&T Depot, and apprenticed in Harrison Tone's abstract office.  Later Franz opened his own real estate office at 118 West Main Street.  Starting around 1910, he played a key role in the development of the port of Texas City on the Gulf Coast.

George Braun's contributions to the growth of Denison ended with his death on November 17, 1903.  He left his entire estate to his wife, Minna Beltz Braun (1847 - 1934), who lived in the house until 1919.  Minna died in 1934 and was buried with her husband George in Fairview Cemetery, Denison.

George Braun Residence
National Register of Historic Places
Ref. No. 75001986
Also in the Texas Historic Sites Atlas
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The George Braun residence, located at 421 North Austin avenue in Denison, Texas, was built in 1882 for one of the town's leading businessmen.  Designed by a local architect, J.B. McDougall, in the Italian Villa style, the two-story residence was constructed of wood with a pier and beam foundation supporting the balloon framing.  As with many buildings of this style, the roof is flat with elaborate cast-iron balustrades and finials around its perimeter.  An elegant belvedere that once graced the entrance pavilion was removed many years ago because of deterioration.

The property chosen for Mr. Braun's residence was lots 1, 2, and 3 of Block 24 of the original town plat of Denison.  Upon its completion in 1883, the residence and its gardens were one of the showplaces of the city.  A cast-iron fence encircled the property which included a gazebo, greenhouse, carriage house, and formal gardens.  All of the out buildings have been demolished and another residence built on the east half of the site.

The plan of the house is asymmetrical with rooms opening into each other in rambling fashion.  The stairwell on the west end is rather small in scale when compared to the spacious adjoining rooms.  Ceilings are fourteen feet in height throughout the house.  Handsomely crafted doors of Louisiana curly pine with elaborate hood molds grace the formal rooms of the first floor.  Cast-iron mantles in the dining room, library, and drawing room are embellished with gargoyles, rosettes, and floral motifs.  Four spacious bedrooms and a bathroom on the second floor open onto a narrow hallway.  The sitting room at the head of the stairs has been converted into a bathroom and the stairs leading into the belvedere removed.  Alterations at the rear of the house include the enclosure of the south end of the veranda and the addition of kitchen ell.

Evidence of the Italian Villa style is further alluded to in the facades of the house.  A wide one-story veranda follows the projecting and receding configuration of the north and east facades, and is supported by tall, slender posts with fan motif brackets.  Windows, originally shuttered, are tall and narrow with one pane of glass per sash.  An elegant balustrade which once graced the porch has also been removed.  A simple cornice with dentils and paired brackets is terminated with a cast-iron balustrade and finials at the corners.  Six chimneys with corbeled caps protrude through the flat roof in asymmetrical fashion.

Constructed in 1882 for one of the most prominent business men in Denison, the George Braun House is an interesting example of the Italian Villa style as interpreted in Texas.  Once among the showplaces of the city, the house at 421 North Austin Avenue is significant as the only extant example of the architectural style in the community, and the last opulent residence on North Austin Avenue.

George Braun moved to Denison from St. Louis in 1879 where he had been employed as distributor with the Anheuser-Busch Brewing Company.  It was here that he established the Depot Saloon near the prestigious Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad Station.  In addition to the saloon enterprise, he also established the Northern Lake Ice Company, the first ice house in Denison, which led to the sale of fish, oysters, celery, and other rare foodstuffs that were rare on the sun-blistered Texas prairie.


Mr. Braun contracted with a local builder-architect, J.B. McDougall, to build a residence suitable for a man of his stature.  The house was begun in 1882 and completed in 1883.  Carpenters from his native Germany were summoned for the construction.  The great houses of St. Louis having been designed in the fashionable Italian Villa style, a house of similar opulence was selected for the Braun family.  Therefore, this is the only know example of this style in the city.

After his death in 1903, George Braun's wife Minna was the sole recipient of his estate.  She lived in the house until 1919, at which time it was sold to Charles J. Harrison.  Joseph G. Cain bought the house from C.J. Harrison in 1923 and lived there until 1952.  Mr. Cain sold the house to his son-in-law Bryan Steen, who lived there until 1975, at which time it was sold to Joe Pollaro.  Mr. Pollaro plans to restore the house and grounds to their former elegance, and maintain his office as well as his residence there.

George Braun, deceased, a conservative business man, who, nevertheless, was connected with various interests of commercial and industrial importance in Denison, was born in Berlin, Germany in 1835, and came to American soon after the close of the Civil War, settling in St. Louis, Missouri.  In his native country he had acquired a good practical education and had become a civil engineer, following that business until his removal to the United States.  In St. Louis he conducted a restaurant in one of the large parks, being engaged until he came to Texas in 1879.  Here he became the agent in Denison for the Anheuser-Busch brewing Company of St. Louis, acting as its representative for several years.  In connection with others he established an ice plant in Denison and was successfully connected with varisou business enterprises.  He was always conservative and careful in making investments and his judgement was sound and reliable in all busines matters.  In his trade relations he was strictly honorable and his prosperity was atributable entirely to his own labors.

In 1873, in Illinois, was celebrated the marriage of George Braun and Miss Minna Beltz, who was born in Germany, but was raised in St. Clair County, Illinois, a daughter of Charles and Julis (Graff) Beltz.  Her father, a native of Germany, came to American in 1850 and settled in Illinois, where he followed the occupation of farming and also ran a general merchandise store in Mascoutah, Illinois, until his death, which occurred when he was fifty-four years of age.  Mr. and Mrs. Braun became the parents of five children, of whom three are living: Lottie, the wife of Harry J.Bettis, a resident of South McAlester, Indian Territory, by whom she has one child, Dorothy; George; and Tonie, now wife of R.S. Vann of Dallas.(Braun's Meat Market Advertisement 1906, The Denison Daily Herald (Denison, Tex.), Vol. 18, No. 79, Ed. 1, Monday, October 15, 1906) 

The death of the husband and father occurred at Denison on the 17th of November, 1903.  He was a Republican in politics but was without polotical aspiration.  In a financial way he was very successful, for he carefully planned his advancement and every step was thoughtfully made and his life was an exemplification of the possibilities that are afforded in America to young men where effort and enterprise are not hampered by caste or class.

The Denison Press
19 November 1903
George Braun, who has been an invalid for the past year or more, died at his residence at the corner of Austin avenue and Morton street this morning.  The deceased had periodical attacks of rheumatism for the past year, but his condition was not considered serious until a fortnight ago.
Mr. Braun came to Denison in 1879.  He was a resident of St. Louis before coming to Texas.  He immediately identified himself with he business men of the city.  He was appointed agent of the Anheuser-Busch Brewing corporation, which at that period virtually controlled the sale of beer in this city and section.  He also supplied the city with ice and was an extensive dealer in oysters.  He was for a number of years a part and parcel of the history of Denison.  Industrial Denison owes much to him, he was ever ready with time and money to further the best interests of his home town.
At the time of his death, Mr. Braun was 68 years of age; he came to this country at an early age from Berlin, Germany.  He was married in St. Louis in 1873 to Miss Minz Beltz, who with one son and two daughters survive him.  Judge Pearson conducted the simple funeral services at the home and Dr. Yeidel officated in German at the grave in Fairview.

George Braun, Jr. died Saturday night, January 20, 1912 in Denison from tuberculosis.  He was the youngest member of the family, being 31 years old and a bachelor.  He is survived by his mother; 2 sisters, Mrs. Harry Bettes of McAlester, Oklahoma; and Mrs. Roy Vann of Dallas.  Funeral services were held Monday afternoon with interment in Fairview Cemetery.  (San Antonio Express, Wednesday, January 24, 1912)

The house was purchased by Joe Pollaro in 1974 in need of restoration.  The home was restored; the interior of the home exhibits exquisite Victorian detail from massive carved pocket doors to heavily carved fireplaces.  The home was moved from a crowded lot to a sprawling 10 - acre hillside site in 2000.  The tiered front lawn is lush with multiple gardens - 2 long, winding rock bed streams, seven waterfalls, a beach front style pool and tranquil pond. The yard is an entertaining paradise with multi-tiered Victorian decking overlooking the pond and pool with separate columned gazebo with thick Wisteria roofing.

Source: B.B. Paddock, History and Biographical Record of North and West Texas (Chicago: Lewis Publishing Co., 1906)