Gundelfinger Home
2201 Calaveras Street
Edward Foulkes, Architect
Renaissance Revival
There are three Gundelfinger houses in Fresno. Another one is over off of Tulare on 1020 T Street, Fresno, CA. I believe it is a mortuary. Remember the name because it is a link to our next stop.
This classically-proportioned home was built for Henry Gundelfinger, one of the founders of the Bank of Central California. More recently the building has functioned as a home for the elderly. The unsympathetic addition to the right side of the front facade detracts from the building's original symmetry.
From: Fresno County, CaliforniaBiographical Sketches~ Leading Citizens1933
LOUIS GUNDELFINGER
For
fifty-five years Louis Gundelfinger has been a citizen of Fresno, and
during all of this time has given of his time and talents to the
furtherance of the public welfare.
Possibly
his chief interest has been in the founding of and promoting the
interests of Roeding Park. While president of the local chamber of
commerce some thirty-five years ago, Mr. Gundelfinger, with the
assistance of Chester H. Rowell, induced Mr. Fred Roeding to offer
the City of Fresno two hundred and thirty acres of land at the
present location of Roeding Park, and he induced August Weihe to
offer forty acres of land across Belmont avenue from the present
park, to which donations of both land owners the only stipulations
were that the city should spend $1500.00 per year for five years for
upkeep as a matter of good faith.
The
then board of trustees of the city rejected both offers. The matter
lay dormant until after the succeeding municipal election, when a new
majority of the trustees took control, under the leadership of F. M.
Chittenden. Mr. Roeding now offered to donate seventy acres in place
of the original 230; and the city government promptly accepted.
Pleased with what was accomplished by the city in a short time with
his first gift, Mr. Roeding a few years later, added forty acres
more. Thus the area of the old section of the park increased to 110
acres. Many years afterwards, the growth of the park having attracted
general public approval, the city added another forty acres purchased
from the Roeding estate at $1500 an acre or $60,000, a thorough
justification of the original establishment of the park. Mr.
Gundelfinger has served as a member of the city park commission for
many years.
Mr.
Gundelfinger was born in Wurtemberg, Germany, in 1849, and came to
the United States when nineteen years of age. He was in New York for
a few months and then in San Francisco for eleven years. His brother,
Leopold, had preceded him to Fresno county, being for a time at
Kingsburg. Louis bought into the Pioneer grocery and department store
firm of Louis Einstein & Co., and came to this city in 1878. From
that time to his retirement from business in 1909, he was the manager
of that store.
One
of the marked needs of Fresno as a trading center was, for many
years, more equitable transportation rates and conditions, and for
these Mr. Gundelfinger fought consistently, both as a private citizen
and as an officer of the Fresno County Chamber of Commerce and other
organizations. He was an organizer of the Fresno Traffic association,
which fought before government bodies for terminal rates, and he
helped to bring to this city the “Valley Railroad” afterwards
purchased by the Santa Fe. He was for a term president of the
chamber of commerce and served as director for a number of years.
Being
greatly interested in music, he has sought to promote the
opportunity for community music, with band concerts. and other
programs.
Among
Mr. Gundelfinger’s business enterprises, he served as director in
the Californian Hotel Co., and vice presidency of the People’s
Thrift and Finance corporation.
Mrs.
Gundeifinger, who passed away in November, 1931, was Dora Braverman
of San Francisco. Mr. Gundelfinger has two sons: Emil F. and Herbert.
