The Roebke family were one of many families who helped to build and develop Holton in the late 19th century.
Louis Roebke was born in Stadthagen, Germany in 1845. He immigrated to America about 1865 and settled in Holton, Kansas in 1870. He built this house in 1876 for his new bride, Kate Sollner. Louis was a cabinet maker and operated the Roebke Furniture Store. Together, Louis and Kate raised five children in this house. Tragically, the oldest son, Karl, was killed in an accident at the age of ten, while Louis was travelling in Germany. Their oldest daughter, Rose, married William Volker, who was a member of the Volker family for whom Volker Boulevard in Kansas City, Missouri is named.
The home was deeded to the Jackson County Historical Society by the family and has been carefully restored. The Roebke Memorial Museum houses several special exhibits, including an extensive collection of Victorian-era clothing. It has been featured in Piecework magazine. The home is open by appointment, or you arrange for a visit on weekends from May-October by visiting the Jackson County Historical Society Museum, located one block north, at 327 New York (SW corner of New York & 4th Street).
Parking is available along New York Avenue in front of the house or in a small lot in the alley behind the house. The Jackson County Historical Society is aware of this cache. You do not need to enter the house to find the cache. The house to the south of the Roebke House is also owned by the Historical Society, but the home to the north is not. Even though nobody lives in the house, this is a neighborhood with other occupied homes, so please no night caching.