Prairie La Porte, meaning "the door to the prairie," was the first
name given to Guttenberg by French explorers in 1673. The
Guttenberg area was a site of Sac and Fox campgrounds until 1823.
The Louisiana Purchase of 1803 transferred ownership to the United
States and the Black Hawk Purchase of 1833 finally opened the area
for legal settlement.
Guttenberg’s past is preserved today in the many limestone
buildings built by German immigrants in the mid to late 1800’s.
These beautiful structures were used for both residential and
commercial purposes. Many are pre-Civil War era and are on the
National Historic Register.
Guttenberg's riverfront location influenced early commercial
development. The town first served as a focal point for westward
settlement and as an early governmental and administrative center.
It was the early location of the county seat between 1838-1843.
Guttenberg served as a supply center for the general area until the
Civil War when railroads and an interior road system combined to
decrease Guttenberg's role as a market center.
The earliest businesses included general supply stores,
blacksmith, wagon shops, and hotels. The loss of the county seat in
1843 slowed growth and the population declined. Economic revival
began in 1845 with the influx of hundreds of German immigrants
under the auspices of the Western Settlement Society of Cincinnati
and continued with the development of the lead mining industry
along Miners Creek.
The German immigration began in 1845 and by 1850 the town was
quite sizable and nearly all German. The city takes its name from
Johannes Gutenberg, the inventor of movable type. A replica of a
Bible he printed is on display at the public library.
Guttenberg was incorporated in 1851. The influence of the German
population was best indicated by the construction during the period
between 1845 and 1865 for over one hundred stone buildings. The
bluff limestone was easily obtained and good, local clay and lime
for construction was available. Four large riverside warehouses
opened and a large flourmill, stores, and hotels appeared during
this period. The steamboat trade deposited merchandise and picked
up farm produce, milled flour and lead ore.
Today, Guttenberg's population is almost 2000 and it is the
largest town in Clayton County.
Enjoy