National Register Listing

Von Hoffman House

a.k.a. Medora Doll House

Broadway and 5th St., Medora, ND

The Von Hoffman House is associated with the names of three families notable in the history of North Dakota: de Mores, Von Hoffman, and Foley. The house also has intrinsic merit in terms of its architectural character and as an example of the craft of Peter Book, a local contractor and brick maker who figured prominently in the building of early Medora.

Antoine de Vallombrosa, Marquis de Mores (1858-1896), was a French nobleman who in 1883 founded the town of Medora (named for his wife, New York heiress Medora Von Hoffman) in the Dakota Badlands. The location was to be headquarters for the Marquis commercial scheme of slaughtering range-fed cattle and shipping the beef to Eastern consumers via refrigerated railroad cars. The Marquis was president of his firm, the Northern Pacific Refrigerator Car Company, and the treasurer was his father-in-law, Baron Louis L. Von Hoffman, a wealthy banker who contributed financial backing to the enterprise. In August, 1884, the Marquis commissioned Peter Book, a brickyard owner, to erect on lots 7, 8, 9, and 10, block 15, Original Plat, a brick cottage for the use of Baron Von Hoffman and his wife when they visited in Medora. The preceding April, Book's arrival in town had been favorably noted in the local press:

At last we have found some one who realizes the money there is in such a venture and a brick-yard and pottery works will soon be in active operation here. Mr. Peter Book, of Mandan, is the gentlemen to whom we refer. He is one of the best known masons and contractors there, that he built the People's block being a sufficient recommendation. Mr. Book will be here next week, as he is only waiting in Mandan to close up his business. The clay with which our buttes abound he says will make brick of a beautiful dark red color, exactly similar to the famous St. Louis brick. It is also the very best quality of pottery clay and as Mr. Book has had long experience in making both brick and pottery he has every hope of being completely successful in their manufacture here. He also expects to make pressed brick exclusively, as aside from the cost of the presses they can be made as cheaply and will command a far readier sale. There will be a splendid market for both the brick and pottery, and Mr. Book is to be congratulated on his foresight in entering into the business at this point.

In addition to the Von Hoffman House, Book was also the contractor for St. Mary's Catholic Church (donated to the town which was her namesake by the Marquise de Mores) and the tall chimney of the Marquis' meat-packing plant. The latter venture was doomed to failure as a result of an Eastern preference for corn-fed rather than range-fed beef and a price war waged by competing packers. Consequently, the Marquis and his family left Medora in 1886, and at an undetermined date the Von Hoffman House was occupied by James W. Foley, his wife Gertrude, and their children. Foley supervised the de Mores affairs in Medora for 35 years, and he and Mrs. Foley were custodians of the vacant Chateau de Mores, the 2-story, 26-room frame residence which had been built by the Marquis a half-mile southwest of Medora in 1883.

James W. Foley, Jr. (1874-1939), known in later life as the poet laureate of North Dakota, presumably spent time with his parents in the Von Hoffman House during the years 1890-94, when he was employed in the Medora area as a ranch hand. The author of 13 volumes of poetry, including the words of "North Dakota Hymn," the state song, the younger Foley also became a newspaper editor and public lecturer. He exercised considerable influence during the years 1905-12 while serving in various political capacities, including secretary to two governors of North Dakota and secretary of the state senate, the state board of railroad commissioners, and the Republican state central committee.

In 1914, Medora, Marquise de Mores, conveyed ownership of the von Hoffman House to James W. Foley, Sr. The property was transferred in 1963 to Duane C. Indergaard of Belfield, grandson of an 1883 Medora pioneer, who then opened the house to the public as the Foley Museum, although the collection was not limited to Foley memorabilia. Purchased from Indergaard by the Gold Seal Company of Bismarck in 1969, the von Hoffman House was renovated as a museum of dolls and other antique toys. The Medora Doll House was modeled on the Custer Doll House in Custer State Park, South Dakota, and is intended to appeal to tourists visiting Medora as a result of a wide range of restoration/promotional activities sponsored by the Gold Seal Company.

Local significance of the building:
Listed in National Register of Historic Places in 1977.