One of the more unique looking buildings in Old Town Lenexa is at 13420 Santa Fe Trail Drive. The two-story, all stone building was completed in March of 1910 and has seen several occupants over its more than 110 year existence. It was built by one of Lenexa’s founding families, the Krumms.

Photo courtesy of Legler Barn Museum & Depot

Building Origins

After the Civil War, German immigrants Matthias Krumm and his wife moved to Lenexa from
St. Paul, Minnesota. Matthias bought the lot of land where the building resides. In 1875, he built a blacksmith shop and opened for business. He owned and operated the shop until his death in August of 1901.¹

At the beginning of 1907, a man named R. N. Mills opened his own blacksmith shop inside of Mathias’s building². During that time, Mathias’s son, Louis O. Krumm, worked as “a popular clerk” at the dry goods store operated by the Bradshaw Bros. In August of 1907, Louis O. decided to start his own general merchandise store, taking over his father’s old blacksmith stand from R. N. Mills³. He reorganized the store, painted it and opened Krumm’s Store for business.

Krumm’s Store proved popular enough that in 1909, Louis O. began planning for a brand new building, which still stands at 13420 Santa Fe Trail Drive. He constructed it directly east of the old blacksmith stand. The building would be two stories, 30×70 feet and “built entirely of stone.”⁴

In September, Louis O. contracted with Max Zahner to procure “600 perch of rock”⁵ (14,850 cubic feet). Around this same time, Zahner and his wife also donated the limestone rock for the Holy Trinity Catholic Church (now chapel) that still stands at the corner of 91st Terrace and Pflumm. The stones were local Kansas limestone pulled from his quarry less than a mile north of Old Town Lenexa.⁶

By October, the foundation had been constructed and by November, masons were putting up scaffolding and laying new stones from Zahner. The cold weather of winter likely slowed construction, but In February of 1910, the Olathe News reported that the masons were finishing up their work⁷. By the end of April, the new building was open and hosting events.

Photo courtesy of Legler Barn Museum & Depot

Krumm Store & Krumm Hall – 1910 – 1945

Krumm’s quickly became a popular place for Lenexans. The bottom floor was Krumm Store,
stocked with general merchandise and described as a “really big department store.”⁸ The building’s basement and a warehouse in back were “chock full of goods.”⁹

The second floor was dubbed Krumm Hall. Immediately after the building opened, events were held there, with a school fundraiser on April 22, 1910¹⁰. For more than 25 years, Krumm Hall hosted regular events, ranging from traveling music acts, holiday celebrations, political meetings and much more. From 1910-1913 Krumm Hall even hosted Lenexa’s town council meetings.¹¹

Photo courtesy of Legler Barn Museum & Depot

In the first two decades of the building’s existence, it unfortunately experienced a couple of robberies. The most harrowing happened in January of 1920, when four would-be robbers broke the front window panes of Krumm Store. However, a watchman was on duty at the store. When he heard the window break, he opened fire with his rifle, shooting one of the burglars. The shot man fell to the ground in front of the building, but was scooped up by his compatriots and the “bunch headed for Kansas City.”¹² It was not known if the man survived.

Despite those rare robberies, Louis O. Krumm ran a successful store and event space until the time of his death in 1945. Krumm was an accomplished figure in Lenexa and Johnson County politics. He served as a Lenexa councilman starting as city treasurer in 1907, was appointed the town’s first fire chief in 1923, and served as mayor from 1927-1931. Louis went on to be a long-serving Johnson County Commissioner from 1931 – 1945.

Photo courtesy of Legler Barn Museum & Depot

Krumm Grocery, VFW and Dale’s Furniture

After Louis’ death, his family continued to run Krumm’s Store. His son, Louis G. Krumm, and daughter, Marie, ran the store through 1967. Throughout the years, Krumm’s store was also referred to as Krumm’s Grocery, evolving its focus to food and items more familiar with a modern grocery store.

When Louis G. and Marie retired, around 1967, Krumm Grocery closed. Marie Krumm would continue to be the owner of the building until her death in 1991. The Krumm building was occupied by the VFW before becoming Dale’s Furniture Barn. Dale’s was a long time occupant of the building, selling furniture, antiques and home decor, staying open into the 1990s. After Dale’s Furniture closed, the building saw a variety of law firms call it home.

Current Occupant & Renovation – Total Home, Open & Shut

In 2019-2020, the Krumm building was renovated by its current owner Pat Strand. The entire space has been stylishly updated while its historical character has been maintained. The original floors have been refurbished, and a number of original structural supports have been exposed. All while showcasing the original limestone walls throughout.

Strand operates two businesses in the building: Total Home, specializing in whole house remodeling, and Open & Shut, dedicated to home window and door replacement. The bottom floor serves as the showroom for Open & Shut with examples of Marvin brand windows and sliding doors. The warehouse and basement now mirror their original uses — the storage of goods and supplies. The second floor, houses offices but with an open floor plan which makes it easy to imagine the space as it was when it hosted events as Krumm Hall.

The Krumm building has seen a lot of tenants through the decades. Through it all, Louis O. Krumm’s building has endured in solid shape, and remains a landmark building of Lenexa.

References

1. The Kansas Patron [Olathe, KS], 15 Aug. 1901, p. 3.
2. The Lenexa News [Lenexa, KS], R.N. Mills Ad, 04 Jan. 1907, p. 2.
3. The Lenexa News [Lenexa, KS], 30 Aug. 1907
4. “Lenexa Growing Very Quickly” The Olathe Register [Olathe, KS], 28 Oct. 1909, p. 3.
5. The Lenexa Leader [Lenexa, KS], 22 Sept. 1909
6. Holy Trinity Church, ALBUM vol. 8, no. 4 (fall 1995). JoCoHistory.org. PDF file, https://www.jocohistory.org/digital/api/collection/alb/id/296/download.
7. Olathe News [Olathe, KS], 03 Feb. 1910, p. 5.
8. The Olathe Mirror [Olathe, KS], 24 Aug. 1922, p. 9
9. Ibid
10. The Lenexa News [Lenexa, KS], 22 April 1910, p. 8.
11. White, Susan. “Relocating Common for Lenexa City Hall.” The Kansas City Star [Kansas City, Mo.], 23 Nov.. 1996, p. 14.
12. The Olathe Mirror [Olathe, KS], 15 Jan. 1920, p. 9.