Armine F. and Jessie Tinsley Orthwein’s home was completed in 1907.
Armine Orthwein was born on June 14, 1883 to Charles Orthwein and Caroline Nulsen Orthwein of St. Louis. Charles Orthwein was an immigrant from Germany who had made a small fortune in the grain business. He grew up at 2051 Park Avenue in St. Louis.
Jessie Mabel Tinsley was born to William Nelson and Alice Robinson Tinsley on May 27, 1882. She grew up in Louisiana in a large home on Tennessee Street.
Armine’s marriage to Jessie was done very quietly, as can be seen in this article from the Mexico Weekly Ledger from September 25, 1902.
Between 1905 and 1907 they had this commodious brick home built.
This home was also the site of a tragedy in the Orthwein family. On July 16, 1917, Armine had just returned from a trip where he had been visiting his brother, Charles, in Minnesota. On his return trip he had to go through St. Louis, so he also visited his brother, Max. His daughters, Frances (14) and Margaret (12) were at a picture show that evening. He and Jessie were relaxing on their front porch. Around 8 pm, he excused himself and went into the house. Shortly after, Jessie heard two gunshots. She quickly got the attention of family members nearby. Dr. J.W. Crewdson was called to the scene, but Armine was already dead. Examination of the scene showed that one of the bullets had gone through the roof of his mouth and the other had lodged in the wall. Upon examining the 38 caliber revolver, it was determined that he had tried to fire three additional shots, but they had not discharged. He had struggled with alcoholism. He had tried twice to regain control of his life, but was unsuccessful. He had been struggling with severe depression for 3 years before he ended his life. The funeral was held in their home then his body was taken by the Masons to the train depot and sent to St. Louis. After services were held in St. Louis, he was buried in Bellefontaine Cemetery. 1
