listing price | $1,243,500
listing agent | the warner hall group of dielmann sotheby’s international realty
Ninety minutes after 3 Hortense Place in the Central West End went on the market, Bill and Dorothy Shocklee made an offer. That was 1997. Three years earlier they had moved to the area from Des Peres after the last of their children had flown the coop. They were attracted to the Hortense home by its front entry garage and driveway, as well as its gated community. “It’s on a charming street that was always my favorite, and it’s close to everything,” Dorothy Shocklee says.
But prime location is only half the story. A historical gem, the 6,800-square-foot home used to be called the Champagne House—it was built in 1905 for Isaac Cook Jr., whose father started Cook’s Champagne, says Bill Shocklee, and many of its historical details have been lovingly maintained. “The home has its original millwork, and it has the original pocket doors, which are functional and beautiful,” Shocklee says. “We also have a beautiful green marble, hand-carved piece in the library over the wood-burning fireplace.”
This library provided the couple with a cozy backdrop for many evenings together. “It’s a warm room,” Bill Shocklee says. “It’s got dark mahogany and a fireplace that draws really well.” But not everything in the home is old. Before the Shocklees moved in, it was renovated, adding some modern comforts, updating the kitchen and combining a few rooms to create a luxurious master suite. “It was like getting a brand new house,” Shocklee says. “We got the best of the new and the old.”
The dining room, which features parquet hardwood floors, was the site of many family gatherings and celebrations, and is Dorothy Shocklee’s favorite room. “We love to have family dinners and host different celebrations and holidays,” she says. “It’s the biggest dining room I had ever seen in a home and I love it, because it has a beautiful bow window and a nice fireplace, and it’s a great size for entertaining.”
The home, in general, accommodates entertaining on a larger scale, something the Shocklees occasionally did. But their most cherished memories are when their two daughters, as well as family friends, used the home as a place to prepare for their nuptials, and as a charming, elegant backdrop for wedding photos.
Although the Shocklees enjoyed their 17 years spent at 3 Hortense Place, the couple say it’s time for a change. “I retired, and we’re looking to downsize,” Bill Shocklee says. “But we are hoping to stay in the Central West End.”
Photos by Reed Radcliffe
