This house at 910 5th Ave. N. dates back to 1884 when it was built by
Dr. Casper D. Koch, an early-day musician in Fort Dodge. Later it was
the home for many years of a prominent educator—Prof. John F. Monk—and a
widely-known social worker and YWCA executive—Miss Lynn S. Anderson.
The two-story frame house is now owned by Mr. and Mrs. Walter J. Gurnett
who acquired it in 1959. There presently are four apartments in the
house—two on each floor. One of the downstairs apartments is occupied by
the Gurnetts.
Windows in the house are typical of the era when the house was built and
are long and narrow. Three windows in the front living room extend from
the floor to the ceiling.
Dr. Koch acquired the building lot and erected the home in 1884.
Evidence of the years he spent in the house came to light some years ago
when sheet music with Dr. Koch’s name was found in the attic of the
home.
The house was purchased in 1901 by S. J. Robertson, a Fort Dodge
businessman, who resided there until 1910 when he sold the property to
Mrs. J. F. (Helen) Monk and her sisters, Lynn S. Anderson and Florence
A. Anderson. Prof. and Mrs. Monk and the Anderson sisters occupied the
home at various times during later years. Monk was a professor at Tobin
College here and owned the college in partnership with C. V. Findlay.
The college was located at the northwest corner of First Avenue North
and Seventh Street and at one time had between 400 and 500 students in
its various departments.
Monk was married in 1892 to Helen M. Anderson and they were parents of
four children—Florence, Melville, Dorothy and John. The father was
prominent in Fort Dodge affairs—was president of the Chautauqua
Assembly, director of the Commercial Club and president of the official
board of the First Methodist Church.
[Illustration: The Monk-Anderson home
910 5th Avenue North]
Miss Lynn Anderson became sole owner of the 910 5th Ave. N. house in
1936 and retained possession until 1951. A native of Clarence, Iowa, she
came to Fort Dodge in 1904 after completing her education and teaching
for a time. She helped organize the YWCA here and was its first physical
director and secretary. Leaving the YWCA she worked for the Webster
County Welfare Department and then was probation officer here for many
years. She taught a Sunday School class at the First Presbyterian Church
for 20 years, was a member of the Fort Dodge Business & Professional
Women’s Club and the Story Tellers Club. She received the Kiwanis Club’s
“Golden Ruler” award some years prior to her death in 1972 at age of 100
years.