Kammer's Post Office & Saloon in St. John

This building not only served as a saloon and "watering hole" for thirsty travelers, but it was also a post office. Andrew Kammer, a native of Germany just like the founder of St. John, was the first postmaster. He had once been a schoolteacher in St. John Township, but pursued a more varied career. He arrived in Baltimore with his parents in 1846 and remained there until 1860. During this time he finished his schooling and learned the tailor's trade. For the eight years subsequent to 1860, he engaged in his trade at Cumberland, Maryland, and then returned to Baltimore where he remained for one year.

After his arrival in St. John in 1869, he taught school in the winter for the next six years. He spent ten years as a representative for a Baltimore publication, the Catholic Volkszeitung, and eight years as a salesman for a liquor firm. In 1887, at the age of 49, he was appointed St. John postmaster and remained in that position for more than 17 years. In 1860, he married Katherine Wagner, who had also emigrated from Germany as a youngster, and seven children resulted from the marriage. They were Elizabeth, Mary, Nicholas, Michael, Theodore, Andrew and Catherine. He established Kammer's Post Office and Saloon in 1895 while he was still the Postmaster. The building is still standing, located across the street from the town hall at the northeast corner of Thiel and 93rd Streets. In 2000, a private resident began remodeling the home.