Colonial Revival designs was at its high water mark when Edmund Mautz designed and built this house for his family in 1913.  They lived in the home briefly before selling it in 1914 to Francis Seufert, an entrepreneurial businessman who was a leader in the fishing industry of the upper Columbia River.  His company, Seufert Brothers was an innovative and important company in The Dalles, OR.  He was instrumental in the development of the salmon fishing and canning industry on the Columbia River and pioneered the use of the fishwheel.  The historic name of the house comes from its second owners, Francis and Annie Seufert.

Francis Seufert was born in New York City in 1853 and became a butcher by trade.  He moved to San Francisco in 1872, married Anna Isabel Shick, and, in 1880, opened a butcher shop in The Dalles.  He sold locally caught salmon at his shop and was the first to ship a boxcar of fresh, iced salmon to New York.

Seufert became a self-made millionaire through his dominance and innovations in salmon harvesting -- particularly the "fishwheel" which permitted high production fishing in a river teeming with salmon.  It helped make his the most successful salmon packing company in Oregon.  Distinguishing himself from most cannery men, he studied salmon habitat and origin, and is said to have become “an expert unlike any other in his field.”  He also owned the largest number of fishwheel sites and the land bordering the swiftest water on the Columbia River.  Superior in durability and strength, his fishwheels survived floods when his competitors did not.  In an attempt to block the Yakima Indians from fishing on his part of the Columbia, he sued the United States.  In March, 1919, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of the Indians.  Fishwheels continued to be the primary means of fishing on the Columbia until 1934, by which time both Oregon and Washington had outlawed them to protect the down-river fisheries at Astoria and Ilwaco.

Throughout his years living on Knott Street, Francis Seufert continued to manage his business in The Dalles where he was active until his death in 1929.  Annie died in their Portland home in 1928.

The Seufert home remains true to the elegance and simplicity of form and line of the Colonial Revival style. It has changed little since it was built and retains a high degree of historical integrity.   For example, the smaller rooms of the original servants wing offers a glimpse into the past, right down to the original cut crystal door knob facing the center hall, with its plain metal counterpart on the servant's side of the door. Other preserved features from days of household staff long gone include the original 10' high cabinetry in the butler’s pantry, and a "bell indicator" in the kitchen that alerted the butler which door or bedroom or other area of the home was summoning help.