Julius Pitzman

Who was Julius Pitzman?

Julius Pitzman was a Prussian-born American surveyor and city planner best known for his development of the private, gated neighborhoods in St. Louis, Missouri from 1867 through about 1914.

Originally from Halberstadt, Pitzman came to the U.S. and was educated as a Topographical and Civil Engineer under the tutelage of his brother-in-law, St. Louis City Engineer Charles E. Solomon, and held several posts within the Engineer and Survey offices before lending his services as a lieutenant of Topographical Engineers in the American Civil War.

Badly injured in the war, afterward Pitzman served as St. Louis County Surveyor. During his tenure he helped design Forest Park, along with Maximillian G. Kern. In addition, he worked closely with many notable architects including Theodore C. Link. Like Link, Pitzman is buried at Bellefontaine Cemetery, and Pitzman Avenue stands between the cemetery and the Mississippi River toward the northeast.

Pitzman's son Frederick Pitzman joined his father's firm in 1912, and the Pitzman Company was still in business in the 1990s.