06/23/2026
GUS DEMLER MADE THE LITTLE BUILDING NORTH OF BRICKHAUS SPECIAL
Gus Demler was born 8 March 1895 at Hilltop, Greenwood County, KS to August Frederick, a.k.a. Fred, and Caroline Frankhauser Demler. His father was born in Germany and came to the US in 1864.
He emigrated to Indiana and then to Kansas where he married Caroline in 1880. The Demler family lived in New Mexico and three different counties in Kansas: Greenwood, Coffey, and Woodson before finally settling in Neosho county.
Gus served in World War I from Neosho county and was working in an automobile garage before entering the Army. He returned to Erie in 1918.
By 1930 the Demler family was living in Erie and Gus and his brother George were living with his parents at 205 E. 5th St..
In Erie Gus met his soon to be wife, Mildred Lueyes Baker, born 19 April 1909 to James Andrew and Florence Bell Spaulding Baker in Missouri. Gus and Mildred married 25 December 1930 in Yates Center Kansas.
Gus & Mildred moved into the Demler/Steinberger house at 205 East Fifth with Gus’s parents. Both of Gus’ parents died in 1932 and Gus and Mildred lived in that beautiful home the rest of their lives. That property now belongs to their daughter Mary. Their other daughter was Clara Jane.
In 1930 Gus was working at the KT garage where he responded to a census taker saying that he was the owner around 1932-33. In 1967 GM wanted small dealerships to build newer and larger buildings. Gus dropped his dearship from Pontiac and in 1967 he sold his last new Pontiac. If I remember right Ricketts Chevy had to do the same thing, build or quit selling new cars. and by 1940 Gus named his garage as a retail auto sales agency.
We know that his dealership was for Pontiac automobiles. (Note: Right next to Gus' garage was an empty lot and next to that south) the lumber yard. That lot was what Bob and Hazel Audis rented to park their trailer when they weren’t traveling with Mahaffey’s carnival .
Gus continued his business in the KT Garage even when he no longer dealt in Pontiacs. He was amiable and had a lot of Erie friends & neighbors.
Gus died at the hospital in Parsons on 7 Oct 1983. Mildred died 25 Jul 1989 and both were buried in Memorial Lawn Cemetery in Chanute, KS.
Here are what some of the Erieites had to say about Gus.
If you have a comment, please add it in the comments.
***Joe Simmons: Dad used to have Gus do some repairs on the family cars in the 60's and early 70's. Last was a 61 Pontiac Bonneville. My brother Jack Simmons owned the building in the 80's before moving his business to the family farm.
***Kim Overstreet McMillan
What a cool picture! Demlers were our neighbors and certainly much later than this era. Mrs Demler was a wonderful neighbor.
***Billie Runer
Demler’s was open in the mid 50s. Pud Mix ( a tall black man of few words pumped gas ) Gus sold Pontiacs. He did mechanic work on our car.
***Roger Ashcraft
I bought a car from him, my Dad bought several. In High School we use to stop their watch Micky Mantle play Baseball for NY on our way back from lunch. Gus was a character.
***Bill Stanley
Gus and Pud Mix were quite a pair. If you never got to meet them, then you missed something. I love having grown up in Erie.
***Larry Showalter
One thing missing in this picture Mr. Pudd Mix isn't sitting in his chair out front .
***John Ricketts
My memory is going in there and getting a bottle of pop out of the machine for a nickel.
***Guyle Hand
I could tell a lot of stories about Gus. Even after I left Erie, I would stop to visit with him every time I came back to Erie. As you might know Gus was a little independent! I really miss him. I also bought Gus's brown 1967 Catalina and Marys 1967 Pontiac Grand Prix in the mid 1990's. Sold both about two years ago. On the cars I bought from Gus and Mary, I just had to do minor things to them. Mary's blue 67 Grand Prix is in Greenville, Tx. being restored.
Wasn't the lumber company Erie Lumber Company (sic: it was next door south of Gus’). They sponsored my older brother Jim's fast pitch softball team back in the early fifties. Roger Jenkins of Russelville, Ark was brought in to manage the Erie Lumber Co. on N. Main south of Gus’ place. Opened in 1946.
***Nancy Dague: Is this the station where little John worked in the '50's? (Note: He worked in many gas stations so it’s possible) He would stand on a stool so he could wash the car windows. We don't see full service stations anymore.
****(YKYFEKW): Gus was the first person in Erie to have a television which is now in the MemErie Museum. He had it in his dealership and cleared out the showroom to let Erieites come in and watch TV. There was one channel.
***Ron Yockey
First TV was about 3 ft tall and 3 ft wide with about a 9 inch sq. screen. The one way to watch the fights was to squint your eyes -it kind cleared the snow as they were broadcast out of Kansas City Wasn’t it the Friday night Gillette Blue Blade Fights. Right next to Gus's garage was an empty lot between him and the lumber yard that Bob and Hazel Audis would rent to park their trailer when they weren’t traveling with Mahaffeys carnival . Hazel was my Dads (Bill Yockey) sister. I remember watching Saturday night Fights sponsored by Gillette Blue Blades back in late 40's with my dad at Gus Demler’s on about a 9 inch tv with the only station was in KC then the upgrade to about a 15 inch in color looking thru a sheet of plastic that was i believe Blue , Red and yellow you squinted so you could see thru the snow.
***Roger Ashcraft
Oh the memories of that place, We used to go there during lunch hr. watch Mickey Mantle & Yankees play. Dad bought a 55 & later 61 Pontiac & I bought a 51 there. Gus was a character!
***Guyle Hand
Pud Mix worked for Gus, pumping gas and wash your windshield if you were lucky. Gus's son-in-in law worked with him during the mid-fiftys.. I bet the fights in TV were on a Wednesday night. Gillette Wed night fights. Wrestling, was on TV a lot. Gus Demler opened his Pontiac Dealership in the early 30's, around 1932-33. In 1967 GM wanted small dealerships to build newer and larger buildings. Gus dropped his dearship from Pontiac and in 1967 sold his last new Pontiac. If I remember right Ricketts Chevy had to do the same thing, build or quit selling new cars. Gus stayed open and did repairs, etc until around 1978? I attended his sale and bought all that would fit in my station wagon. I believe he puttered around in his shop for another year or so before he closed it.
***Sharon Kiister
He had the first TV or one of the first. I and many others would crowd in there on Fri night to watch wrestling. I and many others would crowd in there on Fri night to watch wrestling.When I was a teen and supposed to be at the basketball game I would leave and go watch the fights or wrestling. Long ago so don't remember which. Must have been when they had Fri night fights on TV.
***Guyle Hand: I also have a gas pump globe, like the one with the star I bought from Gus, also have four 1955 Pontiac plastic models that Dealers gave away. Also many dealer items, manuals , factory tools etc that I bought from Gus at his auction. I also bought a 1953 Pontiac that Loretta Green’s family owned. I also bought the 1955 Pontiac that Dick Wood drove, kept it for over 30 years.
****Loretta White ::I remember when that 1953 Pontiac was new. Dad ordered it from the factory through Gus Demler. It came with some extras he didn't order, i.e. windshield sun-visor, a little prism mirror to see above the sun-visor and an automatic transmission. Dad called it a one legged man's car since it didn't have a clutch.
