Mathis, Christian

Originally from Switzerland, Mathis retired from a beer brewery in Jersey City, Hudson County, New Jersey to Manassas in 1868 for health reasons. It is not known why he chose Manassas, but he and his wife purchased a 25-acre estate on the outskirts of the town from Robert C. Weir in 1868 for eight hundred dollars. He hired John A. Cannon to build a comfortable home for him, the result of which was a three-story residence designed in the Italionate, "Steamboat" Gothic style. Mathis continued to live here until his death in 1875, after which his widow continued to live here until she sold his estate, which had grown to 181 acres, to Robert Portner in 1883. It is unknown when Mathis came to America, though it is presumed he and his wife, also from Switzerland, were married in Switzerland. A story passed down through related families in Manassas says that when Mrs. Portner, also a Swiss native, was coming to America, she met Augusta Walser on the same ship and the two women became fast friends. Augusta Walser would eventually marry Enos K. Newman, who is believed to be the brother of Mrs. Mathis, though he was born in Pennsylvania. In 1869, it was Mathis and Peter Valer, brother to the future Mrs. Portner, who first approached Robert Portner about being a partner in Peter's brother's brewery in Philadelphia, PA, and through whom Robert would meet his future wife. In later years, Christian & Anna Mathis' nephew, Oliver E. Newman (son of Enos Newman & Augusta Walser), worked as a painter in Manassas. An advertisement in the Manassas Gazette in 1878 listed him as a "House, Sign, Coach, & Ornamental painter." He certainly was not without work, though. For over thirty years, Newman was employed by the Portner family to paint various murals throughout their house.