John I. Dievendorf was a local businessman and produce merchant whose business was located at 47 Main Street in Fort Plain. His home was next door at 51 Main Street. Dievendorf was a very wealthy man whose real estate amounted to $17,000 in 1850. In 1855 a devastating fire destroyed most of the businesses on the south side of Main Street including his. Using his resources, he replaced a section of the burned out block with a three story commercial building in 1861. The building contained retail shops, a music hall, and a place for the storage of goods to be shipped on the Erie Canal. The music hall became the venue for group gatherings, lectures, and shows. During the Chautauqua Movement many famous people such as Susan B. Anthony, Elizabeth Candy Stanton, and Frederick Douglass lectured at Dievendorf Hall. John Dievendorf was married to Margaret Fox and they had four children. Two of their children, Elizabeth and Catherine were spinsters and continued to live at the home on Main Street after their parents passed away. The two sisters were somewhat eccentric and seldom left the house. Following the death of Elizabeth and upon inspection of the home, it was reported in several newspapers that $164,000 was found in the home under the floorboards and sewn into the linings of the daughters dresses. Bank notes never cashed were also found in the home.