1. J. H. Fangman – Three-Quarter Century Club
(Carroll Daily Herald, Carroll, Iowa, Friday, September 17, 1937)
J. H. FANGMAN -Three-Quarter Century club
J. H. Fangman of Templeton comes to t h e Three-Quarter Century club with 57 years in Carroll county. Born in Dubuque county, Iowa, in 1857, Mr. Fangman lived at New Vienna until his marriage to Josephine Uhlenkamp on Jan. 27, 1880. A month later he came to Carroll county and farmed until 1913. Mrs. Fangman died Sept. 17, 1934. Mr. Fangman and a brother, Frank Fangman of Bancroft, and a sister, Mrs. Mary Drees, are the remaining children in a family of four.
All of his children are living. They are as follows: Henry Fangman of Redwood Falls, Minn., Mrs. Clem Langel, Frank Fangman, Joseph Fangman, Airs; Ben Lechtenberg, Mrs. Ed Kalkhoff, Mrs. R. A. Woslager, and Rose Fangman, all of Templeton and Mrs. Henry Kalkhoff of Clements, Minn.
Mr. Fangman is of German extraction and a member of the Catholic church and Holy Name society.
2. Lois (Gehling) Mulroney – AMA Powder Puff Competition
(Cycle Illustrated, June, 1968, Vol. 1, No. 1)
My Wife's Story
Dear Sirs:
My wife and I each have our own cycles and enjoy them tremendously. About ten years ago I began a sporadic cycling career, which I never took seriously until this year when my wife purchased her first cycle. She soon decided that occasional rides through the woods were not enough and began entering competition.
The first time she beat me and all the men in her class at a hillclimb. Embarrassed, I now take all my cycling seriously.
We both compete now and enjoy it tremendously. I would like to enter for publication my wife's story.
Sincerely,
Gary E. Mulroney
The cycle quivered as it passed the 60-foot plate on the hill, then fell onto its side throwing the rider into the dirt at 63 feet. The catchers moved in quickly and subdued both the cycle and the rider.
Out of the mass emerged the rider, 5' 4", 120-pound Lois Mulroney. The 29-year-old mother of seven children half-ran and half-slipped down the hill as cheers from other women and gasps of disbelief from the men died out.
She was proud. She'd just beaten all of the Powder Puff riders and all of the men in the 125cc-and-under climbing competition on a rough hill at Panora, Iowa.
She cheerfully headed for the judges' stand where she collected the 24-inch tall Powder Puff first-place trophy. She jokingly complained to the judges that they should award the first place men's 125cc. trophy to her also.
Maybe she should have entered the men's sportsman class rather than the women's. Oh well! It was still a good end to her first hillclimb competition, she decided.
The 50-mile ride home was nearly unbearable according to Lois' husband Gary, a 33-year-old Fort Dodge, Ia., police officer.
"All she could do was rub it in," Gary relates. She teasingly kept telling of how she had beaten everyone including him.
Initiation into the cycling fraternity for Lois came in early May of 1967 when the Mulroneys bought a 125cc. Kawasaki to add to their cycling enjoyment.
"Gary already had a 175cc and I enjoyed riding with him," Lois says when she tells of her cycling career. "But I decided I'd like to try riding alone after Gary and I were in a minor accident," she says. "I decided then and there that if I was going to get hurt riding motorcycles, I wanted to be on my own cycle."
Lois began practicing on level fields before graduating to the road and then to the open woods. As her skill deepened, so did her confidence and desire to follow the men as they climbed wooded slopes and hills.
When the excitement of an afternoon trip though the expanses of surrounding Iowa parks died out, Lois began following the men through the woods as did several of her friends who had purchased bikes in attempts to keep up with their husbands.
Mulroney and several of his friends then decided to sponsor a hare scrambles as a benefit for the Jerry Rabiner Boys Ranch near Fort Dodge, a home for boys sponsored by the Iowa State Policemen's Association. Lois was the first to ask about Powder Puff competition.
"They told me if I could find enough women to ride with me they would hold a race for us,' Lois said.
She had soon recruited the required number for AMA competition and the Powder Puff began.
Lois scampered around the half-mile course to first place for her first cycling victory as the rest of the Mulroney family cheered from the spectator area.
After a summer of riding and the Panora hill-climb came a two-day event at Graettinger. Lois's cycle flipped on her first two runs on the stair-step hill before she found the groove and captured first place in the women's competition.
In her first out-of-state competition at Mankato, Minn., Lois was the only woman on the list of 110 competitors. She elected to compete in the men's 125cc class and finished sixth among the 25 climbers.
She then climbed at Hartford on a muddy and steep hill and added another first place trophy to her collection.
The 180-foot hill had been soaked with rain for three days before the meet and was giving many of Iowa's best small-bike riders a real tussle. Lois nearly lost control as she came off the log and then spent her entire run fishtailing back and forth across the face of the hill, pointing her bike upwards at every opportune moment.
Finally, when she could go no further, she pulled the kill switch; thus ending her ride and her first year of competition with a win.
Her only comment was that she was worried more about the catchers than the slippery hill.
With cycling interest steadily increasing, Lois is already anticipating more competition in the 1968 season. She also says she hopes to interest more women in the fun and excitement of solo cycling - and, best of all, the thrill of beating their husbands at their own game.
3. Joseph Reinart – Voting Record
(Carroll, Iowa, Daily Times Herald, Thursday, August 3, 1972)
Joe Reinart, 99, Keeps His Voting Record Intact
By Barbara Tomka
(Staff Writer)
Joe Reinart, 99, cast his first ballot about 78 years ago. He hasn't missed voting in an election since.
Reinart kept his record intact Tuesday when he went to the polls and voted in the primary election.
Reinart, who is in remarkably good health for his age, gets around with the aid of a cane. His most noticeable disability is a loss of hearing.
Reinart voted for the first time at the Roselle precinct.
"It was a lot different then," he recalled Thursday. "We put checks on our ballots and dropped them in a box. Now we have voting machines and don't even need a pencil."
A resident of St. Anthony Nursing home here, Reinart was one of 12 children born to Matt Reinart and the former Susan Friedman. He was born on, a farm near Roselle July 16, 1873.
"I didn't get much schooling," Reinart said. "They didn't have schools the first years after I was born. When they did get schools, they didn't have teachers. When they finally got the teachers, they spoke in German because the whole countryside was German then. I did learn my A,B,C's though. But when I was 15 years old my school career was over," Reinart recalled.
After quitting school Reinart worked on his father's farm until he was 21.
"I didn't know what to do then. I got a team of horses and a piece of ground and decided to work at that for awhile," he remembered. After two years and little monetary success, he rented 120 acres of land west of Halbur.
"It cost $2.50 per acre to rent it. I had 50 acres of corn that year (1894) and got 1,500 bushels of corn that fall. And I picked all that corn by hand. But I didn't get very far ahead. Corn was 15 cents a bushel the next year and I thought it would surely go up so I borrowed some money to pay my rent. The shelled corn the next year was worth 17 cents per bushel," he chuckled.
Reinart decided to work at the elevator in Halbur rather than rent the farm the next year.
"I started the job at Halbur getting $40 per month" he recalled. On Sept. 25, 1898 he married Kate Olbertz from Mt. Carmel. "We had four children while I was working at the elevator and I was getting $45 a month then. You can't support a wife and four children on $45 a month so I quit," Reinart explained.
"In 1910 we bought our first car, a Warren. It ran real well but we traded it off for another car."
In October of 1911 Reinart bought 120 acres of land south of Carroll. "It took 40 years before I had that 120 acres paid for," he added. Asked if the Depression set him back, he replied, "No, farming was all a depression then."
One of his proudest achievements is the fact that he sent all eight of his children through grade and high school. The children would walk to and from school every day. Carroll was a city of about 3,000 persons then, according to Reinart. The north side of the town extended to where St. Lawrence Church is now. The area around where St. Anthony Regional Hospital is located was all orchards. Saturday night the Reinart children would usually go to one of the 10-cent movies that were playing at the two local theaters.
While the older children were in high school Reinart decided to go into the dairy business. They raised Holstein cows and used a Ford truck to deliver the milk to Carroll every day. The income from his dairy herd wasn't as high as he anticipated.
"In 1934 we had a dry year, in 1935 a very good year and in 1936 we didn't get a thing. Milk got down to six cents a quart. We hadn't raised anything that year so we had to buy everything. The next year we had hogs and a garden so that all we had to buy was a little coffee and sugar."
Farming procedures in the county have markedly changed in Reinart's lifetime. "When I was a kid, about six or seven years old, we planted all the corn by hand. My dad would put it in the rows and I would cover it up. It was all walking then. I used horses most of the time while farming. During the last years I bought a small tractor but we never got into the high machinery business," he stated. His wife died in 1950 and he sold his farm in 1955 and moved into St. Anthony Nursing Home when it opened in May, 1963.
Because his legs aren't as strong as they used to be, Reinart doesn't get outside as much as he'd like to. "Last year I'd go to church every morning and go to town and play cards once in awhile but my legs are weak and I just walk around the building. I got a cane to protect myself from falling."
To help him celebrate his 99th birthday this year, all eight of his children and their spouses including Mr. and Mrs. Douglas (Viola) Schleisman, Iowa City; Mr. and Mrs. Wade (Isabel) Presnell, Scranton; Mr. and Mrs. Gene Reinart, Davenport; Mr. and Mrs. LeRoy Reinart, Lanesboro; Mr. and Mrs. Art Reinart, Carroll; Mr. and Mrs. H. L. (Lucille) Davis, Omaha; Mr. and Mrs. Edgar (Alita) Snyder, Breda; Mr. and Mrs. C. J. (Lucinda) Ocken, Des Moines and 21 of his 31 grandchildren and 17 of his 29 great-grandchildren held a picnic in his honor.
"We had a big party this year," Reinart said, "but next year will be the biggest ever."
(Note: Unfortunately, Joe Reinart never made it to his centenary birthday party. He died on Feb. 14, 1973, five months shy of his 100th birthday.)
4. Simon Langel – Toy Collection
(Senior Scene. A Special supplement to the Carroll, Iowa, Daily Times Herald, April 17, 1999)
Toy collection: Pride, memories
Who says toys are just for kids?
Simon Langel of Carroll may be 76 years old, but his extensive collection of farm toys is a source of pride for the toys' workmanship and attention to detail. The collection also takes him on enjoyable trips down memory lane.
A large part of his collection consists of replicas of equipment that that could be found on the farm when Langel was a youth or young man.
They hearken back to a time before the monster tractors and combines and all the other complex machinery of today's farm world.
For example, there are a number of pieces of horse-drawn equipment including a two-row planter, a hay binder and wagon with bang boards on the side used for picking corn.
Langel who farmed southwest of Carroll for more than 50 years, took a renewed interest in his hobby when he and his wife, Viola, retired about 15 years ago.
Now, Langel is gradually adding more toys, and he takes his collection to toy shows at such places at Albert City, Iowa, and Butterfield, Minn.
The fun of having such a collection is letting other people enjoy looking at the toys. And his display invariably touches off a lot of story-swapping about farming in the old days.
"Everyplace we go,' Langel says, "people come up and they say, 'Oh God, we used to have one of them on the farm ... Yeah, there's a lot of reminiscing that goes along with it."
Langel not only goes to toy shows. He takes some things from his collection to Arlin Sigmon's annual threshing bee south of Auburn; and he recently set up a display and gave a presentation at Orchard View retirement center in Carroll.
When he takes his toys to shows, they're not for sale. They have too much personal meaning.
"I've had the biggest share since I was a lad," Langel says of his collection. The oldest toy in his collection — a cast-iron manure spreader — probably dates back 70 years.
"Part of the toys he started out with—the cast-iron ones—are actually toys he had as a child," says Simon's son Tom, who along with his wife, Cindy, owns and operates the Good News Book and Gift Store in Carroll.
''Everything that he has," Tom says, "is basically (replicas of equipment) he used as a young man or a youth farming," adding with a laugh, "and I've heard a lot of those stories over and over and over."
The collection has grown over time to include such toys as an 1020 Farmall tractor, an Allis-Chalmers U cast-iron tractor, a handcrafted engine used to power saw mills in the 1800s, and a Maytag wooden washing machine.
Langel is particularly proud of his scale-model water-pump setup that features a handcrafted cherrywood tank and a hit-and-miss engine.
Langel has branched out with his collection to include plastic cars (a 1928 Chevy, '59 Edsel and '40 Ford) and a cast-iron Coca-Cola delivery van.
Tom says the collection has turned into his dad's "pride and joy"
Tom recalls playing with many of the toys when he was a child.
"I had them stored away," Tom says, "and when toys became popular again he (Simon) had me pull them back out, and he's been showing them and putting them on display."
How did Simon happen to have those toys around so long?
"I'm kind of a conservative type man," Simon responds with a laugh. "I still drive a pickup truck that looks just as good as the day it came out of the factory, and it'll be14 years old.".
Tom and his wife added to Simon's toy collection last Christmas, buying him a wooden hay binder.
The workmanship and detail in many of the toys is fascinating, Tom says.
"That hay binder has everything on there, each one of the handles for adjusting the height and tightness," he says. "It's built to, scale and built just about as close 'as you can get it without getting down to the splinters."
As a sidelight to his toy collection, since his retirement Simon has owned a hitch with a couple of miniature ponies that he drives parades each summer. He participates in parades in this area as well as a Living History Farms parade.
The ponies are bred-down Shetlands and are less than 34 inches tall, Langel says. Langel says he started the hitch "just for a love of ponies."
"It's just a hobby," he says.
5. Vincent Langel - 60th Anniversary of Induction into Army
(Daily Times Herald, Carroll, Iowa, Friday, March 30, 2001)
Draftees reunite 60 years later
By BUTCH HEMAN Times Herald Staff Writer
Clarence Fischer, Vincent Langel and Hip Kienapfel were farm boys, not soldiers.
They didn't know a thing about war. Being in their early 20s, they weren't following Hitler's increasing grasp on Europe or the growth of the Japanese military.
The Great Depression might have been past, but times were still incredibly tough on the farm. Families were large and there was always work to be done, and this trio wanted to stay home to keep their families from losing their farms.
Yet there they were on March 26, 1941, standing on the front steps of the old Burke Hotel in downtown Carroll, part of the first group of 10 Carroll County boys drafted for service in World War II.
"It bothered me when my (draft) number came up," Fischer said Monday when the surviving members of the group gathered for a lunch on the 60th anniversary of their departure for war. "I never had been away from home."
Also in the group were Victor Keehner and Herbert Balk of Carroll, Henry Stoffers of Westside, Joseph Capdeville and Ralph McGrath of Manning, Frederick Rudi of Glidden, and Edward Eischeid of Carroll.
Fischer and Langel still live at their hometown of Templeton. Kienapfel moved from Manning to Carroll. Stoffers resides at a Carroll nursing home.
But the rest are gone.
For a number of years, surviving members have met for lunch on the anniversary of their leaving for war. Monday they caught up and relived war stories at the Carrollton Centre restaurant.
Kienapfel, Langel and Fischer are in their 80s now. They recall reporting to the Burke, which was the base for Carroll County's draft board, then posing for a photo that appeared in the Carroll Daily Herald newspaper, but not much else of that day — not because of age, but rather it seems inconsequential compared to what would lie ahead.
"The only thing I remember was kissing my fiancée goodbye," Kienapfel said.
This was nine months before the attack on Pearl Harbor, which thrust the United States into war.
"None of us knew anything about the military," Kienapfel said. "We had never dreamed of going into the Army, because most of the guys who joined up at that time were screw-ups,"
The Carroll boys left town by train at 4:38 a.m. and were taken to Omaha, where they were given physicals and formally inducted into the Army.
Most of them were moved to Fort Leavenworth, Kan., then stationed at Fort Riley, Kan., for basic training.
Kienapfel, Fischer and Langel were placed in the cavalry. Kienapfel was part of a crew ordered to break wild horses to determine which would be best for troop mounts, which should tow artillery and which should carry supplies.
"We spent most of our time on the ground because we always got thrown off," Kienapfel said.
Langel laughed, pointing out that despite his farm background he hated horses.
Fischer was also dreading horse cleanup detail, so when an officer asked for volunteers to be trained as truck drivers, he eagerly stepped forward.
"I got up there and he said 'Here's your truck.' It was a wheelbarrow for carrying manure out of the horse barns," Fischer said with a chuckle.
"Yep, we were pilots," Kienapfel added with a gleam in his eye. "We'd go pile it here and pile it there."
Kienapfel also had the "honor" of dressing like a woman for the base's weekly horse shows.
The cavalry dropped horses in favor of mechanized vehicles shortly before Pearl Harbor. Kienapfel remained with a horse cavalry unit, Langel went to a mechanized outfit and Fischer was assigned to artillery. His 75- millimeter gun was pulled by six horses.
Kienapfel actually went AWOL while stationed at Fort Riley. He finished radio training in Kansas City, then skipped out for a few days so he could marry Eileen.
"She's still waiting for the honeymoon," he said.
The men were moved from Fort Riley after America joined the war. Kienapfel made it to Europe via Australia and Africa. Fischer, who later became a mess sergeant, and Langel rode the Queen Mary across the Atlantic.
It would take several books to do justice to all their war stories, accomplishments and regrets.
Kienapfel helped chase Rommel across Africa, was reassigned to do reconnaissance missions for the Rangers, and he participated in the invasions of Italy and southern France. He was the first Allied officer to enter the freed Rome, and he was among a select few beckoned for a private audience with Pope Pius XII, who gave Kienapfel a medal.
Langel, in the 9th Armored Division, commanded a machine-gun platoon. He was part of two of the war's largest battles: the Battle of the Bulge and the race to cross the Rhine River.
All but 2O in his outfit were captured by Germans in Belgium.
"We were sitting in the end of a timber, and all of a sudden one guy shouts, 'Let's gel the hell out of here!' The Germans were coming. So I ran," Langel said.
"We jumped into a river, climbed out the other side, hid in another timber and dried off, then we walked all night. It was pitch dark and foggier than hell. We walked right into the 101 st Airborne. They almost shot us because they thought we were Germans,"
Langel was seriously hurt by shrapnel from a German bomb. Near the end of the war, his traffic column had to stop somewhere in eastern Germany because of a blown-out bridge. When an enemy plane was spotted, Langel ordered his men to spread out in a field.
"I ran under this halftrack, but the bomb landed four feet away from me. I damned neared got blown clear out of Germany," Langel said.
He spent the last weeks of the European campaign in an English hospital.
Fischer laughs and says his war tales aren't as exciting. He did have one close call, however. While starting to serve one meal outdoors, the Germans attacked with antipersonnel bombs. A chunk of shrapnel was blown through the roof of a truck and lodged in a slab of Fischer's bacon.
The soldiers were supposed to draw 21 bucks a month, Fischer recalled, but with laundry, insurance and other deductions, the result was usually around $11.
"We needed that in $1 bills, because all the gambling places took ones," he said. "On payday, that's all you did was play poker or craps."
When drafted, the men had been told they'd serve for a year. It turned out to be five.
"They felt like 50 years," Langel said.
They still have hard feelings about World War II.
"The whole damned thing was politics," Kienapfel said. "After (President Franklin D.) Roosevelt spent all that money and had us drafted, he had to use it.
"... The invasions of Sicily, Solerno and southern France — whoever heard of them? They're not in the books. You see, if you didn't have a lot of casualties, you didn't get any ink."
Upon returning home, the men resumed farming with their families.
Fischer raised five children, Kienapfel one, and Langel never married.
What these men endured over five years in their young lives in incomprehensible to the last few generations.
"You can't even explain it to them," Langel said. "They can't understand what we went through. But I think it was something that we had to do, get into that war.
6. Joseph Friedman(n) Family – 1899
(Der Carroll Demokrat, Special 25th Anniversary Edition, Friday, 20 September, 1899. English translation by David Reineke)
Joseph Friedmann
And this gentleman, a very respected farmer, is also an early settler because he has lived in Roselle Township since 1872. And, even more notable, he still lives today on the dear old soil that he initially acquired. Mr. Joseph Friedmann was born on 26 September 1844 in Stark County, Ohio. When he was a boy of 11 years, his parents moved to Dubuque County, Iowa. After little Joseph had acquired his further schooling here, he chose the same occupation as his father and became a farmer. He worked as an exemplary son for his parents until his 27th year. On 27 July 1871, he married Miss Maria Götzinger, a well-brought-up woman from Luxembourg. In October of the same year, Mr. Friedmann purchased a 160-acre farm in Roselle Township, Carroll County, and he moved to Roselle Township on 14 March 1872 with his young wife. They lived in the hospitable home of Mr. Buchheit until April of that same year, at which time they moved onto their farm, which from year to year, through fencing the land, and the building of barns, stables, and a fine residence, they have raised to its present state. A part of the history of Roselle Township and Carroll County is connected to the efforts of Mr. Friedmann. He experienced a great deal of the early days of German settlement in the county, and Mr. Friedmann has always been an honorable citizen and a reliable father, and so he and his family have earned the fullest measure of respect. This happy marriage has produced 14 children, of whom the following are still living: Anton, Mathias, Anna, Elisabeth, Katharina, John, Helena, Theresia, Peter, Joseph, and Wilhelm.
7. Johann Meisel Family – 1899
(Der Carroll Demokrat, Special 25th Anniversary Edition, Friday, 20 September, 1899. English translation by David Reineke)
Johann Meisel
In the above portrait is presented an excellent picture of Mr. Johann Meisel and his respected wife. Mr. Meisel was born on 2 November 1830 in Odenhausen, District of Erfurt, Province of Saxony. After successfully attending school, he learned the trade of linen weaver, and he lived with his parents until he was 23 years old. On 10 August 1853, he married Miss Friederika Stange, after which he worked another two years at his trade in his hometown. He then immigrated with his young wife to the United States of North America and settled in Peru County, Illinois. He then took up farming, and he rented a farm where he lived for three years with his wife. They then purchased an 80-acre farm in Peru County, and after a few years they purchased an additional 96 acres. They lived on this farm for 29 years, and they then sold the land and moved to Roselle Township, Carroll County, Iowa, where they acquired 120 acres. They later purchased another 85 acres in Washington Township, and a while later another 160 acres, so that their entire real estate consists of 365 acres of the finest land, which, because of its excellent location, its quality of soil, and its good and solid buildings, may be considered among the most valuable of properties. After many years of the greatest industriousness and extremely hard work, the couple longed for retirement. So, Mr. Meisel and his wife purchased an elegant home in the First Ward in Carroll and moved there in 1894, in order to enjoy the fruits of their successful labor. They have lived here now for five years, and they are among the most respected German-American families, and they are very respected and popular among all their acquaintances because of their great integrity and their compassion for the sufferings of others. This very happy marriage has produced seven children: Augusta, married to Mr. Anton Hoffart; Anna, married to Mr. Nickolaus Backes; Johanna, married to Mr. Fred. Hoscheid [possibly should be Hoscheit]; Maria, married to Mr. Albert Hoscheid [Hoscheit]; Heinrich, married to Miss Julia Guegel; Benjamin, married to Miss Katharina Williams; and Emma, married to Mr. Heinrich Rose.
8. Mathias Reinart Family – 1899
(Der Carroll Demokrat, Special 25th Anniversary Edition, Friday, 20 September, 1899. English translation by David Reineke)
Mathias Reinart
With this gentleman we are also dealing with an early pioneer of Carroll County, who came to Carroll County as early as 1873 with his plow and furrowed the prairie.
Mr. Mathias Reinart was born on 24 February 1836 in Trier, in the Rhine Province. He spent the years of his youth in his hometown, the place where he tumbled about in cheerful high spirits and attended school. When he finished school and had received First Holy Communion, he took up farming like his father, and he worked until his 19th year. His parents then immigrated to America, and arriving in this country, they settled in Cascade, Iowa. In the following year, 1856, the family moved to Houston County, Minnesota. On 5 April 1862, Mr. Mathias Reinhart [sic] married the well-brought-up Miss Susanna Friedmann. The young couple then independently operated a 140-acre farm, which they took over from their parents, and where they lived another 11 years. In 1873, after selling the home farm in Minnesota, they moved to Roselle Township, Carroll County, Iowa, where Mr. Reinart purchased a 120-acre farm. He got the farm in order, equipped it with fences, barns, and a fine residence. He later purchased two additional 80-acre parcels, of which, however, he sold 40 acres.
Mr. Reinart thus has real estate holdings of 240 acres of the finest land in Roselle Township, and he and his dear and upstanding wife and children enjoy an excellent reputation among all their acquaintances. This happy marriage has produced 12 children, three of whom, however, have died, a child of 11 years, one of 5 years, and one of 9 months. The names of the children still living are: Nickolaus, Magdalena, Josephina, Elisabeth, Joseph, Peter, Maria, Johann, and Anna. The two sons Joseph and Peter, of whom Joseph married last winter, will operate their parents’ farm in the future.
Mr. Mathias Reinart and his wife, who both find themselves at an advanced age and have behind them a life full of worries and cares, will soon enter into a well-deserved retirement. May they yet enjoy many years of good health and experience only joy from their children as payment for their hard work and troubles.
9. Charles Eich Family – 1983
(Halbur, Iowa, Centennial Book, 1883-1983)
Charles Eich -- Charles, son of Franz and Katherine Walterscheid Eich, was born November 27, 1878. He married Anna Reinart, daughter of Matthew and Susanna Friedman Reinart, on April 30, 1907, at Holy Angels Church in Roselle. Anna's birthdate was March 18, 1886.
The Eichs lived their entire married life on a farm southeast of Halbur. They were the parents of twelve children. Anna died in infancy. Loretta, a twin of Anna, was born March 14, 1908 and died August 28, 1924. Alvin, born December 30, 1909, died March 18, 1970; Alvira, now Sister Ricarda, was born September 13, 1912; Evelyn, born May 18, 1915; Lucy, born June 26, 1917; Ray, born March 24, 1919; Helen, June 13, 1921; Sally, born May 15, 1923; Kay, born February 28, 1925; Herbert, born November 14, 1927; and Mildred, born September 14, 1929.
Anna died May 27, 1951; Charles died May 29, 1958.
10. Herbert Eich Family – 1983
(Halbur, Iowa, Centennial Book, 1883-1983)
Eich Farm
Herbert Eich -- Franz Eich and his wife Katherine, original owners of the Eich land, were born in Germany. After their marriage in their native country, they immigrated to the United States, first settling near Mendota, Illinois. In 1874 they migrated to Carroll County, locating on a farm southeast of Halbur. The land was bought for $7.75 per acre in 1878. Franz and Catherine became the parents of three sons and three daughters: Joseph, Charles, Frank, Katharine, Elizabeth, and Gertrude (Sister Mary Lucia). Frank died March 12, 1908, and Katharine died March 30, 1921. The second generation to own and operate the farm was Charles, second oldest son of Franz and Katharine. The land was purchased by Charles in 1916. Charles married Anna Reinart and they became the parents of twelve children: Loretta, Alvin, Alvira, Evelyn, Lucy, Ray, Helen, Sally, Kay, Herbert, and Mildred. Charles' entire lifetime was spent on this farm. He died May 29, 1958 and Anna died May 27, 1951. In 1959 Charles' youngest son, Herbert, became the new own and operator of the farm. He is a prosperous grain farmer and also raises hogs and cattle. The Eich land has been in the family for 105 years.
11. Louis Eischeid Family – 1983
(Halbur, Iowa, Centennial Book, 1883-1983)
Louis Eischeid -- Louis, son of Theordore and Anna Wittrock Eischeid, was born at Carroll. His childhood years were spent on a farm northeast of Halbur. His schooling was obtained at St. Augustine's. He then helped his father farm until his enlistment in the U.S. Air Force in December 1950.
On June 3, 1952, Louis married Irene Langel, daughter of Adolph and Gladys Reinart Langel, at Sacred Heart Church, Templeton. The Eischeids lived in Denver, Colorado and Las Vegas, Nevada, where Louis was stationed while completing his tour of duty. In 1953, he received his discharge and returned to farming in the Halbur area.
Louis and Irene have a family of eight children. Joyce is married to Gene Wessling and they make their home in Carroll; they have two daughters, Lisa and Tanya. Joyce is employed at General Electric. Scott married JoAnn Konz and they live in Roscoe, Illinois; he is manager of "Arby's Roast Beef," in Rockford, Illinois. Alan married Lisa Halbur and they live on a farm near Halbur with their son, Jason. Steve married Joleen Venner and he is also employed by General Electric. Cheryl, married to Randy Theulen, is a registered nurse at St. Anthony's Hospital in Carroll. Cheryl, Randy and their son, Trevor, live in Halbur. Sue Ann is married to Mark Hoffman and they have a son, Justin; she works at the Family Health Clinic in Carroll. Mary Kay is employed by mutual of Omaha. Jean is a student at Kuemper High.
All the Eischeid children attended school at Halbur and graduated from Kuemper High school. Louis and Irene recently moved to a farm northeast of Halbur, where Louis lived as a boy. The Eischeid family are members of St. Augustine Parish.
12. Joseph Friedman Family – 1983
(Halbur, Iowa, Centennial Book, 1883-1983)
Joseph Friedman, Sr. -- A true pioneer and one of the first settlers in the Halbur community was Joseph Friedman. He was born in Masillon, Ohio, in 1844, the son of Anton and Elizabeth Wenzel. He moved to eastern Missouri with his parents when he was quite young. From there they migrated to Luxemburg, Iowa, where he grew up. There he met and married Marie Goetzinger on June 27, 1871. She was the daughter of Peter and Mary Ernster Goetzinger. The following March Joseph and Marie arrived in Carroll county and settled on a farm one-half mile southeast of Halbur.
Mr. Friedman purchased 120 acres of raw prairie for about $5 per acre from the railroad, possibly the North Western Railroad, who obtained the land as a grant from the government. At the time they built their little frame house their nearest neighbor was two miles away; there were no roads, and Carroll was their nearest trading place. They attended church services in a little frame building in Mt. Carmel. (In recent years this was the John Buelt farm.)
Five of the Friedman children lived most of their adult lives in Halbur: Matt, who married Mary Kerper, had the harness shop in Halbur for many years; Catherine and Lena lived together in a home across the street and east of the church; Pete, who married Betty Sherbring; and Joe, who married Mathida Spangler, operated the farm implement business in Halbur.
Their other children were: Anton, who married Catherine Williams, and Anna (Mrs. John Halbur), who lived in Iona, Minnesota; Elizabeth (Mrs. Henry Haverman), who lived in Roselle; John, who married Clara Dopheide, lived in Ogallala, Nebraska; Theresa (Mrs. Henry Eischeid) of Elgin, Nebraska; and Will, who married Annette Bronke, living in Lake Worth, Florida.
After retiring from framing, Joseph Sr. and Marie moved to Halbur into the house where Tony Vogl now resides. Joseph Sr. died August 12, 1926; his wife preceded him in death on April 7 1922.
13. Lawrence Gehling Family – 1983
(Gilmore City, Iowa, Centennial Book, 1883-1983)
Lawrence Gehling Family Move to Gilmore City in 1944
Lawrence Gehling and family moved from Willey, Iowa in the Spring of 1944 to a farm one mile north of Gilmore City, Iowa (presently Hallet's Limestone Quarry). He was the first of the Gehling's to arrive in Gilmore City. A few years later his parents, Henry and Regina Gehling moved to Gilmore City from Clare, Iowa where they also farmed Hallet's Limestone Quarry. They in turn were followed by some of their children: Albert, Erwin, Paul and Frances (Gehling) Wendl. Only Lawrence and his parents remained in Gilmore City. Henry died in 1958 and Regina in 1975. Both are buried in St. John's Cemetery west of town.
Lawrence spent 35 of the next 38 years in Gilmore City. Twenty-five of those years were as City Marshall. Other occupations he held were farmer, truck driver, mechanic and drill press operator. He retired in the Spring of 1981 and lived at 205 NW "A" Ave. Prior to moving there, he lived 27 years at 212 SW "E" Ave.
Lawrence was born May 9, 1916 in Carroll, Iowa and married Genevieve Reinart, who was born February 10, 1920 in Halbur, Iowa. They were married October 28, 1937. They have seven children: Lois Mulroney, Richard, Donald, Connie Bachoroski, Bonnie Clarke (Clark), Tom and Charlie. Lois presently lives in Fort Dodge, Iowa. Donald died his first year, and Bonnie lives in Rolfe, Iowa. All the rest live in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Lawrence died August 19, 1982 and is buried in St. John's Cemetery. Genevieve moved to Colorado Springs shortly thereafter.
Henry and Regina Gehling came to Gilmore City in 1945, coming from Clare, Iowa. They purchased an 80 acre farm one-half mile north of town. Virginia, their youngest attended high school here and graduated in 1948. They were the parents of seven children: Frances Lawrence, Ervin (Erwin), Clarence, Paul, Albert, and Virginia. All but Clarence lived in the Gilmore City area during the 40's and 50's.
Francis married Leo Wendl. They lived on a farm east of Gilmore City (the present Trouse Davis farm) with their five children, Mary Lou, Joan, Mark, Mike, and Janice. Frances passed away in 1976 and is buried in LeMars, Iowa. Their son Mark Wendl lived in Gilmore City with his wife Ann and family in the early '50's.
Lawrence and Genevieve's story precedes.
Erwin and Gertrude bought the land north of town and lived there with their three children, Diane, Dennis, and Delbert, until they sold the farm to Missouri Valley Limestone and moved to a farm south of Emmetsburg, Iowa.
Clarence and his wife Florence live in Grand Meadow, Minn. They have four children.
Paul and Rita lived on the Mullin farm one-half mile north of town and also on the Fitzgerald farm six miles south of town until they moved to their farm in Blooming Prairie, Minn. in the late 1950's. Their children are Mary Jo, Kathy, John, Susan, Teresa, Michael and Patrick.
Albert and Lois came to Gilmore City around 1950 from Bayard. They farmed the farm north of town and Al drove the school bus. They farmed the Wiegert farm and the May Roberts farm before moving to Rockwell City. Shiela and Dan were born while in Gilmore City and twin daughters, Carleen and Colleen were born while in Rockwell City. Colleen died at the age of 6 months. The family then moved to Albuquerque, NM and to Denver, Colo. before buying a farm in Grand Meadow, Minn. They presently live in Stewartville, Minn. but Albert is still farming with his son, Dan. Lois has been employed in Rochester.
Virginia married Melvin Broih (Broich) and lived in Carroll for two years before moving to Lake View, Ia. where they are in partnership with a Ford Dealership. Their children are, Steve, Tom, Jim and Bill. They have three grandchildren.
Henry died in 1958 and Regina died in 1975 and are buried in St. John's Cemetery.
14. Mathias Reinart Family – 1983
(Halbur, Iowa, Centennial Book, 1883-1983)
Mathias Reinart -- On April 5, 1864, Mathias Reinart and Susanna Friedman were married at Luxemburg, Iowa in Dubuque County. Their early married years were spent at Caledonia, Minnesota, where Mathias was a farmer on the land he purchased in 1864. The first five of their children were born at Caledonia. In 1870, Matthias moved his family to Carroll County to a farm near Roselle. The children attended school which had German speaking teachers. They learned to read in German and their Catechism was also taught in German.
Twelve children were born to their union: Anton, William, John Ludwig, Josephine, Nicholas, Lena, Joseph, Peter, John, Anna, Mary, and Elizabeth. Anton, William and John Ludwig died just a few months apart and likely from the same disease. Josephine Reinart Neu died at the age of 58. Most of the Reinarts lived long lives. Mathias died at the age of 84 and Susanna at 91. Their children, Nicholas died at 69, Lena at 88, Joseph at 99, Peter at 85, John at 94, Anna at 65, and Mary at 101. Elizabeth died in Texas in 1982 at the age of 111 years. She lived under the administration of 22 presidents and the reign of six popes. One thousand four hundred thirty-six people claim to be descendants of Mathias and Susanna Reinart.
All the children were married in Iowa. Three of them, Nicholas, Josephine and Elizabeth, moved to Texas, probably for the climate and the availability of land. The remaining children stayed in Iowa except for Mary, who moved to Nebraska.
In June of 1914 the Reinarts celebrated their Golden Wedding Anniversary with all their children present for the occasion.
Upon retiring, the couple moved to a large frame house in Halbur, which is presently owned and occupied by the Vernon Riesselman family.
15. Peter Reinart Family – 1983
(Halbur, Iowa, Centennial Book, 1883-1983)
Peter Reinart -- Peter Reinart was born near Roselle, Iowa on April 14, 1878. He married Mary Hoffert, a native of Axtell, Nebraska, on January 23, 1905. Peter and Mary farmed until 1927, when they moved to Halbur where he was employed as a janitor for several years. Peter then worked as a carpenter with Nick Goetzinger until his retirement in 1955.
Four daughters were born to the Reinarts: Gladys, Bertille, Mary and Genevieve. Gladys married Adolf Langel; she died in 1940. Bertille married Leo Thielen and they live on a farm south of Manning. Mary is married to W.A. Buccholz and they live in Jasper, Indiana. Genevieve married Lawrence Gehling and they reside at Gilmore City, Iowa.
Peter died June 21, 1963. Mary died August 17, 1956.