Francois (Frank) Loescher – Family In America?

I have written before about Francois Loescher, my second great grandfather, who was born in Reichstett, Alsase  on 2 October 1848. (1)  His life and death in his new county was all to short for his wife, children and friends in Peoria and Kickapoo, Illinois.  But what about his journey to America?  Did he come alone or was he with a family member?  Well…you guessed it!  There is another family story that has been passed down to me.  

The Story –

In 1977 my great grandmother, Lucy Loescher Stenger, daughter of Francois, gave an oral history to the Peoria County Bicentennial Commission. (2)  In this interview she recalls her understanding of her father’s coming to America.

“My dad came from Alsace Lorraine, France.  He and a cousin came over together.  He came to Peoria but his cousin went to Colchester and it was years and years later that they met again – 25 years afterward.  It was through a fellow who was going through town.  He remembered this man in Colchester and he mentioned him to grandpa and grandpa recognized the name that was a cousin.  I remember that – it was after we moved to Kickapoo.” (2)

Other versions of this story I have heard say that the “fellow” mentioned in Lucy’s story was a peddler who would pass through Kickapoo periodically.  The next time the peddler was in Colchester he told the cousin about the Kickapoo Loescher family.  At some point the Colchester cousin and some of his family came to Kickapoo.  There was great rejoicing at this family reunion and it was the talk of Kickapoo for some time to come.

I have always enjoyed reunion stories and this one is no exception especially since it is one within my own ancestors.  How exciting to be reunited with family that you have lost track of and who knew you when you were young.  Imagine the excitement there must have been in both men’s families to introduce their wives and children to extended family members.

But is this story true?  Is there another Loescher family out there that I am related to?

The Search –

About ten years ago I started searching to see if I could find another Loescher family in Colchester, Illinois.  Colchester is a town in McDonough County in western Illinois.  I did some searches on Ancestry.com and initially came up empty.  But then I decided to search using alternative spellings for the last name.  Bingo!!  I found several people in a public member tree with the name of “Lescher”.   The head of that family tree was a “Lawrence Lescher” who died in McDonough County in 1929 and was born in 1848.  Wow…right place, right age but was this my “Colchester cousin”?

I sent a message to the tree owner and told them about this family story and that I was trying to find out if there was any possibility that this “Lawrence Lescher” could be related to me.  It was not very long after that the tree owner replied that “Lawrence Lescher” was an ancestor of hers.  She did not know much about him before he came to the US and really did not know when he came over or where he came from.  All she knew was about his life in Colchester once Lawrence settled there.  She was very interested in the story though and the possibility that we were related.  We agreed we would keep in touch and that both of us would continue to search for additional information that could positively tie our families together.

And Along Comes DNA –

About a year ago I decided it was time to take a DNA test to see what that could do for some of my research “brick walls”.  There was not a specific reason for testing other than to find new cousins along branches of my tree that are rather thin.  Fortunately, I was also able to convince both of my parents to test also.  I was hoping that this would be helpful in sorting out matches as to which side of the family I should look to find common ancestors.  Also, because they were one generation older than I was I might find more matches with their results than just me doing the testing alone.

Once I got all of the initial results from all of us, I had many more DNA matches than I was expecting.  Most were on my mom’s side and most of them I was able to identify as being on my maternal grandfather’s family.  But…there were a couple of matches that were particularly interesting to me.  There was no common ancestor in our family trees so that meant I had to really dig through the match’s trees to see if I could recognize any surnames.  And there it was…..Lescher!!  Sure enough these two very distant DNA matches were descendants of the Lawrence Lescher I had found some years ago.

I reached out to the person who was managing the DNA results for these two matches only to find out it was the same person I had been in touch with previously.  The matches were siblings of hers.  The amount of DNA we share is not large so it definitely means there are several generations between our common ancestors.

But the amount of shared DNA also means that it is more than just a coincidence.  It strengthens our hypothesis that the Colchester, Illinois Lescher family is in some way related to the Loescher family of Kickapoo, Illinois.

Next Steps –

Well…as is usually the case with family history and genealogy, more research is needed.  We need to figure out for sure how our families are (or if) they are related.  We need to determine if Lawrence and Francois came over together from Alsace to America.  We need to identify our common ancestor.  None of this will be easy or quick and some of the research will need to be done in Alsace.

Lessons Learned –

This situation has taught me several things.  Don’t ever give up on a brick wall or a trail that has gone cold.  Keep searching; keep looking; keep digging.  Secondly, the power of DNA to unlock and reignite the past is powerful.  It is a highly useful tool to us in conjunction with the well-defined research roadmap for traditional genealogy. 

Finally…Family stores and family lore are very important and need to be documented and researched just as any other genealogy research question.  Many times there is at least some degree of truth to them and in this case they could be vital to unlocking another part of my past and family tree.

Links To Related Posts - 

The Death of Frank Loescher - Kickapoo, Illinois
The Loescher Saloon - Kickapoo, Illinois
Frank A Loescher - The Oldest and Only Son
Rose Loescher - The Mystery of Her Birth

_____________________________________

(1) Copy of Civil birth registration for “Loescher, Francois” from the Counsel General of Bas-Rhin.  This was obtained by a French cousin for the author in 2014..

(2) Lucy Loescher Stenger, Peoria County, Illinois, interview by Peg Kronenberg for the Peoria County Bicentenial Commission, 31 May 1977; transcript of interview, tape 46, copy privately held by author, 2007.

Copyright ©2016 – Diane Minor – All Rights Reserved.

The Death of Frank Loescher – Kickapoo, Illinois

Family stories.  Many families have tales that are passed down from one generation to another.  As with any oral tradition though, the accuracy of these events is always in question.  Especially when the questioner (me) is a few generations removed from the actual event.  One such story passed down in my family is about the death of Frank Loescher.

Francois Loescher is my great great grandfather.  He was born in Alsace in October 1848 (1).  Sometime around 1870 or 1871 he left France which was at war with Germany and came to the United States.  I will write in a future post about his immigration.  He made his way to Peoria, Illinois and through city directories we can trace his path around town as he worked in one brewery or pub after another.  As part of his integration into the culture of his new home he began going by the name “Frank”.  In November 1879, he married Rosa Nufer at Joseph’s Church in Peoria. (2)  After their third child, Lucy, was born the family of five moved to Kickapoo, Illinois in the spring of 1886 and took up residence there.  Lucy Loescher is my maternal great grandmother.  From this point the family began to grow in size and also in property.  Frank acquired a number of blocks in the small town west of the Kickapoo-Edwards Road.  (See links below for other relevant posts about this family.) 

On this property Frank had a family home built that also housed what came to be known as “The Loescher Saloon”.  Today this house still stands on US Route 150 in Kickapoo.  Frank also ran a livery, ice house and a small farming operation.  They also offered overnight accommodations in their home above the saloon.  No doubt Frank and Rose were very busy with all of these businesses and their expanding family.  Eventually they were to have one son and seven daughters.

Figure 1- Francois (Frank) Loescher

The family story that has come down to me is that Frank died from a fall down the basement steps of his home.  He was not found for some time and eventually died. His death occurred on 1 May 1902 making him just 53 years old. (3)  His youngest child, Veronica, was only four and a half years old.  No doubt Rose and his children and people in town were all shocked by this turn of events.  His family must have been stunned as well as scared about how they were going to get along without the head of the house.

I realize now that in hearing this story several times growing up I added some assumptions to it.  Now I have tried to turn those “extra” parts of the story into questions to determine what is the truth and what is not.  The first assumption I made was that he must have tripped as he was going down steps.  But hadn’t he walked those same steps many times before?  Could this be accurate?  Another addition to the story I surmised was that he must have been found dead.  But was that really the case?  What other bits and pieces of the story were left out or lost in time?  Here we go….back in time!

I have been able to acquire several documents and newspaper articles about Frank’s injury and death which have been very helpful in putting a more robust story together.  First off was a search for a death certificate.  In 1902, birth and death certificates were not required by the state of Illinois.  So the records that do exist in Peoria County prior to 1916 when the state requirement went into effect are spotty at best.  But there is a county death certificate for him. (3)  It is signed by the county coroner who I believe was summoned to Kickapoo because of the fall down the stairs.  The death certificate says that there was an “injury right side of head.  Skull cracked.”  But what happened and when did the injury take place.  Newspaper articles would help with this.

A news article in the Brimfield (Illinois) News provides some information about the circumstances of the injury. (4)

“Frank Loescher, the saloon keeper at Kickapoo, met with a serious accident Saturday evening.  He in some way fell down a stair way and fractured his skull.  Physicians from Peoria were summoned and made him as comfortable as possible.  At last accounts he was resting well and it was thought he would recover.”

But recovery was not to be.  The next edition of the Brimfield (Illinois) News contains Frank’s obituary.

There are several articles from the Peoria (Illinois) Star about Frank and his fall. (5)

“Mr. Louscher fell down cellar and received a severe wound on his head.  Dr. Bradley assisted, by his father, Sunday, performed an operation and reports are favorable for his recovery.”

“Accidental Death.  At Kickapoo yesterday Coroner Harper held an inquest on the body of Frank Loescher, the saloonkeeper who died early yesterday morning from the effects of a fall down a stairway where his skull was fractured.  The jury returned a verdict of accidental death.

“FRANK LOESCHER DEAD.  Kickapoo Man, Whose Skull Was Fractured Passes Away.  Frank Loescher, Sr., who fell and fractured his skull at Kickapoo as stated in The Star yesterday, died this morning at 5 o’clock.  Night before last he fell while going into the cellar of his saloon and crushed his skull, not being found for an hour after the accident.  The deceased was 53 years old and had resided in Kickapoo for sixteen years.  Previous to that he was an employe of the old Huber brewery of this city.  He leaves a wife, one son and seven daughters.  The funeral will be held at the house Saturday morning at 9:30, thence to St. Mary’s church in Kickapoo and interment will be in St. Patrick’s cemetery.

Coroner Harper was notified of the death and drove out to Kickapoo this morning to hold an inquest.”

My first thought when reading these articles is for my great grandmother Lucy and her mother Rose.  What a horror it must have been to have all of the doctors and investigation officials hanging around the house.  Oh how I wish I had been able to talk to Lucy about this and get her thoughts before she died.  Also, the idea of surgery in 1902 would not have been pleasant.  The operation was performed at the family home which by today’s standards is just awful.  I guess it was thought that to move him to Peoria for a better treatment environment would have been fatal.

All of these details from the newspaper and death certificate put substance to the story of how Frank died.  But it does not really set out a good timeline of events because the way that these newspaper editions were published had several of these articles in the same edition….just on different pages.  Where could I get a better idea of a timeline of events?

I next went to the Peoria County Coroner’s office to see if I could get a copy of the Coroner’s inquest file.  The newspaper articles indicate the coroner came to town and held one.  But, sadly, to date I have not been able to get anybody at the Coroner’s office to help me with this.  They do not seem to be interested in looking to see if inquest files from 1902 actually still exist.  But periodically I keep asking.  Maybe one day I will find somebody at the office who will take this on.

This research was all done more than ten years ago and I was beginning to think that unless I could get the inquest file that I may have had all the information and documents there were on this subject.  But that thinking was thankfully wrong!

In 2015 I got Frank Loescher’s probate file. (6)  At the time I was more interested in finding out what the property was that Frank and Rose had at the time of Frank’s death.  (There is another family story about this that I will write about in a future post.)  When I was told by the Peoria County Circuit Clerk what the charge was to get a copy of the entire probate file I knew it was going to be large.  There are all of the normal items in the file including tax records and a property inventory that helped answer the questions for my original intention. 

But…….there is one small item that I initially overlooked because it was hard to read.  It’s a doctor bill from Frank’s accident and the treatment provided!  Not only has that but the invoice included a record of treatment that Frank received in the month’s prior to the accident and death.  Oh my gosh….a small little piece of paper that was an invoice for services rendered would reignite my research into building a timeline of events around my great great grandfather’s death!  To say I was excited when I realized what I had is an understatement.

Figure 2 - Doctor Bill from Frank Loescher Probate File

“May 26^th 1902

Mrs. Rosa Loescher

Kickapoo, Illinois

Dr. R. C. Bradley

1901

Dec 21   Med. Frank         75 [$0.75]

24           Extracting Tooth               50 [$0.50]

1902

Jan. 1     Med. Frank         75 [$0.75]

   28        Headach capsules            30 [$0.30]

Feb 19   Med. Frank         75 [$0.75]

Mch 1    Med. Frank         75 [$0.75]

9              “              “              75 [$0.75]

26           “     Frankie          50 [$0.50]

Apr 16   Horse Medicine                  1.00 [$1.00]

“ 26        2 Visits Franks      2.00 [$2.00]

“ 27        Assisting in Surg att         5.00 [$5.00)

“ 28        Visit       1.00        [$1.00]

                Extra Med           .75 [$0.75]

“ 29        3 Visits  3.00        [$3.00]

“ 30        “              3.00        [$3.00]

May 2    Med. Frankie     .30  [$0.30]

                                                21 10      [$21.10]

[Along Right Hand Side of document; written top to bottom]

May 27 ?? Cash                 $10.00

June 14 ?? Cash                                10.00

[In Center of document; written from top to bottom]

Paid in full

Oct. 21^st 1902

R. C. Bradley”

Who knew that doctors dispensed horse medicine??  Based on all of the information I have gathered to date, here is my timeline of events for the death of Frank Loescher.

Date	Event
Saturday, April 26, 1902	Frank Loescher falls down the stairs of his saloon.  He is not found for an hour.
Sunday, April 27, 1902	Surgery is performed on Frank Loescher for his skull fracture at his home in Kickapoo, Illinois.
Monday – Wednesday, April 28 – 30, 1902	Doctors monitor Frank’s condition at home.
Thursday, May 1, 1902 at 5 am	Frank Loescher dies at his home in Kickapoo, Illinois.

But, as is usually the case, I have new questions.   What caused the fall to occur in the first place?  I had originally thought he just tripped but after seeing this doctor bill I am not so sure.  There are several entries for headache and other medicine for Frank from January through March 1902.  What was this medicine and what was he being treated for?  Was there some condition he had that could have caused him to fall?  Could the medicine he was being given caused him to fall? 

More so than ever I want to get a copy of the Coroner’s Inquest file.  Likely his family and doctors would have testified and may have provided some insight into his health and the circumstances surrounding the fall.  So I have been able to confirm some parts of the family story but new questions have arisen.  Up Next – More Research!!

Links to related posts -

Frank A Loescher The Oldest and Only Son

The Loescher Saloon

Rose Loescher - The Mystery of Her Birth

_______________________________________________________________

(1)  Copy of Civil birth registration for “Loescher, Francois” from the Counsel General of Bas-Rhin.  This was obtained by a French cousin for me in 2014.

(2)  Peoria County, Illinois, marriage certificate, Frank Loescher and Rosa Nufer, date of marriage 2 Nov 1879, Peoria County Clerk, Peoria.

(3)  Peoria County, Illinois, death certificate no. not given (1 May 1902), Frank Loescher, Peoria County Clerk, Peoria.

(4) "Frank Loescher," Brimfield (Illinois) News, 1 May 1902; microfilm, Brimfield Public Library.

(5)  "Kickapoo," Peoria (Illinois) Star, ca. late April 1902; microfilm, Peoria Public Library, 2005.  "Accidental Death," Peoria (Illinois) Star, May 1902; microfilm, Peoria Public Library, 2005.  "Frank Loescher Dead; Kickapoo Man, Whose Skull Was Fractured Passes Away," Peoria (Illinois) Star, 1 May 1902; microfilm, Peoria Public Library, 2005.

(6) Peoria County Circuit Court, Peoria County, Illinois, Probate Files, probate file no. 5941, Frank Loescher; Peoria County Circuit Clerk.

Copyright ©2016 – Diane Minor – All Rights Reserved. 

Joseph L Stenger – Kickapoo, Illinois

My great grandfather, Joseph L Stenger turned 138 on August 25, 2016. (1) I only have very faint memories of him as he died when I was just four years old.  My maternal grandmother would take me with her to visit him in the nursing home and I would share my candy with him.  Wonder if he remembers that too?

He was born in a farm just south of Kickapoo, Illinois to Frank and Anna Maria Schmitt Stenger. (1)  He was a first generation immigrant whose parents had both come to the United States from Germany separately as children.  Joe was their eighth of nine children and their youngest son.  He would have grown up with not just his siblings but many cousins as well.  The Stenger and Schmitt families in Kickapoo were prolific and he would have found his school and church filled with many close and extended family members.

Figure 1 - Joseph L Stenger - First Communion

Lucy Loescher would have moved to Kickapoo from Peoria, Illinois with her parents in 1886 when Joseph L was about seven years old.  She was an infant at the time of her arrival in town.  Lucy’s parents ran several businesses in the area.  They both would have attended church and school at St Mary’s in Kickapoo so they certainly knew each other and their families well. 

Joe and Lucy married at St Mary’s Church in Kickapoo on 23 May 1905. (2) This was a “double ring” ceremony as Lucy’s older sister Mame married Bernard “Ben” Heinz on the same day.  In many families, the youngest son would normally be looking for a job or farm to live on away from their parents.  The older sons in the family tended to take on their father’s farms.  But in the Frank Stenger family, the older boys made their homes away from Kickapoo.  The oldest son went to Mendota, Illinois and then two others (along with a sister and brother in law) moved to Platte County, Nebraska in the 1890’s.

Figure 2 - Left to Right - Lucy Loescher, Joseph L Stenger, Mame Loescher, Bernard "Ben" Heinz on their wedding day

Joe’s remaining local brother Henry and his wife Emma took over their father’s farm while Joe and Lucy made their home just down the lane.  Today this is on the north side of the Kickapoo-Edwards exit on Interstate 74 in Illinois.  Lucy had seven children and one still born infant – Frank, Monica, Mary, Clementine, Joseph S, Rose and Florence.  Joe and Lucy’s children would walk to school about a mile each way into Kickapoo along with their Henry Stenger cousins.  It must have been wonderful when the weather was nice but the winters would have been hard.

Joe was not yet middle age by the time that both of his parents had died.  He was 32 years old when his mother died in 1910 and 40 when his father passed in 1918.  But, his mother-in-law, Rose Nufer Loescher was still going strong!  She was a seemingly larger than life figure in Kickapoo and especially in the lives of her children and grandchildren.  (See the end of this article for links to related blog posts about the Loeschers.)  In 1927 Rose Loescher had a will drawn up for herself.  There is nothing unusual about that as she had quite a bit of property and personal effects that would need to be disposed of when she died.  What is unusual I think is who she named to manage her estate and be responsible for the probate process.  Rose had eight children.  Her oldest and only son, Frank A Loescher would have been the natural choice as her executor.  But she went down a different path.  Her will names two executors – her son Frank A and her son-in-law, Joseph L Stenger (3). 

This designation is interesting to me in a couple of ways.  First there is the issue of a mother publicly indicating in her will that her oldest and only son was likely not up to the task of settling his mother’s estate without help.  But given that she felt the need to provide some assistance to her son in the role of executor why did Rose select Joe Stenger?  She had six son-in-laws at the time she drafted her will.  (One son-in-law was deceased.)  Joe Stenger was not the son-in-law with the most money or property nor did he live the closest to Rose.  Maybe he got along the best with Frank A?  Maybe it was done because her son lived in Peoria and Joe was local?  Or, maybe Joe was the son-in-law she had the most trust in.  Isn’t that a highly valued trait when looking for an executor of your will?  Or maybe….it was all of these factors.

I asked my great aunt (daughter of Joe and Lucy) about why her father would have been named as executor in his mother-in-law’s will.  Aunt “F” was not surprised to hear about this.  She indicated that Joe and Lucy were both very close to Rose and that Rose relied on them and trusted them in many things.  When Rose passed in 1938 Joe would have spent many hours in court proceedings, managing the businesses Rose had at the time of her death (including a farm) and selling her property.  This would not have been easy given he had his own farm to tend to and family to feed.

What of Joe’s relationship with his own siblings especially after his parents had passed? His next oldest brother Henry lived very close by and the two families would have seen a good deal of each other as they went about working on their respective farms and through school and church.  The oldest Stenger brother, Jacob, made his life in Mendota, Illinois and would come to visit periodically.  But four of the Stenger siblings went to Nebraska at various times in the 1890’s and raised their families on the Great Plains. 

No doubt there was a great deal of correspondence that went back and forth between Kickapoo and the various Nebraska counties that the Stenger siblings settled in.  But we also know they visited.  We know that the Nebraska siblings and their children made trips back to Kickapoo and later on when automobile travel became common we see the Kickapoo family visiting in Nebraska also.  Yes….Joe and Lucy actually made it out of the state of Illinois to visit Stenger family in Nebraska.  My mom recalls that Joe and Lucy would have family gathers which included the Peoria County based siblings of Joe’s also.  The Svymbersky’s of Peoria and the Schlink’s and Volz’s no doubt were in attendance.

My mother remembers that her grandfather made wine.  I assume this is a skill that Joe would have learned growing up from him immigrant parents.  We can suppose that the knowledge for this must have come over with his parents from Germany.  On special occasions Joe would bring out his small tray of small classes with his latest batch of wine for his guests to sample.

In May 1955, Joe and Lucy celebrated their 50^th wedding anniversary.  Mame and Ben Heinz were also both alive and a very large and multi-day celebration took place at Silver Lead just east of Kickapoo for this “double” anniversary party.  My mother recalls that there was a lot of preparation for this big event and that it was the talk of the family for some time to come.

Figure 3- Lucy and Joseph L Stenger - 50th Wedding Anniversary

Eventually, Joe and Lucy decided it was time to retire from the farm and move into Kickapoo.  They sold their farm as none of their children were interested in working it.  They moved to a very small house just down the street from the Loescher saloon (where Lucy grew up).  There was a kitchen, living room, two bedrooms and a small basement.  Although not very big that did not stop them from hosting family gatherings.  There was a long table in the basement for the men to eat and the kids would find spots where ever they could find room.  The women would eat in the kitchen and living room after everyone else had been tended to.

Their retirement years were no doubt lean (as their young family life had been) but they always seemed to get by.  In the early 1960’s Joe had a stroke and although Lucy tried to care for him at home it was just to much.  He spent his last few years in a nursing home in Peoria.  Joe died on 31 December 1966 and is buried in St Patrick’s Cemetery in Kickapoo just a few yards away from his parents and grandparents. (4)  He was a kind and gentle spirit that lives on today in his remaining daughters.  We recently had a family reunion in Kickapoo of the descendants of Joe and Lucy Loescher Stenger and it is obvious that Joe’s gentle spirit lives on in them as well.

Copyright ©2016 – Diane Minor – All Rights Reserved.

Related Posts - 

Frank A Loescher

The Loescher Saloon

Rose Loescher - The Mystery of Her Birth

_____________________________________

(1) Baptismal Register of St. Mary's Church, Kickapoo, Illinois, digital image, (Peora, Illinois:  Catholic Diocese of Peoria), 15 Sep 1878, "Lawrence Joseph Stenger".

(2) Peoria County, Illinois, marriage certificate, Joseph L Stenger and Lucy Loescher, 23 May 1905, Peoria County Clerk, Peoria.

(3) Peoria County Circuit Court, Peoria County, Illinois, probate file no. J788, Rose Loescher; Peoria County Circuit Clerk.

(4) Peoria County, Illinois, death certificate no. 93688 (31 Dec 1966), Joseph L Stenger, Peoria County Clerk, Peoria.

Saturday Night Genealogy Fun – “Mary’s” With No Last Name

Randy Seaver in his “Genea-Musings” blog posts a weekly challenge for digging deeper into our family history.

This week’s post is about analyzing our female ancestors to find any with the first name of “Mary” but who’s last name (maiden) is unknown.  The link to his post is: http://www.geneamusings.com/2016/08/saturday-night-genealogy-fun-how-many_20.html  .

Here’s my analysis.

Yes!  I have some Mary’s in my genealogy database program with an unknown maiden name. 

I found twelve women named “Mary” or “Maria” who’s maiden name is unknown.  Additionally, I am going to add one more for a baker’s dozen of thirteen.  My third great grandmother, Maria Nufer’s maiden name is not nailed down yet.  Of these thirteen unknown Mary’s only three are in my direct line.

I use 5 underscores (_____) to denote that a name is unknown rather than the word.

Direct Line - 

1.  Maria Margaretha _____ - this is my 7^th great grandmother through my Stenger line.  She is the wife of Johann Reubert who likely lived in Wasserlos, Germany.

2.  Maria _____ - this is my 6^th great grandmother through my Stenger/Pfeifer line.  She is the wife of Nikolaus Griesing from Germany.

3.  Maria _____ - My third great grandmother through my Loescher line.  Her married name is Nufer.  Possible maiden names include “Lehnifger”, “Cotchie” and “Schnitzer”. 

More research is needed to figure out who these women are to give them back their names!

Tags –SNGF, Nufer, Stenger, Reubert, Dempsey, Pfeifer, Loescher, Griesing, Lehnifger, Cotchie, Schnitzer

Copyright ©2016 – Diane Minor – All Rights Reserved.

Frank A Loescher – The Oldest and Only Son

Growing up I heard many stories about the Loescher sisters and their families.  My great grandmother, Lucy Loescher Stenger was the third oldest in a family of 8.  I knew about her 6 sisters and her many cousins.  But I really did not understand that the family of Francois and Rose Nufer Loesher (my great great grandparents) actually started with a boy.  Their oldest child was the only boy in a sea of girls and he was named after his father – Frank Loesher.

Some of my ancestors are easier than others in trying put together who they were as people and what their place was in their own family.  Frank Loescher Jr., my great great uncle, was not one of the easy ones.  It’s not clear to me if he was misunderstood in his life or made things more difficult for himself and his wives.  Or, maybe he was always taken care of by his mother and sisters and later his wives and never learned how to be mature in his dealings with the world.  But what I have learned about him so far does not paint a picture of a happy man.  When that unhappiness began is not known but it would not be a surprise to find out it was in his childhood.

Frank Anthony Loescher (I will refer to him as “Frank A” going forward to distinguish him from his father) was born at 131 Irving Street, Peoria, Illinois on 10 Aug 1881. (1) (2) He was the first born of his parents.  His mother came from a family of seven daughters so there must have been great excitement when her firstborn turned out to be a boy.  Francois also must have been happy on this occasion.  He had only been in the US about ten years at the time of his only son’s birth and this must have been great news to pass onto his family back in Alsace. (3)

We can trace the Loescher family around Peoria in city directories until 1886 when in the spring of that year they moved to the rural town of Kickapoo, Illinois.  While only about 13 miles on today’s roads and highways, back in 1886 the distance between the two locations was the better part of a day’s journey in a horse and wagon.  At the time of the move to Kickapoo, the family consisted of Francois and Rose along with Frank A and his sisters Mame and Lucy (my great grandmother).  Being about five years old at the time of the move, Frank A might have had some memories of his early years in Peoria.  But surely the move to Kickapoo had a significant impact on his life both then and for the remainder of his days.

After the move to Kickapoo, the family built a new two story home (including a saloon and overnight accommodations) as well as a livery, farm buildings, rental hall and an ice house.  This family understood the concept of having “multiple income streams” quite well!  No doubt Frank A was a part of these endeavors from the beginning.  Especially as the family grew to be father, mother, son and 7 sisters!

The next big change in Frank A’s young life happened on 1 May 1902.  He was just a few months shy of his 22^nd birthday when his father died from a skull fracture received after falling down the basement stairs.  No doubt he and his family would never be the same again.  But the degree to which his life was shaped by his father’s untimely passing can only be speculated on.  Rose Loescher was left with 8 children ranging in age from 21 down to 4 ½ and several businesses that needed to be carried on if they were to eat, keep their home and stay together as a family.  She certainly would have counted on a great deal of help from her now adult son.  But is that what Frank A wanted?  Did he have the skills and initiative to pick up for his father?  Family stories seem to indicate that Frank A either did not want to stay in Kickapoo or was not good at working his parents’ businesses.  My bet is that there was some degree of both at play.

Figure 1 - Frank Anthony Loescher

Four years later in November 1906, Frank A Loescher married Etta (Henrietta) Brutcher in Henry, Illinois. (4)  I find the location of this wedding rather odd.  Both the bride and groom were living in the Kickapoo area so why not get married at the local Catholic Church?  Why go many miles over bumpy roads in winter to be married at St Mary’s Catholic Church in Henry when there is a local Catholic church down the street? 

Frank A and Etta Brutcher Loescher set up housekeeping in Peoria.  He evidently had all of the saloon/livery/hall rental/farming businesses he wanted because he started a landscaping and lawn care businesses in Peoria.  They never had any children.  My grandmother remembers Etta as being a very kind woman and thought she was a good wife for Frank.  However, it seems that as an adult Frank may have used his mother as a bank.  There is a sense from family members that I have asked about him that he came to see his mother and family in Kickapoo when he wanted something and usually that was money.  These views on Frank A are based on family remembrances that are decades old.  Memories can fade and become distorted or selective so they may not be entirely accurate.

Much more telling for me in trying to understand Frank A is the will that his mother made in August 1927. (5)  As with many wills of the twentieth century an administrator and maybe an alternate for that position is named.  But Rose Loescher’s will is a bit different in that she names two Executors to administrate her estate.  The first is her son Frank A.  This could be expected as he is her oldest and only son.  But additionally, she names a second executor.  The second person is not to be an alternate but to serve alongside her son.  This second person is her son-in-law and my great grandfather, Joseph L Stenger.  How I wish I had been able to talk to him about this turn of events!

What did Frank A know about how his mother’s will when it was created?  What were his feelings about having his brother-in-law named to settle his mother’s estate with him?  These are the kind of stories I wish I could learn more about!

The next major event in Frank A’s life comes in July 1937 when his 49 year old wife dies. (6) Etta Loescher suffered with peritonitis at a time before antibiotics were available.  It must have been a very painful death and it must have been felt most deeply by her husband.  Frank A’s next year of life was a year of significant changes.  His wife dies.  His mother becomes ill and eventually dies in the early fall of 1938. 

But maybe the event that made a bigger impact on his life was his marriage to his second wife in August 1938. (7) He married Ruby Winters at St Joseph’s Church in Brimfield, Illinois just a few weeks before the death of his mother.  I have so many questions about his actions and decisions during this period of time.  The first is about the location of this wedding.  Why did he go to Brimfield to be married?  He and Ruby both were living in Peoria and had been there for many years.  Why not go to one of the much closed Catholic churches in Peoria or why not even his childhood church in Kickapoo?  There is story about this that is lost now.

What did his mother think about her son’s choice of a second wife?  This also is lost in time.  But, we do have recollections from Frank A’s nieces.  They have related to me that Ruby was somebody who did not have Frank A’s best interests at heart.  They indicate that Frank A’s sisters did not like their new sister-in-law.  From this and what I know about them I can infer that the sisters were likely not very welcoming or nice to the new family member.

Oh my….what a hard time he likely had in those couple of years.  But with the death of his mother he had no rest either.  He was one of the executor’s of his mother’s estate.  She had quite a bit of property in Kickapoo to be accounted for and disposed of.  In those times in Illinois, probate cases required court appears and meetings with attorneys.  I cannot image that he enjoyed this or wanted to do this and may have leaned hard on his brother-in-law in getting the estate settled. 

Rose’s probate file also tells us that her estate collected $455.81 from Frank as payment for a “note due [the] estate”.  Something tells me he had a hard time coming up with this large sum of money around 1940.  Maybe he had to sell his own possessions or his business to get this cash.  But in the end he got $150.00 as payment for being an Executor and then his portion of his mother’s estate of $677.21.  He had borrowed additional money over the years which had not been paid back and was deducted from his share of the estate.

Now here is where the recollections of his nieces are quite strong.  The belief is that Ruby knew Frank A would come into some money which was her motivation for the marriage.  Once he came into his settlement money then she wanted nothing more to do with him.  Also, Frank A’s health began to deteriorate badly in the early 1940’s.  The family stories continue to say that Ruby brought her sick husband out from Peoria to Kickapoo and “dumped” him with his sisters for them to nurse and care for him.

Frank A Loescher died on 8 Aug 1944. (8) He is buried in Parkview Cemetery in Peoria, Illinois next to his first wife Etta.  He died poor and without the comfort of a wife.  He died with his sisters resentful of him and his choices in life.  He died without his mother who surely was an enabler of him for a good portion of his life.  How sad.  How very very sad.

Figure 2 - Cemetery Marker - Parkview Cemetery, Peoria, Illinois - Frank A Loescher

Tags – Stenger, Loescher, Kickapoo, Illinois, Peoria, Nufer, Brimfield, Brutcher

Copyright ©2016 – Diane Minor – All Rights Reserved.

Links to related posts - 
Rose Loescher - The Mystery of Her Birth
Loescher Saloon

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[1] Peoria County, Illinois, birth certificate no. not stated (10 Aug no year), Frank Anthony Loescher; Peoria County Clerk, Peoria, Illinois.

[2] "World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918," database and images, Ancestry (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 25 Oct 2014), serial no. 2249,  order no. 374, entry for Frank Anthony Loescher, Peoria County, Illinois, roll 1614439; citing "United States, Selective Service System. World War I Selective Service System Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918. Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, M1509, 4,582 rolls."

[3] 1900 U.S. census, Peoria County, Illinois, population schedule, Kickapoo, Enumeration District (ED) 0078, sheet 12-A, line 37, dwelling 231, family 232, Frank Loascher; digital image, Ancestry (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 20 Jun 2014), citing National Archives microfilm publication T623, roll 333, FHL microfilm 1240333.

[4] Marshall County, Illinois, marriage certificate, Frank A Loescher and Etta Brutcher, 29 Nov 1906, Marshall County Clerk, Lacon, Illinois.

[5] Peoria County Circuit Court, Peoria County, Illinois, probate file no. J788, Rose Loescher; Peoria County Circuit Clerk.

[6] Peoria County, Illinois, death certificate no. 25813 (8 Jul 1938), Henrietta M Loescher, Peoria County Clerk, Peoria.
[7] Peoria County, Illinois, marriage certificate, Frank A. Loescher and Ruby F. Winters, 6 Aug 1938, Peoria County Clerk, Peoria.

[8] Peoria County, Illinois, death certificate no. 839 (8 Aug 1944), Frank A Loescher, Peoria County Clerk, Peoria.

The Loescher Saloon

Another frequent story I have heard over the years is about the Loescher Saloon in Kickapoo, Illinois.  My great great grandparents, Frank and Rose Nufer Loescher were the proprietors of the saloon.  Frank and Rose started out their married life in Peoria, Illinois.  Rose Nufer had spent most of her growing up years in what is now the south side of Peoria.  Back in the mid to late 19^th century this was the home of a large German immigrant population.  Rose’s parents had come to this country in the early 1850’s (I think!).

Frank Loescher (baptized “Francoise” in Alsace) came to the United States in the early 1870’s and settled in the German section of Peoria.  He and Rose Nufer were married on 2 Nov 1879 at St Joseph’s Church in Peoria. (1) From the Peoria city directories we can trace the early years of their marriage from one Peoria residence to another.  They likely were renting.  Frank worked in different breweries and distilleries in town.  Peoria was then known as the “Distillery Capital of the World” and that may have been what brought him to town. 

According to the oral history that their daughter Lucy Loescher Stenger (and my great grandmother) gave to the Peoria Bicentennial Commission in 1977, she and her family moved to Kickapoo in the spring of 1886. (2) They likely lived in other locations around the small village of Kickapoo for a time but they acquired property on the west side of town and built a house.

Figure 1 - Loescher Saloon, Kickapoo, Illinois.  Frank A Loescher standing in front.  Circa 1904.

Eventually, their property included not just a home but also a livery, farming buildings, a hall for party rental and ice house.  Frank and Rose’s family expanded also.  Their first three children, Frank A., Mary (Mame) and Lucy, were born in Peoria.  After moving to Kickapoo, their family grew to include, Frances, Antoinette (Nettie), Cecilia, Rosella and Veronica (Fronie).

Frank and Rose opened a saloon in the front part of their new home as soon as it was built.  It was a large room that seems to have gone the width of the house.  From a picture we have they had a large bar area, pool table and comfortable chairs for visiting.  According to my maternal grandmother (granddaughter of Frank and Rose Loescher), children were not allowed into the bar during business hours.  Only after hours when the saloon was closed or on Sunday’s when it was closed all day were the kids allowed in.  Grandma also remembers that there was a slot machine that sat on the bar.  She said that when she would get a nickel for birthdays or Christmas she would sometimes have her dad lift her up to slot machine so she could try her luck!

Figure 2 - Interior of Loescher Saloon with Frank A Loescher behind the bar.

Behind the bar against the mirror is a mantel clock.  I remember that clock as a child sitting in the living room of Lucy Loescher Stenger’s house.  She lived just  down the street from the Loescher saloon when I was growing up.  Lucy is my great grandmother and I remember liking that clock even before I knew where it had come from or how old it was.  Today that clock is still in our extended family and very treasured.

In addition to the saloon in the family home, Frank and Rose also had overnight accommodations for travelers.  Kickapoo was on the main road between Peoria and Galesburg, Illinois.  Before the automobile made travel faster, the distance between the two cities was more than a day’s journey by horse and wagon.  I have thought many times how crowded in that house it must have been with 2 adults, 8 children and even just one overnight guest.

In 1902, Frank Loescher died from injuries he sustained from a fall down the basement stairs.  He was only 53 years old. At the time of their father’s death the Loescher children ranged in age from 21 to 4 or 5 years old.  Rose Loescher had to keep going after the death of her husband in the only way she knew how – as proprietor of the saloon, livery, farm and ice house.  Otherwise her family would not have any income.

Rose Loescher became quite a business woman in her own right after 1902.  She has a reputation in the area as being a “formidable woman”.  My grandma would say that you didn’t want to mess with Grandma Loescher.  She developed business relationships with suppliers in Peoria and men in both Kickapoo and Peoria to help her acquire goods and services when it was unseemly for women to do so themselves. 

As the years went on the various Loescher businesses changed also.  First the livery ended when the automobile came into being.  Then when prohibition went into effect, the saloon was closed.  But Rose was able to get by with rentals on the hall and the crops from the farm.

Today, the Loescher saloon and family home is all that remains of their property and businesses.  Over the years it has been made into apartments and came to be known as the “Honeymoon Hotel.”  Many newlyweds in the area have lived there and made it one of their first homes.  The road in front of the house has crept up closer to the front porch but the side porch is still there.

Figure 3 - Loescher Saloon in 2007

Whenever I am in the area I always drive by and look at the house.  It is a tangible sign of the life Frank and Rose Loescher lived and of the family the raised.  And….it is a link to the past….my ancestors’ past. 

Loescher Family – Do your children and grandchildren know about the Loescher Saloon?  I hope after reading this that you will be able to tell them more about it and Frank and Rose.

Copyright ©2016 – Diane Minor – All Rights Reserved.

(1)  Peoria County, Illinois, marriage certificate, Frank Loescher and Rosa Nufer, date of marriage 2 Nov 1879, Peoria County Clerk, Peoria.

(2)  Lucy Loescher Stenger, Peoria County, Illinois, interview by Peg Kronenberg for the Peoria County Bicentenial Commission, 31 May 1977; transcript of interview, tape 46, copy privately held by Diane Minor, 2007.