USA > Illinois > Madison County > Centennial history of Madison County, Illinois, and its people, 1812 to 1912, Volume II > Part 112
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Mr. Gippert's parents immigrated to the United States in their youth and were mar- ried in this country, shortly thereafter set- tling on a farm of sixty-one acres in Nameoki township, near the Bend. Mr. Gippert had been previously married to a Miss Meyer, who died, leaving two children : Otillia and Mary. He married (second) Catherine Steinemeyer, and two sons were born to this union, Casper and Henry, the latter of whom was cleven months old when Mrs. Gippert dicd. Antone Gippert's third marriage was to Wilhelmina Krone, and three children were born to this union : Frank, Elizabeth and Theresa.
Henry A. Gippert was given good educa- tional advantages in the schools of St. Louis, East St. Louis and the Bend, and by the time he was twenty years of age he had so thor- oughly grasped the rudiments and details of farming that he felt himself ready to start to make his own way in the world. In 1902 he was married to Miss Elizabeth Shrader, who was born in St. Clair county, Illinois, in 1882, daughter of Henry and Magdalene (Range) Shrader, the former a native of Missouri and the latter of Germany. Their family consisted of Gertrude, Mary, Theresa, Magdalene, Joseph, Agnes, Clara, Anna and Elizabeth. After their marriage Mr. and Mrs. Gippert settled on rented land, a tract of sixty acres situated at the Bend in Nameoki township, and here they have since resided. Mr. Gip- pert is a good farmer and a public-spirited citizen. Probity has been his watchword throughout his entire life, and he has so lived that only words of praise and commendation
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are spoken of him by his neighbors, friends and acquaintances. He is a Democrat in his political views, but he is not bigoted, and reserves the right to cast his vote for the man whom he deems best fitted for the office, irrespective of party ties. He himself has never sought office. Mr. and Mrs. Gippert are members of St. Mark's Catholic church, at Venice, and he belongs to Western Catholic Union No. 26, in that city. Practical and progressive in all things, Mr. Gippert is one of his township's representative men, and one who has the best interests of the community at heart.
GEORGE HOLTMANN, one of the prosperous and highly respected farmers of Pin Oak township, Madison county, Illinois, owns and occupies what was formerly known as the old Handlow place.
Mr. Holtmann was born and reared in the vicinity in which he now lives, being a son of Henry and Hannah (Windtmier) Holt- mann, and a brother of Otto Holtmann. The Holtmanns are of German descent. Grand- father Holtmann died in Germany, and soon after his death grandmother Holtmann, with a son and daughter, the former being Henry, the father of George, immigrated to America and settled in Madison county, Illinois. Here Henry Holtmann from a poor boy worked his way up to be a prosperous farmer, own- ing a fine tract of land, more than three hun- dred acres in extent. He passed the rest of his life in Pin Oak township, and died here, his death occurring in 1900. It was on his father's farm, April 27, 1873, that George Holtmann was born. He attended country school until he was eighteen, and since that time has devoted his energies to farming. He now owns one hundred and twenty acres of land, on which, in 1905, he built a new house and in 1908 a new barn, and which he has otherwise improved.
On January 28, 1903, Mr. Holtmann was married to Miss Matilda Heuiser, and to them have been given three children, John, George and Verderneda. Mrs. Holtmann is a daughter of John and Mary (Marbauer) Heuiser, of Pin Oak township. The family are members of the Evangelical church at Edwardsville, and, politically, Mr. Holtmann is a Republican. At this writing he is a school trustee.
FRANK O. JOHNSON, M. D. Beginning when young to familiarize himself with the rudiments of medicine and surgery, Frank O. Johnson, M. D., has continually added to his Vol. II-37
knowledge by study, application and experi- ence, and during the eight years that he has been in active practice as a physician and sur- geon in Nameoki has gained an enviable rep- utation for professional skill and ability, and won a large and valuable patronage. He was born May 31, 1877, at Piasa, Macoupin county, Illinois, a son of James T. Johnson, who was born in the same town.
Scholarly and ambitious as a youth, and of a deeply religious temperament, James T. Johnson was given excellent educational ad- vantages, being fitted for the ministry. His health failing, however, he turned to life in the open, and was actively engaged in the real-estate business until his death, in 1881, in manhood's prime. His wife, whose maiden name was Denilda Rodgers, preceded him to the life beyond, passing away in 1877.
But two months old when left motherless, and but four years of age when his father died, Frank O. Johnson spent his earlier years in Macoupin county, Illinois, obtaining his elementary education in the Piasa public schools. He subsequently attended school for a time in Willow Springs, Missouri, and at Carlinville, Illinois. Wishing then to further advance his knowledge, he completed the course of study at Blackburn University, after which he read medicine two years, and, in 1902, was graduated from the Barnes Medical School at Saint Louis, with the degree of M. D. Dr. Johnson then began practice at Black- well, Missouri, being there associated with Dr. S. F. Thurman for a few months. In February, 1903, the Doctor opened an office at Nameoki, Illinois, and has here built up a fine practice, his professional skill and ability being recognized and appreciated.
The Doctor is a member of the Madison County Medical Society; of the State Medi- cal Society; of the American Medical Asso- ciation; and for five years was secretary of the Tri-City Medical Association. Frater- nally he is a member of Six Mile Lodge, No. 87, I. O. O. F., in which he has passed all the chairs. He has represented his lodge at the Grand Lodge, in Springfield, for four years, and is historian of Madison county for the Grand Lodge.
Dr. Johnson married, in 1896, Carrie Mil- ler, of Damsel, Missouri, a daughter of Wil- liam Miller, and into their home two children have been born, Ralph H. and Myrtle M.
THOMAS WESLEY KINDER, was born in this county, in 1842. His father, Thomas Kin- der, was a Pennsylvanian, who came to Madi-
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son county in the early times. Here he met and wedded Mary Gillham, a native of South Carolina. Farming was the occupation of Thomas Kinder and he spent his entire life at it. His family consisted of two sons, Cal- vin and Thomas. As there were no public schools at that time, the boys were sent to the subscription schools. Later they attended McKendree College. The father of the two boys died before his younger son was born, and at the age of two Thomas Kinder also lost his mother. His aunt, Mrs. Gillham, took charge of him then, but she died two years after he came to live with her, and his uncle, Calvin Kinder, took him into his home. Here he remained until he was twenty-one. Not being in rugged health, Mr. Kinder then took a trip to California to improve his phy- sical condition. Four years later he returned to Madison county on a visit to his aunt and uncle. Mr. and Mrs. Calvin Kinder had no children of their own, but they had the par- ent love which goes out to the homeless and they did not think of failing to fulfill the duties of fatherhood and motherhood because they had no children of their own. They brought up thirteen orphans, of whom Thomas was the youngest. But all these foster chil- dren had married and gone away when the young man Thomas returned from the west, and, although he had felt the fascination of that new country and intended to return to it, he yielded to the urgent requests of his aunt and uncle to remain with them. As his aunt lived but two years after his return, Mr. Kinder never regretted giving up his project of settling in California.
Politics began to interest the young man and he was elected deputy sheriff, filling that office for two years. In 1873 he was elected one of the three county commissioners. Venice was his place of residence at that time, and when the town was first incorporated, he was town clerk and later marshal. All his life Mr. Kinder has been prominent in the Demo- cratic party and ardent in the support of its principles. When he moved from Venice to the vicinity of Granite City he continued to take active part in public life. For nine years he was supervisor of Nameoki town- ship; he was police magistrate of Granite City for two terms and in 1892 was elected coroner and served for four years.
On November 11, 1873, Mr. Kinder was united in marriage to Miss Mary J. Sippy. She, too, is a native of the county, Chouteau Slough being her birthplace and the year 1849.
Her father was Hiram Sippy, a Pennsyl- vanian, and her mother, Miranda Harrison, a Kentuckian and a second cousin of the pres- ident, William Harrison. There were ten children born to Hiram and Miranda Sippy, and he had a son William by his former wife, Mary Atkins. Five of Mrs. Kinder's broth- ers and sisters died in infancy. The others, Maria, John, Joseph W., Olive and Mary J., grew to maturity. The Sippy children went to the Six Mile school for their elementary education and John finished in Shurtleff Col- lege, while Mary continued her studies in Lor- etto Academy at Florissant, Missouri. Mrs. Kinder's parents came to Alton in 1828 and as a child, she heard many stories of their experience in the pioneer days. The great snow of 1832, when a lost hunter took refuge in her father's house, the hunting of game and of wild beasts, and the erratic behavior of the river supplied excitement to the earl- ier settlers.
After their marriage Mr. and Mrs. Kinder first lived in Venice, where Mr. Kinder was engaged in the public affairs of the town. Later they purchased a farm of eighty acres in Venice township, the present site of Granite City. A son, Calvin Jackson Kinder, was born to them in 1877, who is now settled in a home of his own, with Augusta, the daugh- ter of Peter Hoft, of Edwardsville, as his wife. They have two sons, Thomas Calvin and Francis Alvin.
In 1898 Mr. and Mrs. Kinder retired from their farm, and after disposing of it moved to Granite City, where they have since re- sided. Here Mr. Kinder has taken his place among the most prominent citizens of the town, and his unusual abilities in municipal work, as well as his popularity and influence in the Democratic party, are attested by the numerous offices he has been called upon to fill.
For generations the Kinder family, as well as that of the Sippys, to which Mrs. Kinder belongs, have been devoted adherents of the Methodist church, and both Mr. and Mrs. Kinder are members of the Niedringhaus Memorial church of that denomination in Granite City. Ever since 1870 Mr. Kinder has been a member of the Masonic fraternity, being one of the charter members of the Ven- ice Lodge. He is also a charter member of the Elks lodge in Granite City, of which body he is a past exalted ruler. Mr. Kinder has the further distinction of being the oldest native citizen of Granite City, although his
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seniority of residence is the least of his claims to popular regard.
It is fitting that the senior citizen of Granite City should be the possessor of the most valu- able heirlooms in the county. Mr. Kinder is the owner of three choice cream pitchers of copper lustre. These were brought to Madi- son county by Mr. Kinder's aunt in 1800. One of them is of the design known as the battledoor and shuttlecock pitcher, and is pro- nounced by connoisseurs to be priceless. This pitcher was brought from England by the father of his aunt, when he went back to marry his second wife. Another treasure in- Mr. Kinder's collection is a powder horn, ex- quisitely carved with representations of hunt- ing scenes, and bearing the date 1799.
Comment upon the admirable and useful life of Mr. Kinder is superfluous. The hon- ors bestowed upon him by his fellow citizens, both of his party, for whose success he has done so much in the county, and in the lodges with which he is affiliated, are the most elo- quent tribute possible and such as to make mere statements of his qualities of mind and heart quite unnecessary.
NICHOLAS TRAUTNER. Among the well- known families of Madison county probably none has contributed more definitely to prog- ress and upbuilding of its interests than Nich- olas Trautner, farmer and stockman. He belongs to that nation which has found many representatives in the new world and has as- suredly contributed its quota to its develop- ment -- the German, --- his birth having oc- curred in the grand duchy of Baden, in 1835. He is the son of Barnhart and Margaret (Webber) Trautner, who immigrated to America in 1842, when Nicholas was six years of age. They located in Saline town- ship, where the father engaged in farming, which had been his former occupation while in his native land, together with cabinet mak- ing. They purchased a farm of seventy acres and worked early and late to improve the same. Into their home were born seven chil- dren, all of whom died in infancy with the exception of Nicholas, the subject of the sketch. At that time there was only one school house in the district and in that young Nicholas received his education. The near- est market was St. Louis and to this every- thing had to be hauled by ox teams, as there were no railroads. Wild animals abounded and it was no uncommon sight to see fifteen or twenty deer, and prairie chickens were
abundant. The pioneers included these dain- ties in their diet.
In the year 1857 Mr. Trautner laid the foundation of a household of his own by his marriage to Miss Anna Accola, who was born in Switzerland in 1835, and is the daughter of Casper and Emereta Accola. At an early day she immigrated with her parents to this section. She was one of the following fam- ily: John, George, Peter, Christian, David, Wilhelmina and Anna, the latter the wife of the immediate subject of this record, and all of whom obtained their education in the Hel- vetia and Saline township district schools. Mr. and Mrs. Trautner began their wedded life on an eighty acre farm one mile west of Saline, on which he has ever since resided. The greater part of it was then raw prairie, little of it having felt the plow, and the abode was a cabin of round logs. From such hum- ble beginnings the young people began to carve out a future for themselves. Looking down the dim vista of rosy tinted years, what hopes and aspirations filled their minds, help- ing to lighten the burden of life. Their home was their kingdom and they its sover- eigns. It was the dearest spot on earth, for love was there and the future was rainbowed with promise. They were industrious and thrifty, working early and late with character- istic German and Swiss energy and dauntless- ness. There is an old saying that a man must ask his wife if he may prosper, and in this case the answer was in the affirmative, Mrs. Trautner being an ideal helpmeet. Their in- dustry was amply rewarded with success and they were enabled to add to their acreage until they became the owners of seven hun- dred and forty acres of fine fertile land. They also purchased two hundred and forty acres in Missouri. Into their home were born six children, equally divided as to sons and daugh- ters. One daughter, Emereta, died, and the remaining are as follows: Robert, Barnheart, David, Margaret and Josephine. Mr. and Mrs. Trautner made every effort to give their children a good education, sending them to the Saline township schools and also to the Catholic schools of Highland, of which Mr. Trautner was a member. He has ever been a very useful church member, giving liberal support. He aided materially in building the first Catholic church in Highland and in later years was a liberal contributor to both the churches built in Saline. Into the youthful minds of their sons and daughters were in-
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stilled principles of honor, fitting them for the splendid citizenship by which they are now distinguished. They remained for a time beneath the home roof and then married and settled in the following manner :
Robert married Catherine Leef and main- tains his residence in Missouri. His children are Robert, Joseph and Regina. Barnheart married Lizzie Meyer and for a number of years they lived happily together on their pleasant farm in Leef township. In 1896 her death occurred, and since then he has resided part of the time in Dakota, where he owns a good deal of land. His children are Barn- heart, Nicholas, Leo, Arthur and Ella. David, a successful farmer of Saline, married Mary Meyer. Josephine married Charlie Walter and they live on the estate with the subject, Mr. Walter superintending the farm in an able manner. His daughter Margaret also remains at home. Thus Mr. Trautner is cheered by the presence of two good daugh- ters, whose kind ministrations tend to brighten the evening of his life.
Mr. Trautner is ranked among the repres- entative and most highly successful farmers of this part of Madison county and he is in- terested in every good measure advanced. His life has recommended him to the public confidence and the public has manifested their good will toward him by electing him to the offices of school director and highway com- missioner. He votes the Republican ticket and does all in his power to advance the party of Lincoln, Mckinley and Taft.
The old Trautner home has in its time been the scene of many joyous occasions, when the merry-hearted boys and girls were all at home. In 1879 death laid its pall over the household, the loving wife and indulgent mother being called to her eternal rest, mourned by a large circle in which her re- vered memory still remains green. Mr. Trautner, now enjoying the ease and comfort of an honored retirement, can look back over a useful and well-spent life and its record is indeed worthy of incorporation in this work devoted to representative citizens of Madison county.
CHARLES H. SEYBT is a native of Saxony, born on the 16th day of March, 1840. His parents were David and Julia (Burmeister) Seybt. His father was a prominent and dis- tinguished preacher in his native city of Baut- zen, who gave his children the best education obtainable. In that way Mr. Seybt, when he immigrated to America at the age of sixteen,
was well equipped to make his way in the new Fatherland, although he did not know one word of the English language, had no money, and no relations or friends. He started his career as laborer on a farm in Wisconsin, at four dollars per month. It proved hard work for a mere schoolboy, but it enabled him to acquire the use of the English language in a surprisingly short time. After six months' drudgery on a farm he became tutor in a pri- vate family at Madison, Wisconsin. In the autumn of 1857 he removed to St. Louis, where after hard struggles he devoted him- self steadily to lithographic work, for which his natural talents fitted him specially. He was sent to Highland, Illinois, in January, 1861, to make a picture of the town and its principal residences in the customary way be- fore the days of photography. Here he mar- ried, in November, 1861, Frances A. Sup- piger, daughter of Joseph Suppiger, who was one of the founders of Highland and the Swiss colony in that part of Madison county. Her mother's maiden name was Mary M. Thorp. She came from old Puritanical stock in Stratford, Connecticut. Although Mr. Seybt in his business activities maintains of- fices in St. Louis and Chicago and has fre- quently been called abroad, he still clings to the homestead at Highland, where he and his wife began housekeeping fifty years ago.
Mr. Seybt's career is a splendid illustration of the opportunities which this country offers to a man of untiring energy and honesty of purpose. It is a splendid illustration of the welcome the American extends to a willing worker regardless of nationality, creed or pre- vious condition.
Mr. Seybt first came into public view when he founded the Highland Union for the pur- pose of combatting its aggressive democratic spirit engendered in the early days of . the Civil war. After managing the paper for one year and putting it on a firm footing, he re- tired from active politics and devoted himself to business enterprises. The Highland Union flourishes today, whiles scores of contem- poraries have disappeared. Mr. Seybt was largely instrumented in the building of the Vandalia Railroad in the late sixties. As local support was a prime factor in the con- struction of this road, it required years of arduous preparation to bring the enterprise to success. Mr. Seybt has continued a mem- ber of the board of directors up to the present time. In 1867 he formed a corporation for the erection of a brick flouring mill at High-
Martin I. Schott
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HISTORY OF MADISON COUNTY
land and devoted much of his time and talent to the management of the business. This mill burned in March, 1890, and as some of the original partners had died it was not rebuilt, but Mr. Seybt acquired an interest in the so- called Suppiger Mills, founded in 1837, and he has been its president since then. Mean- while he had in conjunction with others, built a model flouring mill at Greenville, Illinois, of which he was president up to the time of its destruction by fire. In the winter of 1875 Mr. Seybt visited the leading millers of south- ern Illinois with the object of enlisting their cooperation in the forming of a mutual fire insurance company; in May, 1876, the first policy was issued. That modest experimental beginning has resulted to the Millers Na- tional Insurance Company of Chicago, which today insures virtually all the mills in the United States. It has insured the miller for over thirty-six years at less than half the cost of the so-called board rates and has ac- cumulated in that time a net surplus of over one million dollars. Mr. Seybt has been its president up to this day. He was one of the organizers of the Illinois Millers Mutual Fire Association, located at Alton, Illinois, and is a member of the board of directors. He opened up the first coal mines on the Vandalia Railroad some forty-five years ago near Col- linsville, Illinois, and continued to operate them about twenty years, when he sold them to the Consolidated Coal Company of St. Louis, a creation of Jay Gould, of which great corporation he was vice president for twelve years. He formed the Coal Operators Mutual Fire Insurance Company at Springfield, Illi- nois, seventeen years ago and is its president today. In consequence of recent legislation concerning employes liabilities, the millers of America have formed a Millers Mutual Cas- ualty Insurance Company, with offices at Chi- cago, Mr. Seybt being its president.
While in Europe during the summer of 1875 Mr. Seybt studied up the question of flour export direct from mill door to European markets. Heretofore flour exportation was effected only through commission houses and forwarders at the seaports. Upon his re- turn to America, he found an export club, consisting of a number of leading millers in the neighborhood of St. Louis for the pur- pose of finding direct means to market their flour in foreign countries. He was sent to Europe as their representative to form neces- sary connection in Great Britain and on the
Continent and to provide for through trans- portation by rail, lakes and sea, marine in- surance and all other requirements. His mis- sion proved very successful and in the course of years many million barrels of flour have found a market abroad through his efforts. Naturally Mr. Seybt has been of more or less prominence to the milling industry of Amer- ica and has devoted some of his best years to association matters.
In politics Mr. Seybt has been a stanch Re -. publican since his first vote for Abraham Lincoln, but as political work is not to his liking, he is not an active politician. He has been church organist for many years and for many different denominations. He is a liberal supporter of all churches, but has never identified himself with any established creed. By way of recreation Mr. Seybt is an occasional contributor to magazines and devotes himself to belles letters.
MARTIN J. SCHOTT. Many of the men who have helped to build up Madison county, and have given the best of their lives in aid- ing its development, have now gone to their rest. Of this number, Martin J. Schott should be among the first mentioned. When he came to Highland, Illinois, it was but a settlement, and its growth into its present state of pros- perity was a constant source of pride and gratification to him. In this growth he had a large share, for in addition to the active in- terest which he took in all matters pertain- ing to the public interest, he owned and oper- ated one of the largest manufacturing plants in the city, a business that gives employment to many, and that brought money and men to help in the development of the town. It is almost enough to say that he was of German blood and was a typical son of the Father- land, for in saying that one calls to mind the frugality, honesty and sincerity of this great national type, and all of these traits belonged to Mr. Schott. He had the admiration and respect of the town and surrounding coun- try, and the only consolation that his friends and acquaintances had at the time of his death was that he had left four sons in whom he had instilled his principles of moral and business integrity, and to whom he confidently intrusted his business.
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