USA > Illinois > Madison County > Centennial history of Madison County, Illinois, and its people, 1812 to 1912, Volume II > Part 57
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HISTORY OF MADISON COUNTY
pany. It was Mr. Ruwisch who gave to the church at Nameoki the two acres of land upon which now stand the church, the parsonage and the school. Mrs. Ahrens still maintains her membership in the Ladies' Aid Society of the Nameoki German Evangelical church, al- though she and her husband are affiliated with the Granite City church of that denomination.
Although in matters of general policy Mr. Ahrens is a Republican, he is by no means strictly a party man, as lie believes in support- ing the principles and so votes for the man who will best carry out the will of the people. He himself has served a number of terms as school director and also as highway commis- sioner, and in both offices commended himself to his constituency. The hardships which have fallen to his lot have not made him mo- rose nor pessimistic. He has come up through the hard school of experience with the abil- ity to enjoy a hearty laugh and a fondness for the humorous aspects of life, which is a price- less asset, bringing, as it does, so much of cheer to his fellow men. Since his second marriage Granite City has been the residence of Mr. and Mrs. Ahrens, and in his pleasant home at 2240 Washington avenue, Mr. Ah- rens and his wife live, surrounded by the friends who are attracted to them by his gen- ial large heartedness and by the many admi- rable womanly virtues which Mrs. Ahrens possesses. The boy who started to work for three dollars a month has attained worldly success, and that by the qualities which are an honor alike to their possessor and to the com- monwealth of which he is a citizen.
OSCAR JOSEPHI GWYNN, M. D. The life of the physician and surgeon in these modern days is one of unceasing activity. Modern methods and the high speed with which civili- zation pursues its relentless way makes de- mands upon the time and energy of the physi- cian greater, perhaps, than upon men in any other profession. The extent to which spe- cialization is pushed, the deep study required to keep abreast of the discoveries of the age and the everlasting call of the suffering public all combine to sap the vitality of the most rugged. But as the modern days are strenu- ous, so the modern man has something of power in his make-up which works best under pressure. Dr. Oscar Joseph Gwynn, of Gran- ite City, Illinois, is a man well equipped to handle the responsibilities of a high medical position, and at the same time he is one of the most public-spirited of citizens. The birth of this gentleman occurred at Brandywine, near
Baltimore, Maryland, May 6, 1868, his par- ents being William H. and Christina (Sum- mers) Gwynn. William H. Gwynn was a prosperous southern planter, who cultivated extensive tracts of land and owned many slaves. He was a worthy man and one of no small prominence and at one time was a member of the state legislature of Maryland. Another important office held by him was that of Judge of the Orphans' Court. The subject's grandfather, Thomas Gwynn, was a southern planter and a colonel in the War of 1812.
All of Dr. Gwynn's ancestors were college bred men, most of whom were graduates of the Georgetown University, Washington, D. C. The Gwynn family is of English extraction, and they settled in Maryland during the Co- lonial days under Lord Baltimore.
Dr. Gwynn was one of six brothers, namely : Thomas B .; Eugene S., who entered the Cath- olic priesthood and for years has been pastor of St. Cecelia's Church of Baltimore, whose handsome edifice he was largely instrumental in building ; James D., a successful rancher of Nebraska; John F., a merchant located in Bal- timore; Ignatius W., who was killed in a street-car accident at Kirkwood, Missouri, when thirty-eight years of age; and Oscar Joseph. There are also several sisters, all of whom are academy-bred ladies. The eldest married Henry L. Mudd, brother of Dr. Samuel Mudd, who lived twenty-five miles south of Washington, D. C., and who set Booth's leg after the assassination of Presi- dent Lincoln. The youngest is a member of the Catholic Sisters, her religious name being Sister Concha and her present location being at Anderson, Indiana.
The elementary education of Dr. Gwynn was received at the grammar school at Brandy- wine, near Baltimore, and, like all his brothers, received a college education. Pre- vious to that, however, when nineteen years of age, he received a government appointment to the weather bureau, or as it was then known, the signal corps, at Davenport, Iowa, and for two years during his residence there he read law, having at that time some thought of adopt- ing as his own the legal profession. He also took a course in higher mathematics in Duncan School of that place. Subsequent to that he was sent by the government to Pike's Peak, Colorado, to establish a weather bureau station at that point, but after establishing the same he resigned and went to Washington, D. C .. and at the age of twenty-four years entered George
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О.А. Ужены, т. 19,
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Washington's University and in the fall of 1892, having come to a definite determination as to his life work, he took up the study of medicine and was graduated with the honors of student achievement in the fall of 1896.
Dr. Gwynn began his professional career at Joplin, Missouri, where he remained several years, and then came on to Elsah, Jersey county, Illinois, where he remained for some nine months. At the termination of that period he took up his residence in Granite City, and here has ever since remained, becoming a use- ful factor in the life of the city. He is promi- nently identified with the profession, is past president of the East Side Medical Association of Granite City, and a member of the Madison County Medical Society, the Illinois State Medical Society and the American Medical Association. His fraternal relations are with the Knights of Columbus, the Modern Wood- men of America and the Royal Neighbors. He subscribes to the articles of faith of the Repub- lican party, to which he has been loyal since his earliest voting days. He was reared in the Catholic faith and is a valued member of St. Joseph's church, of Granite City. He is deeply and sincerely interested in the city of his adop- tion and is aligned with the progressive and altruistic.
Dr. Gwynn has recently erected a fine two- story brick building on Niedringhaus avenue, directly opposite the new government building, this being occupied by stores and offices.
JOHN ZIMMERMAN. Of John Zimmerman, of Saline, Illinois, it may be said that he never shirked an opportunity to help another and that through many years of upright and indus- trious life his name has come to stand for those stable qualities that we infer when we say his word is as good as his bond. John Zimmerman was born in Highland, Illinois, in the year 1844, the son of John and Barbara (Bardill) Zimmerman. His father was a na- tive of Berne, Switzerland, and his mother of Graubinden, that country, and coming from the little republic that is always known as the home of European democracy, they brought with them their share of the Swiss valor and industry which has wrought prosperity from the very mountains that would have stood as an obstacle to any other people, and that spirit of independence that is the very heart of the Swiss nation.
John Zimmerman came first to Highland, Illinois, and was there employed in the brick yard. He and his wife became the parents of three children, Mary, Eliza and John the lat-
ter the immediate subject of this sketch. While the children were still young, John be- ing only three years old and his sisters not much older, the cholera plague which prevailed in St. Louis throughout 1847 and 1848 extend- ed to Highland. Many people were stricken with the terrible disease and among them John and Barbara Zimmerman, who died, leaving their three little ones orphans in the new coun- try. After this sad event homes were found for the children, but among strangers, where, however, they grew up to be sturdy Swiss- Americans, never betraying the good name and inherent strength of character, their heri- tage from the parents who bore them. Both of the sisters married and settled in Marion county, Illinois. John, upon reaching man- hood, was united in marriage, in January, 1869, to Miss Mary Lutewiller, who was born in Madison county, the daughter of Jacob and Louise Lutewiller. Their married happiness was of short duration, however, for Mrs. Zim- merman was called to her eternal reward in the following December, leaving one child, Marie. At that time Mr. Zimmerman was en- gaged in the butchering business.
In 1878 Mr. Zimmerman was united in mar- riage to Miss Minnie Beck, the attractive daughter of Anton and Theresa (Schneiper) Beck. Her parents were natives of Germany, who left the Fatherland at an early date and came to the United States to take advantage of the broader opportunities of the newer country. Besides Minnie, who became Mrs. John Zimmerman, they were the parents of Fritz, Robert, Theodore, Sophia and Theresa, all of whom were educated in the Conn and Saline schools.
After their marriage John and Minnie Zim- merman began their wedded life in Saline, and her happy talent for home making and his in- dustry united to make their new life both suc- cessful and contented. In time nine children came to bless their home, namely: John, Rob- ert, Emma, Theodore, Minnie, William, Leo, Edward and Anton. The parents, knowing that a good education is the best foundation for a life of efficiency and loyal citizenship, sent them all to school in Saline and at home instilled into them high principles and noble standards. John, the eldest, married Miss Anna Kraft and has since become the father of two children, Opal and Lorine. Like his father he follows the carpenter's trade and he does extensive work in St. Louis, where he and his family make their horne. Minnie was united in marriage to A. L. Hitz, president of
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the general merchandise store in Saline. Leo and Emma make their home in St. Louis. Leo is engaged in the carpentering business with his brother and Miss Emma is a stenog- rapher for Reeves & Company, a machinery firm of St. Louis, in whose employ she has been for over five years. Anton, Albert and Robert passed away in infancy and the rest of Mr. Zimmerman's family remain beneath the father's roof tree.
The years of honest labor that marked the beginning of Mr. Zimmerman's career have their ample reward in the splendid home that he has established in Saline and whose im- provement and beautification are now among the main interests of his life. It is interesting to note that in his work as a carpenter Mr. Zimmerman is responsible for many of the fine residences for which the neighborhood of Saline is well known. They stand an endur- ing monument to his industry and skill. In his trade Mr. Zimmerman is now assisted by his two sons, William and Edward, both skilled and reliable workmen, who, like their father, hold the confidence of all with whom they have ever dealt.
Although a broad-minded man and a sup- porter of any measure or man whose election means the greatest good to the greatest num- ber, Mr. Zimmerman claims as his own the political party of Lincoln, Mckinley and Taft. He has given public service as a school direc- tor and tax collector, and has been president of the town board of trustees. He was also at one time elected to the office of justice of the peace, but feeling that the press of private af- fairs was such that he could not conscien- tiously serve, he never took the oath of office and did not qualify.
Both Mr. and Mrs. Zimmerman are mem- bers of the German Lutheran church of Sa- line, and have always manifested their interest in its good works by a hearty support of all its undertakings.
It is a pleasure to note that the untiring in- dustry, the kindly concern for the welfare of the community, and the unquestioned honesty have indeed won them the loyal affection and esteem of a large circle of friends and the gen- eral good will of the whole county.
AUGUST BRANDES. One of the oldest as well as one of the most eminent farmers of this section of the state is August Brandes, a German by birth but an American by choice, as he came to this country when he attained his majority and has for sixty-five years identified himself with the life of this com-
monwealth. He was born in 1825 and when he arrived in America, in 1846, he went di- rectly to St. Louis, where his brother Her- man had been for two years engaged in the dairy business. August first obtained employ- ment on a steamboat and later worked on the street upon which the Union Depot now stands, receiving for his services the sum of three dollars per month and board. St. Louis was his home for several years and he passed through some trying experiences there. He was in the city at the time of the terrible cholera plague, when the town lost nearly half of its population. At another time the great fire occurred, when twenty-two steam- boats took fire and one by one floated down the river in sheets of flame like fiery sails and burned to the water's edge. After a time Mr. Brandes obtained work on the farm of Mr. Barnsback, a wealthy German and one of the first immigrants to come from Germany to that part of the country.
In 1853 Mr. Brandes united his fortunes with those of Miss Dora Meuller. She died few years later, leaving two daughters, Louisa and Emma, who now reside in St. Louis. Mr. Brandes married a second time. In 1861, on October 10, Christina Stauber, one of the ten children of Jacob and Martha Lange Stauber, became his wife and for half a century has been his devoted com- panion and helpmate. Mrs. Brandes was born in Germany, in 1835. She had two brothers and six sisters. Mr. Brandes had three brothers, Henry, William and Herman, and two sisters, Dora and Anna. His mother died when he was a boy. Mrs. Brandes, like her brothers and sisters, received her educa- tion in Germany. At the age of twenty-three she came to America, joining her two sisters and one brother, who had preceded her in seeking a home in America. She obtained work in her brother's home and continued to provide for herself until her marriage.
After their marriage Mr. and Mrs. Bran- des took up their residence on the farm of one hundred and eighteen acres which he had previously purchased and which has ever since been their home, although its aspect has greatly changed in the fifty years. Where their comfortable dwelling now stands was then a log cabin of one room, with a kitchen "lean-to," built of boards standing on end. A single window supplied light and air. It was a humble home, but that was an age when luxuries-even conveniences-were not thought of for any but the wealthy, and the
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young couple did not feel it a hardship to be- gin life in such surroundings. They did, how- ever, with that pride of property which is one of the bulwarks of patriotism, set themselves to the improvement of their place and they spared no effort in this endeavor. The one hundred and eighteen acres grew to two hun- dred and fifty and all the excellent buildings were put up as a result of the thrift of Mr. Brandes and his capable wife. Five times they were driven from their home by the high water, and were compelled to stay a month at a time with their neighbors on the higher land. At one time the floods swept away four hundred bushels of corn and sixty- five hundred newly split rails. Such expe- riences were trying, but they did not daunt these young people, who merely began again where the subsiding waters left them, and have become successful and prosperous in the highest degree.
A family of six children was born to Mr. and Mrs. Brandes: August, Louie, Edward. Ernst, Ida and Rosa. Two of these died in infancy. The others were sent to the district school and later to the schools in St. Louis. They were all confirmed in the German Evan- gelical church of Nameoki. August Brandes married Carolina Meyer and became the pro- prietor of a hotel in Granite City. He died in 1908, leaving three children, Henry, Erhard and Blanche. Ida is Mrs. Harry Kinneman, whose husband is the proprietor of a grocery store on Illinois avenue in Granite City. Rosa is Mrs. Harry Milligan, of St. Louis, and has one daughter, Mabel.
Mr. and Mrs. Brandes are members of the German Evangelical church of Nameoki, and Mr. Brandes is the only surviving member of the original band who organized that church, which he and his have always supported so loyally. Politically he is a Republican and he upholds his party with characteristic con- stancy. He has been called upon to serve as school director, school trustee and supervisor and has discharged the duties of these offices to the satisfaction of the entire community.
In 1902 Mr. and Mrs. Brandes decided to retire from their farm, and at that date they moved to Granite City, where they now re- side. In October, 1911, they celebrated their Golden Wedding anniversary with sixty guests, who came to bring their congratula- tions and their good wishes. The guest of honor was Mrs. Henrietta Soechtig, who was bridesmaid at the Brandes wedding fifty years ago, being then seventeen years of age. The
words of the Golden Wedding Ceremony were spoken by Reverend John Plassman, of St. John's Evangelical church of Nameoki. Mr. Brandes received from the Grand Lodge of the Odd Fellows a diamond-studded gold medal in February, 1910, as a memento of the fiftieth anniversary of his initiation into the order. The years have been fruitful not only of material prosperity, but also of the lasting flowers of friendship and regard, and no couple in Madison county hold a higher place in the hearts of their fellow citizens.
GEORGE M. CHILDS. Prominent among the representative merchants of Madison county is George M. Childs, of Granite City, one of the founders of the well known firm of Childs & Anderson, of which he is now sec- retary and treasurer, the concern with which he is officially connected being one of the larg- est of the kind in this part of the state, han- dling each season an immense amount of goods, including furniture, carpets, shades and curtains. This firm was organized in 1902 by George M. Childs and Henry J. Anderson, and in July, 1908, was incorporated and cap- italized at fifteen thousand dollars, the officers at the present time, in 1911, being as follows: J. C. Hughes, president ; Henry J. Anderson, vice-president ; and George M. Childs, secre- tary and treasurer.
A native of Missouri, Mr. Childs was born March 2, 1872, in Ashley, Pike county, a son of Frank A. and Sarah (Strothers) Childs, the former of whom was born in Virginia and the latter in Illinois, and of whom neither are now living. Acquiring the rudiments of his education in the common schools, George M. Childs subsequently took a commercial course of study at a business college in Sedalia, Missouri. Going then to St. Louis, Missouri, he was for twelve months employed as a clerk in the office of the Pullman Sleeping Car Company. In 1902 Mr. Childs located at Granite City, Illinois, and, in company with Henry J. Anderson, embarked in the furni- ture business, becoming senior member of the firm of Childs & Anderson, which, as above mentioned, was incorporated six years later. This firm, which occupies a building fifty by seventy-two feet, with two stories and a base- ment, carries a large and well selected stock of furniture, carpets, shades and curtains, and is doing a large and exceedingly remunerative business, its officers being men of good busi- ness ability, judgment and foresight.
Fraternally Mr. Childs is a member of the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks; of
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HISTORY OF MADISON COUNTY
the Order of Eagles; of the Knights of Pyth- ias and of the Order of Moosc.
CHARLES D. MCCASLAND. Among Madi- son county's well-known citizens is Charles D. McCasland, a real estate dealer, who is a native son of the state, his life story having begun at Morgan, on June 20, 1843. He is the son of James Harper and Jane (Hood) McCasland, the former a native of Virginia and the latter of Indiana. Their children were as follows: Sarah; J. M .; W. A .; J. T .; Elizabeth; Lafayette, who died at the age of three; and Charles D. the subject of this re- view. The McCasland children obtained their education, which necessity made of a limited character, in the schools of Jackson- ville, Illinois. As the children of a farmer in straitened circumstances, they attended only when the weather was too bad to engage in farm work and walked a distance of two miles and a half. They attended a subscription school.
Charles D. McCasland remained at home until the outbreak of the Civil war, when as a youth of nineteen years he enlisted at Jack- sonville as a member of Company H, of the One Hundred and First Illinois Regiment, of which Joab Fannan was captain. The regi- ment went first to Cairo, and then marched to Hollow Springs, Mississippi, and in an engage- ment there six companies were captured, there remaining but four to fall back to Coldwater and there make a brave stand with the Thirty- second Illinois. The Federals, who had four companies of infantry and two companies of cavalry, were ordered to lie down in a hollow and to charge and fire upon the advance of the Rebels. This plan was carried out and the Rebels went pell mell back to Hollow Springs, reporting that they had met an overpowering force of heavy artillery and could do nothing Mr. McCasland's company remained in that location for two weeks with no rations except the result of foraging expeditions, which was principally corn. The subject contracted a fever and was carried by his comrades to a little cabin, where he was laid on a pile of cotton seed and covered with one quilt. He had little attention, and became pitiably poor and emaciated, lying so long on the cabin floor that his bones were through his skin. Such was the suffering and sacrifice of thou- sands of other brave men that the country might be free.
· They remained at Coldwater for some time, but were relieved by Grant's army, who, fall-
ing back from an attempted attack on Vicks- burg, took them to Memphis with him, and subsequently they were stationed in Louisiana at a point opposite Vicksburg, where they re- mained two months. They were transferred to gunboats on the Mississippi river, and there, confined in close quarters and on poor rations, the company lost nearly half its numbers with scurvy. These were the gunboats which ran the blockade past Vicksburg on the memorable night of May 16, 1863. In the face of seem- ingly insurmountable barriers the dauntless flotilla of five warships and two transports braved the frowning fortresses of Vicksburg and ran past them beneath a tremendous bom- bardment of shot and shell. The boat on which Mr. McCasland was stationed was the largest and was two hours and forty minutes in passing, all the time under fearful fire from shore. Not a man perished. They went down the Mississippi and the next engagement was at Grand Gulf, the battle beginning at 8:30 A. M. and continuing until 4. P. M., five war- ships and several forts being in the combat. The Union men gaining the victory, Grant was able to land his troops and the next day the battle of Black River, Mississippi, was fought.
With other soldiers Mr. McCasland was sent down the river and stationed as guard at the mouth of the Yazoo river, where they re- mained until the fall of Vicksburg. Their long service on the boats with poor quarters and provisions had unfitted the men for duty and they were sent home on furlough, Charles and James McCasland being among the num- ber, while Charles, who was unable to travel, was sent to the hospital at Columbus, Ken- tucky, where he remained two weeks. Even at the hospital he got little to eat and the first thing he did after getting on the boat was to pay a dollar for a good, square meal. Mother McCasland was delighted at her sons' return, but distressed to see them so sick, starved and emaciated. She was very careful of their diet, but one day-being called to a sick neighbor's, she remained away all day and her sons seized the opportunity for a foraging expedition in their mother's cellar. They dis- covered a gallon of newly made cucumber pickles, which tasted so good that, although supposed to be dieting for scurvy, they re- turned again and again to the pickles and be- fore nightfall had eaten the entire gallon. When Mrs. McCasland returned she said, in horror, "Boys this will surely kill you," but
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instead of harming them it seemed to help them and Mr. McCasland thinks he can safely recommend cucumber pickles for scurvy.
Returning to the army in thirty days, Charles met his regiment at Columbus, Ken- tucky, on their way to the support of the Army of the Cumberland after the battle of Chickamauga and to relieve the Knoxville siege. The regiment went on to Chattanooga, where Charles was left to care for a sick com- rade-John McKeen. The rest went on to Young's Point on New Year's Eve, 1863, which was one of the coldest nights of which the country has record. At the point the bri- gade hospitals were formed, Mr. McCasland being appointed ward master and serving from December until the following spring. He was then appointed hospital steward of the First Division of the Twentieth Army Corps and served in that capacity under Dr. H. K. Spooner, of the Sixty-first Ohio, until the end of the war. While located there a pleasing instance showed the power of mind over mat- ter, and would doubtless be regarded as an argument by our Christian Science friends. Two soldiers from Alabama came to the hos- pital for treatment, their chief ailment being homesickness. Dr. Roberts, having charge of the patients, treated them about two weeks, saw there was nothing serious the matter, but could not well discharge them. One day one of the brothers approached Mr. McCasland, addressed him as "Doctor" and said his brother would soon be up for treatment. A bakery had just been started and the first. batch of bread had been discarded because half raw. Mr. McCasland constructed a few bread pills, placed them in red pill boxes and when his patient arrived he summoned the professional dignity of an old timer and handing him the box said impressively: "Take three pills tonight and, if no better, three to- morrow and report to me." That night a storm removed a part of the roof of the Ala- bamans' cabin, but they slept so soundly they heard it not. The brother returned that morning, full of praise for the pills, and re- marked, "Doctor, I believe if I had some more I could go back to the regiment." The doc- tor hastily presented them with a new supply and they bade adieu to the hospital with con- tented minds. When the old doctor returned to the hospital and learned of the "cure," he was delighted and never ceased to laugh over it.
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