USA > Texas > A Twentieth century history of southwest Texas, Volume I > Part 24
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officials, Governor Yell of Arkansas, President Sam Houston, Archbishop Lamy, Bishop Odin, Rev. Mark Anthony and others.
The Civil war brought on many new trials and hardships. Her two oldest sons were conscripted into the Confederate army, being sixteen and nineteen years of age, but they escaped into Mexico by swimming the Rio Grande and joined the Union forces at Brazos de Santiago. They went to Washington, and like their father secured employment in the govern- ment service in the interior department, returning to their home in San Antonio in 1868. During the war Mrs. Dignowity rendered invaluable service as a physician among the home people, although not practicing pro- fessionally, but offered her service always through friendship to the sick and afflicted, besides attending to the rearing of her own children. She was a woman of most remarkable qualities and attainments, and the Dig- nowity homestead is filled with beautiful specimens of her artistic handi- work in wood carving, painting and needlework, she having received two gold medals from the International Fair Association and from the State Art Association for her wood carving, as well as numerous diplomas for other art work. She had an ever youthful spirit, was greatly devoted to her children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren, always kept herself posted on current literature and the affairs of the day, was a fascinating conversationalist, especially in her relation of the events of her most in- teresting life, and was always the life of any assemblage or any company at her home or elsewhere. Her death was truly a great loss. The follow- ing children were born to Mr. and Mrs. Dignowity: Anthony F., born January 4, 1844, now residing at Del Rio, Texas ; Albert W., born March I, 1846, was killed in Juarez's army at Piedras Negras, Mexico, having served as captain and assistant quartermaster ; Edward L., born January 7, 1848, residing at San Antonio; Henry L., born August 22, 1849, also residing in San Antonio; Charles L., born March 24, 1851, residing in Reno. Nevada ; James V .. born February 23. 1853, residing in New York ; Mary Catherine, born October 10, 1854, died from the bite of a rattle- snake April 5, 1858, at the Dignowity homestead ; Mrs. Imogene T. Ham- bleton, born March 30, 1857, residing at the Dignowity home.
The Dignowitys have for a long number of years been extensively in- terested in Mexican mines and lands, these projects having been promoted largely by James V. Dignowitv, who makes his business headquarters in New York. Edward L. and Henry L. Dignowity spend largely of their time in Mexico looking after these interests. Edward L. Dignowity's home, however, is the old Dignowity homestead. His wife, who died on the 30th of June, 1893, was Miss Judith Perry, a daughter of John Perry, a prominent pioneer of Texas whose home was at Del Rio. He has three children : Edward V. and John H., who are in Mexico, and Miss Florence Jane Dignowity.
GUSTAV FRASCH, now serving as notary public and for many years city assessor of San Antonio, is one of the old-time residents of this part of the state. His knowledge of San Antonio dates back to 1856, in which vear he arrived at San Antonio on the march southward from Fort Bel- knap to Fort Inge. At that time East Commerce street was called Ala- meda street and was lined on both sides with cottonwood trees, while the houses were quite widely scattered. Even in 1879, when Mr. Frasch built
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his present substantial stone residence at 901 Avenue C his friends laughed at him for building a home so far away from the business center of the city, his being the only house on the block at that time. With the changes that have occurred bringing about the present advanced and metropolitan conditions in San Antonio Mr. Frasch is thoroughly familiar and no man rejoices more enthusiastically in what has been accomplished.
A native of Germany, Gustav Frasch was born at Heilbronn on the Neckar in Wurtemberg, March 4, 1834. The public schools of his native city afforded him his educational privileges and after putting aside his text books he was apprenticed to learn the merchandise business, in which he remained for four years, his father being a merchant. Attracted by the opportunities of the new world, he came to America on the sailing vessel, St. Nicholas, in 1854, landing at New York City, where he re- mained for a year. He then went to Cincinnati, Ohio, where in 1855 he enlisted for service in the United States regular army as a member of Company K, Second Cavalry, now the Fifth Cavalry. At that time there were only three regiments of cavalry in America. Mr. Frasch joined the command of Colonel Heintzelman at Newport Barracks, where he re- mained for about three weeks, when by way of the Ohio and Mississippi rivers he proceeded to Jefferson Barracks, St. Louis, Missouri, arriving there in July, 1855. On the 25th of October of that year the Second Cav- alry began its long march overland from Jefferson Barracks to Texas, ar- riving at Fort Belknap in what is now Young county early in 1855. This march was for the most part through an uninhabited wilderness. The march of the Sixth Battery from Fort Riley, Kansas, to Fort Sam Hous- ton, Texas, in the latter part of 1905 and the early part of 1906, which many soldiers were claiming to be the longest in history, served to remind Mr. Frasch of the march in which he participated and which was a longer one and fraught with much greater hardship and his reminiscences of this were made the subject of a very interesting story in the San Antonio Daily Express in January, 1906.
In 1860 Mr. Frasch received his discharge from the regular army on the Nueces river, forty-five miles above Uvalde, his troop at that time be- ing commanded by Lieutenant John B. Hood. His discharge was dated May 24, 1860. On leaving the army he went to the German settlement of Fredericksburg in Gillespie county, Texas, which town had been founded and settled by one of the well known German colonies that helped plant the seeds of civilization and progress in the Lone Star state in those early days. While living there he was married to Miss Christina Schuessler, who had come with her parents from Germany when she was two years old. Mr. and Mrs. Frasch took up their abode in what is known as the Cherry Springs settlement and he turned his attention to the stock busi- ness, having a ranch along the river.
When the Civil war broke out his former regimental quartermaster, Major Joe F. Minter, sent for Mr. Frasch to come to San Antonio to act as his clerk, he having been made brigade quartermaster in the Confed- erate army. Mr. Frasch was accordingly quartermaster's clerk at San Antonio until May, 1863, when Major Minter was ordered to proceed to Shreveport, Louisiana, and assume the duties of chief quartermaster of the Trans-Mississippi department and Mr. Frasch accompanied him as
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HISTORY OF SOUTHWEST TEXAS
chief quartermaster's clerk. Arriving at their destination on the 13th of June, 1863, they took possession of the old Shreveport theater on Texas street under command of a former captain of Company B, 2d Cavalry, Kirby Smith, and there Mr. Frasch remained until November, when he was sent back to San Antonio with six government teams loaded with sugar for the commissary department in this city, arriving here on the 22d of December. Major Minter in the meantime was relieved of his quartermaster's duties and sent to London by way of Mexico to act as purchasing agent there for the Confederate states. Mr. Frasch remained at San Antonio, quartered in the old Alamo building, until March, 1864, when he obtained a leave of absence to go to Fredericksburg to visit his family and on his arrival there he was appointed Confederate tax collect- ing agent for eight counties of Texas with headquarters at Fredericks- burg. Without his knowledge he was also elected by special election to fill the office of justice of the peace, which position had been vacated by the former incumbent. At about this time he was also made adjutant with the rank of lieutenant of the Third Texas Frontier Battalion for the pro- tection of settlers from the Indians and other marauders. He thus held three offices at this time and subsequently was elected chief justice of the peace of Gillespie county.
Mr. Frasch remained at Fredericksburg until July, 1865, when at the request of General Wesley Merritt, whom he had formerly known in the army, and who had been sent to Texas to take charge of the cavalry di- vision of the southwest, he came to San Antonio to again enter upon the duties of quartermaster's clerk, this time in the regular United States army, which position he filled continuously until April, 1872. In that year Mr. Frasch was elected city assessor of San Antonio and has the distinc- tion of having served in that responsible public office longer than any other resident of the city, being retained in office by successive appoint- ments and elections until the spring of 1895, covering a period of nearly twenty-four years. His initial appointment in 1872 came from Colonel S. G. Newton, who had been appointed mayor of the city by Governor E. J. Davis. After the law was passed making the office of city assessor an elective one Mr. Frasch was regularly chosen at each successive election until he had filled the position for almost a quarter of a century. Because of his long continuance in the office he is perhaps more thoroughly famil- iar with every phase and feature of the city, its growth and development from a town of about twelve thousand when he took charge in 1872 to its present population of about sixty-five thousand, than any other one man. for he still keeps thoroughly in touch with the growth and improvement of the city and perhaps would still be in the office of assessor were it not for a deafness that began to make it slightly inconvenient at times for him to transact business. In 1893 he received a higher number of votes than any other candidate in that election. When he first became assessor he made his rounds of the city on foot, doing all the duties of the office alone, but as the city grew the assessor's department assumed more metropolitan proportions and the services of several assistants were required.
To Mr. and Mrs. Frasch were born five children, but August, the sec- ond child, died in 1900 at the age of thirty-two years. The others are : Minna, Louise, Herman and Ida. The family has a wide and favorable
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acquaintance in San Antonio and by virtue of the office which he so long filled Mr. Frasch is undoubtedly one of the best known residents of the city. No higher testimonial of capable service could be given than his long continuance in a position in regard to which the public is apt to be extremely critical if there is the slightest chance to claim partiality or un- just discrimination. His political integrity, however, stands as an unques- tioned fact in his career and he receives and merits the respect and confi- dence of all who know him.
GEORGE J. F. SCHMITT, a druggist, was born in 1859 in San Antonio, where he still makes his home, his parents being Joseph and Elizabeth (Pressley) Schmitt. His father, who is one of the best known old-time residents of San Antonio, is a native of Germany, where he first opened his eyes to the light of day on the 25th of September, 1823. He learned the trade of a builder and in 1849 on account of disturbances arising from the revolution in his native country he came to America, settling at San Antonio, where he made for himself a place among the most prominent contractors and builders of the city. He did much important constructive work here, including the building of the well known St. Mary's Catholic church in 1856-a splendid structure which stands just as it was when built. He also erected the first section of the Ursuline convent and did considerable building for Mr. Guilbeau, a prominent citizen of those days. In a general way he carried on extensive operations, prospered in his un- dertakings and came into possession of a very gratifying competence. In 1860 he built the present Schmitt homestead on Nueva street, the grounds extending to the San Antonio river and forming a beautiful park adorned with roses and other flowers and shrubbery, making it one of the most de- lightful and picturesque places in the city. About 1850 he also assisted in organizing a small German singing society which was the predecessor of
German Institutions.
the present well known Beethoven Männerchor, which was formed in 1867. Mr. Schmitt was also one of the founders in 1850 of the Casino Associa- tion, a society for indoor games and recreation, which built the Casino building on Market and Casino streets. He was likewise one of the or- ganizers in 1853 of what became famous as the volunteer fire department of San Antonio, the original organization being known as Hook, Ladder & Bucket Company, No. I. This company, as the name indicates, oper- ated at first with buckets but later purchased a hand engine and still later a steam engine. Mr. Schmitt was also one of the founders of the German- English school on South Alamo street, a fine institution of the earlier days, where many of the now prominent business men of San Antonio and other sections of the country were educated. It will thus be seen that his life and work were closely associated with the material and intellectual prog- ress of the city and with its advancement along lines contributing to gen- cral growth and improvement as well as to business successes.
During the latter part of the Civil war Joseph Schmitt was elected one of the county commissioners of Bexar county and was re-elected to this office during the reconstruction period and again upon the organiza- tion of the state under the new constitution, which was adopted following the reconstruction. He was urged to again become county commissioner
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for a fourth term but declined. About 1894 he retired from active busi- ness life, having accumulated a comfortable fortune. Not to know Mr. Schmitt in San Antonio is to argue one's self unknown, for his activities have been so varied and his labors of such signal usefulness that his name is inseparably associated with the growth and progress of this city and the southwest. He was married in San Antonio in 1854 to Mrs. Francis George (nee Pressler), who died in this city in 1903. There are three children living : George J. F., of this review ; W. A. Schmitt, who is pro- prietor of the largest store at Hondo, Texas; and Mrs. Lillie Steinhart, who lives in Mexico.
George J. F. Schmitt acquired the greater part of his education at the German-English school, but having ambitions for business life began work when only fourteen years of age for the drug firm of F. Kalteyer & Son, the partners being F. Kalteyer and his son George. This is probably the oldest drug firm in Texas, the business having been established in 1856. For some years Mr. Schmitt continued as an employe and then be- came proprietor of the store, which is still conducted, however, under the old firm name of F. Kalteyer & Son. He has been continuously connected therewith for thirty-four years in the same location in Military Plaza and has worked his way upward from the position of errand boy to that of owner. He has made himself so efficient as a druggist and pharmacist and so popular with the public-an important feature in a drug store- that he was admitted to a partnership in course of time and later became sole proprietor. He familiarized himself with every detail of the busi- ness, including the purchase and sale of goods as well as the compounding of medicines. For several years the firm also conducted a wholesale busi- ness in addition to the retail department but later returned to the exclusive retail. The wholesale business was conducted under the name of the San Antonio Drug Company, of which Mr. Schmitt was vice president. F. Kalteyer died many years ago and about the time of the death of his son, George Kalteyer, in 1893, Mr. Schmitt assumed sole ownership of the business, which he has since conducted with unvarying success.
In this city was celebrated the marriage of George J. F. Schmitt and Miss Annette Dwyer, a daughter of Major Joseph E. Dwyer, deceased, who in his life was one of the most distinguished citizens of' San Antonio,
Major Dwyer.
serving as mayor and in other official capacities and becoming moreover a prominent factor in national politics. For twenty years he was chairman of the Democratic county executive committee and was a Texas delegate to all the Democratic national conventions from 1876 until 1884, inclusive. He was appointed on the notification committee to notify the candidate in each of those years and made the notification speech to Cleveland at Sara- toga in July, 1884. He also had a distinguished military record under General Sibley in the Confederate service. He died in San Antonio in September, 1884. To Mr. and Mrs. Schmitt have been born four chil- dren : Annette, Elsa, Gertrude and Eleanore. Mr. Schmitt is a member of a large number of social and fraternal orders, including the Odd Fellows, the Knights of Pythias, the Elks, Beethoven Männerchor, Mutualista So- ciety (Spanish), the Kranken-Kassen Verein, the Casino Association and
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others. Personally he is a very popular man and although he has never been a candidate for office himself he has been a power in local politics in his efforts for his friends.
ERHARD R. GUENTHER. The growth and development of a' city de- pends upon the credit of its business interests and the enterprise and keen sagacity of the men who control its commercial, industrial and manufac- turing affairs. In this connection Erhard R. Guenther as president of the firm of C. H. Guenther & Son, proprietor of the Pioneer Flour Mills, is well known in San Antonio, and the business which he controls has been of direct benefit to the city and surrounding country for many years as well as source of individual profit to the owners. Throughout almost his entire business career he has been connected with this enterprise, enlarg- ing its scope and promoting its activities in accordance with the progress- ive spirit of the age as constantly manifest in business life.
Mr. Guenther is a native son of San Antonio, born in 1868. His parents were Carl Hilmer and Dorothea (Pape) Guenther, both now (leceased. The father was born March 19, 1826, at Weissenfels on the Saale, Saxony, where he acquired his education and learned the trade of a miller and millwright. In 1848, at the age of twenty-two years, he left his native land and came to America, settling first in Wisconsin, where he resided for two years. In 1850 he came to Texas, passed through San Antonio and continued on his way to Fredericksburg, in Gillespie county, where he established a grist mill on Live Oak creek, erecting the same of timbers which he hewed and sawed, and operating the mill by water power. In 1859 on account of the damage done to his mill by high water
Pioneer Flour Mills.
he decided to locate in San Antonio, and in that year built the first flour- ing mill in the city on the San Antonio river on what is now Guenther street near South Alamo street, which location has ever since remained the home of the milling industries. The original mill still stands at the rear of the Guenther homestead on Guenther street, and adjoining it have been built in more recent years the large and substantial structures which now compose the Pioneer Flour Mills.
Carl Hilmer Guenther died in San Antonio, October 18, 1902. the city thereby losing one of its oldest and best residents-a captain of in- dustry, who in pioneer days established a manufacturing institution which. sending its products broadcast in large quantities through a long number of years, has brought not only prominence to itself but to the city as well. The name of the Pioneer Flouring Mills is inseparably interwoven with industrial development here. In the earlier days before the advent of rail- roads and modern shipping facilities Mr. Guenther's mill was patronized by the residents, who came from a large scope of country tributary to San Antonio, making the journey by wagon, hauling with them their grain and taking back the flour. This made him well known all over Southwest Texas through personal acquaintance. As a citizen of San Antonio he was generous and public-spirited and his many good qualities won him the warm friendship of those with whom he was associated. He was a member of the Casino Association, the Beethoven Männerchor, the Ar- beiter Verein, and was one of the founders of the German-English school
PH. Guenther
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and an enthusiastic supporter of education, giving to his children excellent advantages in that direction and desiring that others might have equal op- portunities, to which end he labored effectively for the upbuilding of the schools. He was invariably successful in his business affairs, accumulat- ing a comfortable fortune before he had passed the prime of life. He de- serves greatest credit, however, for the fact that in a city and a section of country where even now industries are comparatively scarce he established a manufacturing plant that is a source of pride to the entire city and an element in its industrial growth and excellent prosperity.
In 1855 Carl H. Guenther was married at Fredericksburg to Miss Dorothea Pape, a daughter of Fritz Pape, a pioneer of the town. She passed away in 1898, being survived for four years by her husband. Their eldest son, Fritz Guenther, is now deceased, and the living children are : Arthur W., H. L., Mrs. Amanda Wagner, Mrs. Marie D. Beckman, Mrs. Matilda Schuchard and Erhard R. Guenther.
The last named is the present head of the Pioneer Flour Mills, con- ducting business under the firm name of C. H. Guenther & Son, incorpor- ated, of which company he is president. He was born and reared in San Antonio and the excellent educational advantages offered him in this coun- try were supplemented by an extended tour of Europe. It was the inten- tion at first that he should become a lawyer and he was graduated in law at Washington & Lee University, in Lexington, Virginia, in the class of 1888. The death of his elder brother, Fritz, however, caused him to put aside that plan for a life of work and take charge of the Pioneer Flour Mills, in the conduct and building up of which he has shown rare busi- ness ability, placing the enterprise in the front rank of manufacturing in- dustries in Texas. It was under his management that the new mill was built, adjoining the old structure. It is a model of industrial economy and operation, equipped with the most modern machinery and with ideal ship- ping facilities for the large shipping and export business that the mills en- joy. The daily capacity is about twelve hundred barrels of flour, which in- dicates a great growth from the humble beginning made by the father. The name Pioneer Mills has now gained wide celebrity because of the high standard of the product and the extensive advertising done by the firm in the lithographed labels on the barrels and sacks, bearing the fa- miliar portrait of C. H. Guenther, the founder of the business.
E. R. Guenther still lives on the old homestead on Guenther street, where he was born. He was married in this city to Miss Lottie Harnisch. daughter of Charles Harnisch, a prominent business man of San Antonio. In his active career he has fully sustained the excellent reputation which was established by his father and which has always been connected with the name of Guenther in San Antonio. It is true that he entered upon a business already established, but in enlarging and developing this many a man of less resolute spirit and adaptability would have failed. On the contrary he has shown rare understanding of trade conditions as well as the scientific needs of an enterprise of this character and has proved again the truth of the statement that success is not a matter of genius, as held by many, but is the outcome of clear judgment, experience and unfaltering application.
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Olmsted's Account in 1857.
On his journey from San Antonio to Castroville, Olmsted found the country almost unoccupied. "There are one or two little settlements of Mexicans and Germans along the road, owners of the few cattle that lux- uriate in this superb pasture. Their houses are jacals, of sticks and mud, with a thick projecting thatch. The roof of one of them was stretched. over a gallery, surrounding the whole house with a very picturesque and comfortable effect:"
Castroville.
"Castroville is a village containing a colony of Alsatians, who are proud here to call themselves Germans, but who speak French or a mix- ture of French and German. The cottages are scattered prettily, and there are two churches, the whole aspect being as far from Texan as pos- sible. It might sit for the portrait of one of the poorer villages of the upper Rhone valley.
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