History of Milwaukee, city and county, Volume III, Part 89

Author: Bruce, William George, 1856-1949; Currey, J. Seymour (Josiah Seymour), b. 1844
Publication date: 1922
Publisher: Chicago : S. J. Clarke Publishing Co.
Number of Pages: 912

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JUDGE EMIL WALLBER.

Judge Emil Wallber is living retired after a life of intense and well directed activity, during which the public has been largely the beneficiary of his labors. He was born in Berlin, Germany, April 1, 1841, his parents being Julius and Henrietta (Krohn) Wallber, who were of Prussian birth. The father was engaged in mercantile pursuits in that country prior to his arrival in the new world in the year 1849. The mother and children joined him in the United States in 1850, landing in New York city on the 4th of July. There they resided for five years, during which period Julius Wallber was engaged in the women's furnishing goods business. In November, 1855, he came to Milwaukee, where he accepted the position of bookkeeper with Joseph B. Schram, with whom he remained until his death in 1879. His widow survived him until 1886.

Judge Wallber was educated in the New York Free Academy and was first em- ployed by the law firm of Smith & Salomon as a law clerk, during which time he studied law until 1862. In that year Mr. Salomon, who was lieutenant governor, succeeded to the office of governor following the demise of Governor Harvey, who was drowned at Pittsburg Landing. Judge Wallber was then appointed executive clerk and when his time in that position expired in 1864 he was offered the position of assistant

JUDGE EMIL WALLBER

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HISTORY OF MILWAUKEE

attorney general of the state and so continued to serve for two years. He was ad- mitted to the bar in 1865 and later he again took up his abode in Milwaukee, where he entered upon active practice, becoming associated with R. N. Austin, under the firm style of Austin & Wallber. At a subsequent period he was in partnership with Louis B. Schram and George H. Wahl and remained in these partnership connections until his election in 1890 as judge of the municipal court, having jurisdiction over all minor and criminal cases. He continued to serve upon the bench until 1895, when the court was divided and he continued as judge of the criminal division until 1900. He was then elected judge of the county court and presided over its proceedings until 1902, when he returned to the private practice of his profession. In 1906 he was ap- pointed German consular agent for Wisconsin and served in that capacity without pay until war was declared. He still handles business in that connection, although he is now practically living retired.

Judge Wallber has figured prominently in the public life of the commonwealth for many years. For a decade he was a member of the state board of normal regents and for twenty years he was court commissioner of Milwaukee. In 1871 he was elected to the state legislature of the sixth ward of Milwaukee and was city attorney from 1873 until 1878. In 1884 he became mayor of the city and by reelection was continued in that position until 1888. He was president of the school board in 1872 and 1873 and a member thereof for several years. In politics he has always been an active republican, unfaltering in his allegiance to the party and stalwart in support of its principles.

On the 5th of September, 1868, Judge Wallber was married to Miss Minna Seeger, a danghter of John Seeger, representative of one of the old and prominent families of the city and widely known as one of the leading merchant tailors of Milwaukee. He came from Germany in the early '50s and here passed away in January, 1914. Judge and Mrs. Wallber are parents of three children: Fred E., who is cashier of the Kilbourn State Bank; Otto J., of the Blue Printing Company; and Etta, who is Mrs. Alfred E. Rudloff of Milwaukee.

Fraternally Judge Wallber is a Mason and his religious faith is that of the Evangel- ical Lutheran church. He belongs to the Old Settlers Club and for sixty-seven years has been a member of the Milwaukee Gymnasium Association, of which he was presi- dent for twelve years. He is now the oldest living member of the Milwaukee Bar Association, with which he has been identified since 1868. He greatly enjoys reading and music and has been a member of the Milwaukee Musical Society since 1866, serving as its president and as its secretary at various times.

DEXTER H. WITTE, M. D.

Dr. Dexter H. Witte, member of the medical profession in Milwaukee, specializing in surgical practice, was born on a farm in Waukesha county, Wisconsin, October 22, 1888, and is a son of Robert S. and Addie M. (Dexter) Witte. The father, who formerly engaged in farming, is now a rural route mail carrier, residing in Waukesha. He comes of German and Scotch ancestry, while his wife is of English lineage and represents a family that was established in America in colonial days and was represented in the American army during the Revolutionary war. She now has membership with the Daughters of the American Revolution.

Dr. Witte, pursuing his education in the schools of Waukesha, completed the high school course with the class of 1905. He is a nephew of Dr. W. C. F. Witte, of Milwau- kee, mentioned elsewhere in this work. He, too, determined upon the practice of medicine as a life work and spent four years as a student in the University of Wisconsin, devoting the first three years to an academic course and the last year to the study of medicine. He finished his preparation for his professional career by three years of study in the Marquette University, which conferred upon him the degree of B. S. and M. D. in 1916. For a fear he was an interne in the Milwaukee County Hospital, gaining broad and valuable experience during that period, and in 1912 he located for the private practice of medicine in Hartford, where he remained until the World war, in which he served with the rank of first lieutenant. He was first in the surgeon general's office at Washington and was then sent to Fort Oglethorpe, Georgia, and to Camp Mcclellan, Alabama, while later he was at General Hospital, No. 32, in Chicago, spending sixteen months altogether in the service. He has since resided in Milwaukee, where he con- tinnes in the general practice of medicine but specializes largely in surgery, in which he has developed skill and efficiency to a high degree. He belongs to the Milwaukee County, Wisconsin State, the Tri-State Medical Societies and also to the American Medical Association and is ever alert to adopt new methods and ideas that will con- tribute to his success in coping with the intricate and involved problems of disease. He is now assistant professor of surgery at Marquette University and is on the visiting staff of St. Mary's Hospital.

On the 7th of July, 1917, Dr. Witte was married to Miss Margaret Habhegger, of Vol. 111-50

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Watertown. Wisconsin, who is of Swiss descent in the paternal line and of German lineage on the maternal side.

Dr. Witte is a member of the Milwaukee Press Association. Back in his school days he was a reporter on the Free Press and was manager of the Governor McGovern's publicity campaign in 1910. He is a Master Mason and a member of the Congregational church, and in these associations are found the rules which govern his conduct and shape his course in all the relations of life.

JOHN J. CZAJA.

Milwaukee has become one of the important centers of the meat industry of the country and prominently identified with the meat trade in one of its lines is John J. Czaja, who is conducting business under the name of the Milwaukee Boiled Ham Com- pany. He has developed an enterprise of large proportions in this connection and is rapidly expanding his plant to meet the growing demands of the trade. The life story of Mr. Czaja is an interesting one, for he has made for himself a most creditable position in commercial circles although still a young man. He was born in Stuttgart, Germany, November 27, 1890, and is a son of John and Catherine Czaja, who came to Milwaukee in the year 1891. Here the father engaged in the retail meat business, with which he is still connected.

John J. Czaja attended the parochial schools of Milwaukee and also largely supple- mented his early training by study at home. When but eight years of age he became a factor in the business circles of the city by delivering meat mornings and evenings for his father. When a youth of but fifteen years he began experimenting in the production of boiled ham. He was a lad of but twelve when he cut meat on the block for his father and he made a study from early youth of the boiled ham industry. Since that time he has constantly improved methods until he has perfected a boiled ham superior to anything on the market. Today he has a plant with a capacity of fifty thousand hams per annum and is now working upon the plan for the erection of a new plant which will double the capacity of the old one. The new plant is to be equipped with a pickling cellar that will be kept at thirty degrees Fahrenheit and when completed it will be the only plant of its kind in the middle west. He follows a uniform system in the curing of hams and all are boneless, being pressed and uniform in shape. These are sent out under the name of the Hickory Nut brand and the old English type of print is used in preparing the labels. It was five years ago that Mr. Czaja took over the hoiled ham business formerly owned by Mr. Westfall, but from the beginning he has used his own system of curing hams-a system which he developed when sixteen years of age. He sells more hams thau all the other houses of Milwaukee put together and the business is constantly growing. He could never be satisfied with anything short of perfection in this line and he is today producing an article of diet superior to anything found upon the market.

In 1916 Mr. Czaja was united in marriage to Miss Hattie Zynda, a daughter of Felix Zynda, who was born in Germany and is now a resident of Milwaukee. Mrs. Czaja passed away August 25, 1919, leaving two children, Raymond and Hattie. The religious faith of the family is that of the Catholic church and Mr. Czaja also holds membership with the Travelers Protective Association of America and with the Chamber of Commerce, being interested in everything that pertains to the city's welfare, its busi- ness development and the advancement of its civic standards. He deserves great credit for what he has accomplished in a business way as step by step he has advanced until he occupies a position of leadership in connection with the particular field in which he lahors.

ADAM ANTHONY MEISENHEIMER.

Adam Anthony Meisenheimer, vice president of the Meisenheimer Printing Com- pany, has been active in the development of the business, which is now accorded a liberal patronage in recognition of the high standards of service maintained in the office and the excellent character work turned out. Mr. Meisenheimer was born in this city March 10, 1872, a son of Philip and Elizabeth Meisenheimer. Further mention of the family is made in connection with the sketches of his brothers, Edward J. and Rudolph Meisenheimer, on other pages of this work.

Adam A. Meisenheimer pursued his early education in the public schools of Mil- waukee and his later lessons have been learned in the practical school of experience and in the university of hard knocks, in which he has acquired knowledge of great value as a factor in his life work. When his textbooks were put aside he started out to earn his living and learned the printer's trade under the direction of his brother, Edward J. Meisenheimer. He acquainted himself with every phase of the business and since

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its incorporation has been one of the officials. Theirs is the most extensive printing and lithographing concern in Wisconsin. The business has been developed along the most progressive lines and the Meisenheimer establishment has largely set the standard for work of this character in the state. They have displayed marked initiative in intro- ducing new methods and in evolving higher ideals of service. They have among their patrons some of the largest and most important firms not only of Milwaukee but of the state, and the business is now one of mammoth proportions.

On the 19th of April, 1900, Mr. Meisenheimer was married to Miss Adelaide Agnes Hunt, a daughter of Albert Hunt, who was born in Milwaukee and who was in charge of the cars at the Chicago & North Western yards for many years. He died in 1917. Mr. and Mrs. Meisenheimer have two children: Jeanette M., who was educated in the Mil- waukee schools; and Edward M., who is now a pupil in the South Side high school. He is a musician of considerable ability and also a wireless operator. He possesses marked genius along various lines and his studious nature is indicated in the fact that he is now at the head of his class in school- a son of whom the parents have every reason to be proud.

Mr. Meisenheimer is well known in fraternal circles, having membership in Ex- celsior Lodge No. 175, A. F. & A. M .; Excelsior Chapter, R. A. M .; Galilee Commandery, K. T .; and Tripoli Temple of the Mystic Shrine. He is likewise a member of National Lodge No. 41, K. P., the Royal League and the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. In these associations are indicated the nature of his interests and the rules that have governed his conduct, making him at all times cognizant of his duties and obligations to his fellowmen. His entire course has been marked by a progressive spirit and a con- stant reaching out after better and high things, whether in business or in any other rela- tion of life.

GEORGE C. HINKLEY.

George C. Hinkley, who is engaged in the real estate business, interested in home building and financing building projects and insurance at West Allis, was born in Tuscola county, Michigan, August 13, 1862, a son of George M. and Sarah (Tubbs) Hinkley, both of whom were natives of the state of New York. At an early day they went to Michigan and were pioneers of Saginaw county, where Mr. Hinkley built the first sawmill in that section of the state. He lost all that he had during the Civil war and afterward removed to Grand Rapids, Michigan, where he operated a shingle mill for a short time. In 1866 he came to Milwaukee and associated with John Eldred he huilt a shingle mill at National avenue and the river. This they continued to operate for about four years, when the mill was removed to Muskegon, Michigan, but Mr. Hinkley remained in Milwaukee. He had been working on some patents for sawmills and had placed the patents with Filer & Stowell for manufacture. In a short time, however, Edward P. Allis became interested in his patents and Mr. Hinkley joined the Edward P. Allis Company on a salary, with a royalty for his machinery inventions. He remained with that corporation until his death, which occurred in 1907, and his in- ventive genius was a valuable contributing element in the success of the Allis interests. In fact, it is said that he was one of the most prominent sawmill men of the world. He was known far and wide and built practically every sawmill of any importance in the United States-having no competitor, it was only a question of how much he could do. His wife passed away several years prior to the death of her husband.

George C. Hinkley obtained his education in the public schools of Milwaukee, having been brought to this city by his parents when but four years of age. After leaving school he turned his attention to the flour milling business, which he learned under the direction of an uncle in Michigan. Later he returned to Milwaukee and completed his training in this line in the model plant of the Edward P. Allis Company. For twenty-nine years he was engaged in the manufacture of flour. For five years of this period he was a traveling expert for the Edward P. Allis Company and for twelve years superintendent of the two plants of the United States Milling Company in Mil- waukee. He possessed much of his father's mechanical skill and ingenuity, combined with a thorough understanding of flour manufacture, and at all times he kept in touch with the advancement and progress that were being made in the methods of milling. At length he turned his attention to the real estate business, in West Allis, with offices in the block that he now occupies. The company today conducts a general real estate, insurance and financial business, erecting homes and selling them on order and financing other building projects. The business is carried on under the name of the Hinkley Company and its patronage is very extensive. Mr. Hinkley is recognized as one of the most progressive, energetic and capable business men of West Allis, carrying forward to successful completion whatever he undertakes. Obstacles and difficulties have never seemed a bar to his path but rather have been an impetus for renewed effort on his part, leading to the successful achievement of his plans. For a long time he was president of the West Allis State Bank, being elected to the office on the organization of the bank and so serving until he resigned in January, 1921.

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On the 31st of December, 1890, Mr. Hinkley was united in marriage to Miss Ida McDuffie, a native of Hartford, Wisconsin, and they have become parents of a son, George M., who was in the service of his country during the World war. He spent about a year before going to camp in hiring men for the T. N. T. plant, where high explosives were manufactured, and eventually he was on duty in camp at Waco, Texas. He is now associated in business with his father.

Mr. Hinkley is a member of the Masonic fraternity and a most loyal follower of the teachings and purposes of the craft. He has always been a stalwart champion of the cause of education and was a member of the West Allis school board for several years. In fact, he stands loyally in support of every project for the public good and his labors have been an effective force in promoting the welfare and upbuilding of the city in many ways.

MALCOLM ROBERT MARKSON, M. D.

Dr. Malcolm Robert Markson, physician and surgeon, entered upon practice in Milwaukee well equipped by thorough collegiate training and broad hospital and general experience. He maintains his office at 1028 Walnut street and has enjoyed growing success throughout the period of his residence in this city. He was born in the town of Glen Robertson, Ontario, Canada, April 20, 1886, and is a son of Nathan and Frances ( Albion ) Markson, who reside in Chicago. Three of their sons are physicians, namely: Dr. Simpson M. Markson and Dr. Malcolm Robert Markson, both of whom are practicing in Milwaukee; and Dr. David E. Markson of Chicago. Another brother,

Murdoch, the youngest of the family, is a pharmacist and resides at Rosedale, Mississippi, These four brothers constitute the family of Mr. and Mrs. Nathan Markson.

Reared in Canada, Dr. Malcolm R. Markson attended the public and high schools of that country and afterward the Royal Military College of Kingston, Ontario. In 1905 the family removed to Chicago and he there continued his professional training as a student in the Chicago College of Medicine and Surgery, from which he was graduated with the M. D. degree in 1915. Following his graduation he became an interne in the Frances E. Willard Hospital, with which he was thus connected for a year, and he later spent another year at the Calumet and Hecla Hospital at Calumet, Michigan, thus gain- ing broad and valuable experience, for in no other field can such general experience be acquired as in hospital practice. After leaving Calumet he entered service for the World war and spent thirteen months as a member of the United States army, eleven months of this period being passed in France with the American Expeditionary Force. He was commissioned a first lieutenant and served on the front lines on various battle- fields which made memorable history in connection with the great international con- flict. He received his discharge at Camp Dix, New Jersey, May 13, 1919, after which he came to Milwaukee and entered upon general practice here.

Dr. Markson was married in January, 1918, and has one son, John W., born Janu- ary 12, 1919. He has no business interests outside of his profession but is concentrating his efforts and energies upon his chosen life work with the result that he is making steady progress in that field.

JOSEPH THOMAS AULTMAN.

Joseph Thomas Aultman, president of Aultman, Incorporated, of Milwaukee, and of Aultman, Incorporated, of Minneapolis and St. Paul, two distinct companies, has thus come into prominence as a representative of the advertising business of the middle west. He was born August 13, 1875, at Strasburg, Illinois, his birthplace being the home farm of his father, Sebastian Aultman, who was a son of Xavier Aultman, a native of Alsace-Lorraine. Coming to the new world the grandfather settled at Strasburg, Illinois, where he devoted his attention to agricultural pursuits until his later years, passing away at the advanced age of ninety-six. His son, Sebastian Aultman, who was born in Alsace-Lorraine in 1845, was twenty-one years of age when he came to the United States, and like his father became interested in farming near Strasburg. There he resided until 1886, when he removed with his family to Chicago, where he became superintendent of the Wahl Brothers Giue Works, which were afterward taken over by the Armour interests. He was a sub- stantial, hard working man, whose sterling worth of character and business ability made him many warm friends. His death occurred in the year 1911.

Joseph Thomas Aultman, having pursued his education in the common schools of Shelby county, Illinois, and the public schools of Chicago, started out in the busi- ness world as a representative of the Gunning System, outdoor advertising. He was then a youth of seventeen years and remained with that corporation and their suc-

JOSEPH T. AULTMAN

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cessors, the Thomas Cusack Company, for twenty-one years. Steadily he was ad- vanced from a minor position until he became sales manager, his original work with the company including the task of cleaning brushes and other such menial labor. He soon proved his capability and industry, however, and won promotion as his powers developed. During twelve years of the twenty-one year period he was in the Milwaukee office. He won the reputation of being the best sales manager with the Thomas Cusack Company on the matter of local sales. At length he determined to engage in business on his own account and in 1916 carried out his plan, organ- izing his company under the style of Aultman, Incorporated, of Milwaukee. In

this connection he does all kinds of outdoor advertising, including the building of electric signs and commercial lettering of every particular. He also organized Aultman, Incorporated, of St. Paul and Minneapolis, of which he is likewise the president, and the two companies in their business cover the territory of Wisconsin, Minnesota and upper Michigan. The slogan "See Aultman First" is familiar to all. Mr. Aultman certainly deserves much credit for what he has accomplished. He started with a cash capital of hut five hundred dollars and today does a business of upwards of a million dollars annually. The company has over four thousand dis- play advertising space under lease in two states and a combined weekly payroll of over three thousand dollars. They maintain artistic standards in all their work, and their patrons receive the best possible service. They do the national advertising for the Federal Tires, Sterling Trucks and Patton Paints, and Mr. Aultman as head of the companies manages the financial and sales interests of the business.

On the 10th of May, 1902, Mr. Aultman was married to Miss Louise Weasea, of Fond du Lac, Wisconsin. His political endorsement is given to the republican party, yet he has never been an aspirant for office. He is a Catholic with membership relation in the Cathedral parish, and fraternally he is an Elk, belonging to Mil- waukee Lodge. He is also a member of the Milwaukee Athletic Club and the Rotary Club. He is particularly fond of golf and literature, covering a wide range from fiction to science, which constitutes one of the chief sources of his recreations in leisure hours. He has published a standard work on Sign Painting Cost in use all over the United States, and his ability has made him known to the trade throughout the entire country. He is indeed a self-made man, deserving all of the praise im- plied in that term, and as the architect of his own fortunes has builded wisely and well.

REINHARDT W. BOERNER, M. D.

Dr. Reinhardt W. Boerner, physician and surgeon of Milwaukee, located for practice on Fond du Lac avenue when that section of the city was but sparsely settled. His practice has grown with the city's growth and development and his position in pro- fessional circles is enviable. Dr. Boerner was born in Buffalo, New York, February 10, 1874, a son of George and Marie (Engelfried) Boerner. His paternal grandfather, Rein- hardt Boerner, for whom he was named, was a native of Germany and hecame one of the respected and valued residents of Milwaukee, in which city his son, George Boerner, was horn. The grandfather was connected with the father of Henry J. Baumgarten and they were among the first house movers of Milwaukee, carrying on that business at a time when block and tackle were used. George Boerner became a shoe cutter hy trade and followed the business in Milwaukee until 1872, when he went to Buffalo, New York. There he met and married Marie Engelfried, a native of Germany. In 1875 he returned to Milwaukee and for twenty-seven years was a member of the city police force, retiring in 1912 on account of an accident. He also belonged at one time to the Milwaukee Zouaves. He is still a hale and hearty man, yet making his home in this city, where the greater part of his life has been passed.

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History of Milwaukee, city and county, Volume III, Part 89

Author: Bruce, William George, 1856-1949; Currey, J. Seymour (Josiah Seymour), b. 1844 Publication date: 1922 Publisher: Chicago : S. J. Clarke Publishing Co. Number of Pages: 912

Author: Bruce, William George, 1856-1949; Currey, J. Seymour (Josiah Seymour), b. 1844
Publication date: 1922
Publisher: Chicago : S. J. Clarke Publishing Co.
Number of Pages: 912