Philip Bickelhaupt

BICKELHAUPT, KEREMAN, TYSON

Posted By: Marthann Kohl-Fuhs (email)
Date: 5/13/2009 at 11:41:04

1889 BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY OF
SHELBY AND AUDUBON COUNTIES, IOWA
W. S. DUNBAR & CO., PUBLISHERS
113 ADAMS STREET, CHICAGO

pages 776-777

PHILIP BICKELHAUPT, an act-
ive farmer of Viola Township, was born
in Germany, near Berlin, June 15, 1844.
He is the fifth of a family of six children, five
of whom lived to be grown. His parents
were Jacob and Martha (Kereman) Bickel-
haupt, who were born in Germany, and lived
and died in their native country. Philip at-
tended school until he was fourteen years old,
and at that early age he was desirous of trying
his fortunes in the new west. He embarked
on a sailing vessel for the United States, and
made the voyage in fifty-four days, the first
part of the journey being attended with very
severe storms. He landed in New Orleans,
arid from that city went to St. Louis by water;
from St. Louis he went to Chicago, Illinois,
and remained there one week; his finances
were by this time quite reduced, so that he
pawned his clothes for $5 in order to get
money to go to Fulton, Illinois. There he
secured work in a cigar factory, and afterward
went to work on a farm where he staid two
years. He then went to Morrison, Illinois,
and worked on a farm until the breaking out
of the late civil war. He enlisted in the
Eighth Illinois Cavalry, Company C, and was
assigned to the Army of the Potomac, skir-
mishing and scouting the greater part of
Virginia. He participated in the battle of
Fredericksburg, and also of Gettysburg, after
which he was taken prisoner, held three days,
and then paroled. He was wounded in the
left knee, and so was disabled for four months,
after which he joined his regiment in Mary-
land, and was afterward sent to St. Louis,
Missouri, thence to Chicago, where he was
finally discharged. He then returned to Mor-
rison, Illinois, and iii 1865 he was married to
Mary Tyson, a daughter of John Tyson, Esq.,
of Morrison, Illinois. The two years follow-
ing he was engaged in farming in Whiteside
County, Illinois, and in the fall of 1868 he
removed to Jasper County, Iowa, locating
in the town of Monroe, where he opened a
meat market; he remained there one year,
and then moved hack to Whiteside County,
Illinois, and remained there three years. In
1872, Mr. Bickelhaupt removed to Audubon
County and purchased eighty acres of new
land in section 6; this he broke out and im-
proved, and two years later he bought eighty
acres more, and he now has a half section of
land in a high state of cultivation. He also
has town property in Coon Rapids, Iowa. He
is extensively engaged in the feeding, buying
and shipping of live-stock. All of his own
produce is consumed on his farm, and he buys
largely of his neighbors. Mr. and Mrs. Bick-
elhaupt have had nine children born to them---
Margaret, Elizabeth, Peter, Mamie, Alice,
George, Albert, Odessa and Rena. Eight of the
children are living. The confidence reposed in
Mr. Bickelhaupt by the people of the com-
munity is shown by the fact that he has served
as township trustee for thirteen years, and
has been president of the school board for
fourteen years. He was elected township
treasurer in 1888, and is the present incum-
bent of the office. He is a member of Charity
Lodge, No. 197, A. F. & A. M., at Coon
Rapids, Iowa. He strongly adheres to the
principles of the Democratic party. He is a
member of the G. A. R. post at Dedham.