Louis H. Schulte

SCHULTE, MOHNING, MYER, BENJEGERDES

Posted By: Linda (email)
Date: 4/22/2007 at 15:34:30

Louis H. Schulte

Louis H. Schulte, treasurer of Plymouth County, former member of the board of supervisors, former postmaster at Remsen and for many years actively identified with the public affairs of the county, is a native of Iowa and has lived in this state all of his life. He was born on a farm in Clayton county, November 22, 860, son of Garrett and Wilhelmina (Myer) Schulte, both natives of Germany, the former of whom died in the summer of 1861, the subject of this sketch then being but eight months old, leaving four children, William J., Henry, Anna and Louis H., of whom the latter is the only survivor. The widow married Fred Benjegerdes, by whom she had two children, and lived many years afterward, her death occurring in Winneshiek county, this state, in 1915.

Reared on a farm, Louis H. Schulte received his schooling in the common schools of his home neighborhood and early began working at the tinner’s trade and clerking in a hardware store, continuing thus employed until failing health drove him to the open and he returned to the farm. He made several trips over to this part of the state and after his marriage in 1888 came to Plymouth county and established his home on a farm four miles south of Remsen, remaining there until his appointment in 1907 to the position he occupied for eight years. Previous to that time, however, he had been for many years secretary of the Remsen township school board and had also served as township assessor, being elected on the Republican ticket in a Democratic township. Mr. Schulte also served as a member of the board of county supervisors for three terms, a period of nine years, during which time the new court house was erected. In this latter connection, the friends of Mr. Schulte still declare he performed a distinct service on behalf of the public in the vigorous fight he put up in the interests of economy, it having been declared upon the completion of the court house that the work had not been performed in all particulars in accordance with the specifications. Mr. Schulte put a hard fight against the acceptance of the building, but his contentions were outvoted on the board. So popular did his stand in the matter prove that a very large following of the voters of the county demanded his nomination in 1914 for the office of county treasurer and he was so nominated, even against his strongly expressed desire not to be, and was elected by substantial majority over a popular opponent, even though he not ask a single vote for himself and even went so far as to work in his opponent’s behalf. Another instance of the popularity of his stand in the court house matter was the fact that in his last race for county supervisor the opposing party did not nominate a candidate against him.

It was February, 1888, that Louis H. Schulte was united in marriage to Sophie Mohning, of Clayton county, this state, and to this union two sons have been born, Irving H., who is deputy county treasurer, and Fred. The Schultes are members of the German Evangelical church. Mr. Schulte is the owner of a fine farm of one hundred and seventy-one acres in Remsen township and has long been accounted one of Plymouth county’s most substantial citizens.

Source: The History of Plymouth County by W.S. Freeman; Vol. II; 1917