ITZEN, John E. 1876-1949

ITZEN, KRUGER

Posted By: Tammy (email)
Date: 10/24/2016 at 10:51:54

John E. Itzen Dies Suddenly After Operation

John E. Itzen Sr. from Holland died very suddenly and unexpectedly at the Allen Memorial hospital at Waterloo at 2:30 on Tuesday afternoon. He had submitted to a stomach operation at the hospital in the forenoon and was on the operating table. It was learned that he had been suffering from a tissue growth in the stomach. There was no evidence of cancer as was feared. The foreign tissue was removed and the patient seemed to be in a satisfactory condition when the operation was concluded about noon. Attending physicians believe that their patient was stricken with a heart attack before he had awakened from the anesthetic and the end came without any evidence of death. The children who had come to the hospital before the father's operation were still there when he died. He would have been 73 years old had he lived until July.

Was Born in Germany
John Itzen was a son of Mr. and Mrs. Harm Itzen. He was born in Emden, Germany, July 24, 1876. When he was 8 years old he came with his parents to America. They located on a farm in Colfax township and John grew up there.

On February 25, 1902, John Itzen and Gertie Kruger were married at the Colfax Presbyterian church. They began life together on a Colfax township farm. The wife died there during the flu epidemic in 1919. Mr. Itzen and the children continued to live on the farm until 1931 when he and the unmarried children moved to their home in Holland. Since leaving the farm, Mr. Itzen took life easier and assisted on his farm when he was needed there.

Seven Children Survive
Mr. and Mrs. Itzen had nine children. Seven of them, two sons and five daughters are living. The children are Mrs. Fannie Stickfort, Seattle, Washington; Klaas, Mrs. Berdine Finke, Mrs. Hermine Bergman, Mrs. Albert Meyer, Mrs. Lester Harken and John E. Jr. All except the first named live in Grundy county. There are 18 grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his parents, by his wife, one son and one daughter.

Funeral Services Friday
Funeral services will be at the home at Holland Friday afternoon and later at St. Paul's Lutheran church in Shiloh township. Rev. A. W. Malin will officiate at the service. Burial will be by the side of the wife in the Holland cemetery.

--The Grundy Register (Grundy Center, Iowa), 21 April 1949, pg 8