HACKBARTH, Lee G. 1895-1966

HACKBARTH, CAPELLEN, DUESENBERG

Posted By: Tammy (email)
Date: 5/11/2019 at 11:12:04

Lee Hackbarth, Former Wellsburg Supt., Dies At Dows

Lee Hackbarth, 70, who served as superintendent of the Wellsburg school for ten years died Monday at Dows following a heart attack.

Funeral services will be on Thursday at the Morgan Methodist church at Dows.

Was Popular School Head
Mr. Hackbarth was a popular and competent school head and the Wellsburg school grew in numbers and prestige during his superintendency.

Helped Organize Girls Basketball Association
Mr. Hackbarth had a leading part in the organization of the Iowa State Girls Athletic Union. The girls at the Wellsburg school started to play basketball under his leadership and administration. He carried the Wellsburg girls to their first state basketball championship.

After resigning his position at Wellsburg he accepted the superintendency of a Consol. school at Dows. Later he served as superintendent of the schools at Franklin Consolidated, Lattimer and Thornton.

He was a graduate from Morningside College, Sioux City and from Northwestern University, Chicago. He served two years in World War I and was with the U.S. Army in France.

Surviving is the wife, Esther, one son and two daughters and one foster daughter. There are nine grandchildren and three brothers surviving.

--The Grundy Register (Grundy Center, Iowa), 24 February 1966, pg 9

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Funeral Thursday For Former Supt. Lee G. Hackbarth

Funeral services were held Thursday at the Morgan Center Church east of Dows for Lee G. Hackbarth, former Wellsburg school superintendent.

Pall bearers included John Beving, Leroy Lutterman, Woodrow Lindaman and Virgil Claassen of Wellsburg.

Lee Grant Hackbarth was born in Morgan Township, Dows, Ia., March 28, 1895, to Frank H. and Sarah Capellen Hackbarth. He died at Franklin General Hospital at Hampton, on Monday, Feb. 21 after 11 days of illness.

Upon graduation from Dows High School in 95[sic], he enrolled in college at Northwestern University. The next year while attending Iowa University he volunteered for Military service in the U.S. Army during World War I. He served for nearly two and a half years in the 35th Infantry Division, spending most of this time in France. Upon returning from service he attended Morningside College, receiving his B.A. degree in 1921.

He married Esther M. Duesenberg at Garner on June 10, 1921.

After one year as Athletic Coach at Barnum High School, he became Superintendent of Schools at Wellsburg where he served for 13 years. During the middle thirties he became actively engaged in farming at Dows.

He returned to teaching in 1948 when he became Superintendent of schools at Franklin Consolidated for five years. He then served in the same capacity for five years at Thornton. In 1958 he returned to his farm at Dows.

At an early age he joined the Morgan Methodist church, serving in various capacities, the most recent being teacher of the young people's Sunday School class and lay leader. Also during the early period of his life, he was a member of the Morgan Township Band.

He was Commander of the American Legion Post at Wellsburg in 1930. He was President of the Franklin County Farm Bureau for two years. In recent years he was a member of the Dows Lions Club and was serving as Township Clerk. He was also a member of the Barricks World War I Veterans of America No. 1457 of Hampton.

During the period of School Administrating there were many memorable events. He was one of 25 school superintendents who helped plan and organize the Iowa Girls' High School Athletic Union in the mid-twenties, after the Iowa High School Athletic Ass'n. had decided to drop competitive girls' basketball in the state of Iowa.

Certainly one of the most gratifying of these events was the Girls' State Basketball championship won by Wellsburg in 1934.

Survivors include his wife; one son, Merrill of Clear Lake; two daughters, Mrs. Charles (Leola) Holmes of Dows and Mrs. Michael (Mavis) Davies of Minneapolis, Minn.; a foster daughter, Pauline Hanes, a student at Ellsworth college; three brothers, Floyd of Dows, Harold of Kansas City, Mo., Verlynn of Iowa Falls, and nine grandchildren.

--The Grundy Register (Grundy Center, Iowa), 3 March 1966, pg 13