H JULIUS PRUESSING, b 3 Nov 1834

PRUESSING, MAKEPRANG, JOHNSON, JOHANNSEN, KROSS

Posted By: Donna Moldt Walker (email)
Date: 9/16/2004 at 17:59:25

The enterprising German citizen is to be found all over the West - as in most other parts of the United States - pushing his way ahead, and almost without exception industrious and well-to-do. The subject of this sketch, a true child of the Fatherland, and one who commenced at the foot of the ladder, has been blest with more than ordinary prosperity, and is now numbered among the wealthiest men of Iowa Township. He owns 354 acres of land, and his homestead lies on section 26. He has a very fine residence, two stories in height, with basement, handsomely finished and furnished, and embellished with the refinements of modern life - books, pictures, piano and the various other appurtenances which indicate the cultivated tastes of its inmates.

The native place of our subject was in the German Province of Schleswig-Holstein, where his birth occurred Nov. 3, 1834. His parents were Jacob and Emarentia (Makeprang) Pruessing, natives of the same province as their son, and who emigrated to America when the latter was a young man of twenty years, came to the West, and settled in Iowa Township, this county, in the spring of 1854. The land which the father then secured comprises the present homestead of our subject.

Seven children completed the parental household, all of whom were born in the Fatherland. Of the seven but two are living, namely: Julius and his sister Emma, Mrs. Kross, who lives near him in Iowa Township. The mother passed away at the old homestead, April 11, 1864. Jacob Pruessing survived his wife until Oct. 14, 1878, spending also his last days at the old farm.

The subject of this biography was trained by his excellent parents to habits of industry and sentiments of honor, and upon approaching manhood was thus well equipped for the struggle which lay before him. His interests were closely connected with that of the family until after the death of the mother, and a year from that time he was married, April 9, 1865, to Miss Mary W. Johnson (originally Johannsen) daughter of M. and Annie C. (Kross) Johnson. Of this union there have been born four children: Emma K., Emil J., Agnes D., and Meta F.; all of whom are at home with their parents. Mr. Pruessing upon becoming a voting citizen identified himself with the Democratic party, but his extensive farming interests prevent his giving much time to public affairs, and he has never sought office.

One of the most attractive features of the Pruessing homestead is the sleek and well-fed livestock, comprising graded Short-horn cattle, Poland-China swine, and some noble speciments of Clydesdale and Cleveland-Bay horses. Mr. Pruessing looks upon the result of his efforts in this direction with pardonable pride, and he can certainly exhibit some of the finest animals to be found in this part of the county. He erected a fine frame barn in 1876, which is an admirable structure. It occupies an area of 40x50 feet with 18-foot posts, a solid stone basement under the whole, and is equipped with all the modern conveniences for the storage of grain and shelter of stock. Everything about the premises indicates the energy and perseverance with which the farm has been conducted, and the good judgment overlooking all its details. In thus building up one of the finest estates in the county, Mr. Pruessing has unquestionably contributed largely to its wealth and prosperity. He is liberal and public-spirited, maintaining a warm interest in the progress of his adopted country, being in accord with its institutions, and giving of his means to the support of schools and churches. He is not a member of any religious denomination, but believes in their maintenance and evinces his sentiments in the most practical manner, both by his substantial and moral encouragement.

("Portrait and Biographical Album of Jackson County, Iowa", originally published in 1889, by the Chapman Brothers, of Chicago, Illinois.)