Frederick John Hintermeister

HINTERMEISTER

Posted By: Ed Hintermeister (email)
Date: 8/25/2008 at 09:47:52

Frederick John Hintermeister
15 February 1862- 2 November 1926

Frederick John Hintermeister was born 15 February 1862 in Muscatine, Iowa, and was the third child of his German immigrant parents to be born in America. Fred's father, John (Johannes), came to America in 1854 and his mother, Elizabeth, came to America from Tuttlingen, Germany, on 24 July 1855.

Records from the German Evangelical Church (now combined with the United Church of Christ) showed that Fred was baptized on 21 June 1862. As a child Fred attended grade school in Muscatine for a few years. The 1870 Census shows that Fred was eight years old and attending school at that time. Although his education was not extensive, it was adequate for the era.

Fred came from a large family of eight children. Fred and his siblings are listed in the order of birth as follows:

Maria Barbara (17 July 1854-29 July 1854)
John Buchanan ( 2 August 1856-30 January 1939)
Jake ( 4 April 1858-10 March 1927)
Frederick John (15 February 1862-2 November 1926)
Rosina B. (24 October 1864-30 January 1914)
George J. (24 July 1867-20 March 1949)
William Bernhardt (15 February 1870-7 July 1887)
Male Child (Unknown)

In 1878, at the age of 16, Fred was working at the Hershey Lumber Company saw mill in Muscatine. The 1880 Census shows that Fred and his two older brothers, John and Jacob, were all employed at the saw mill. The Census also shows that Fred, as well as all his brothers and sisters, were still living with his parents on Front Street. The house number was not provided.

In April 1855 Fred purchased a property at 406 Third Street, South Muscatine (now 406 Evans Street) , for one hundred dollars. A year later in July 1886, Fred took out a mortgage on this property for three hundred dollars. Since it is believed that Fred built the house on this lot, it is assumed that the money from this mortgage went toward the construction costs of the home.

On 1 May 1889 Fred married Mary Lou Kramer, whose family was also from Muscatine. After the marriage, the couple resided at the Evans Street home. The 1900 Census shows that this house was owned free and clear, and was no longer mortgaged.

While living in this home, the first of their seven children were born. The children born to this marriage in order of birth were:

Elmer Clyde (26 February 1890-4 May 1958)
Charlie William (15 November 1891-10 August 1963)
Hildred Eliza (10 March 1894-1 June 1944)
Hubert Glen ( 7 June 1896-28 March 1982)
Fernie Isabell (13 September 1900-21 January 1905)
Clarissa Mida (22 January 1903-6 August 1998)
Ernest Frederick (12 September 1909-16 September 1921)

Fred was a very hard working, honest, and moral person. He loved his family and tried hard to teach his children right from wrong by setting a good example for them.

From a physical perspective, Fred was a man of medium build, weighing about 160 pounds and about five feet ten inches tall. He had blue eyes and black hair which turned gray in his later years. Fred was not a drinking man, and his wife, Mary, would not allow alcohol in the home. Fred did, however, enjoy smoking a pipe or cigars.

Fred seemed to have a natural talent to be a builder and manager, and could be categorized as a "leader type" individual. Because of these attributes, it was only natural for him to be successful in his careers.

Between 1880 and 1900 Fred worked as a teamster, and helped construct a number of streets in the Muscatine area. A photograph of Fred, grading a roadbed in 1889, can be seen in Figure 1. The individual designated as "Grandpa" is Fred. In a Muscatine Journal Advertisement of 29 April 1899, Fred placed an advertisement for black ground and good sod. The advertisement probably resulted from this teamsters work.

In March 1899 Fred purchased one and three-fourths acres of land located in South Muscatine for $600. On 2 October 1899, Fred filed his intent with the Muscatine Court House to develop the land he had purchased into the Hintermeister Addition to the city of Muscatine (see Figure 2). Of the ten lots in this development, Fred eventually sold six lots. The lot sales were as follows:

Lot No. Sales Date Sold To Price

1 & 2 Unplatted
3 3 April 1908 Fred Grath $100
4 18 July 1900 Emma Graw $175
5 19 August 1899 Henry Schmeichel $175
6 16 May 1905 Mary Mohnsen $825
7 2 January 1902 Albert Zellner $550
8 16 June 1903 Carl Birchardt $875
9 & 10 Not Sold

In February 1902 Fred purchased a lot in the Stortz's Addition to Muscatine. The Stortz's subdivision was directly adjacent to the Hintermeister Addition. On this lot Fred constructed a new home for his family at what is now 1830 New Hampshire Street. This was a large, lovely, wooden frame type constructed home with a family size front porch. While living in this home, their sixth child, Clarissa, was born. Misfortune also struck the family while living in this home, when Fred's three year old daughter, Fernie, died of pneumonia on 21 January 1904. A receipt found in the family Bible shows that Mary purchased a new piano on 8 September 1906.

Two years later after completing the Hintermeister Addition, Fred sold their home on New Hampshire Street in March 1907. One month earlier he had purchased a 150 acre farm located six miles south of Muscatine along the Great White Way Road (now Highway 61 South) . Fred and Mary believed that farm life would provide a better life style for the family. Three years after moving to the farm Fred and Mary's youngest son, Ernest Frederick, was born. The 1910 Census shows that Fred had fully paid for the farm by that time and that there was no mortgage on it.

It is interesting to note that Fred's sister, Rose, and her husband, Henry Nicklas, owned a farm a couple of miles south of Fred's farm in an area known as the Bluff, and his brother, George, owned a farm a few miles north of Fred's farm near Olive Branch School.

The former owner of Fred's farm, Mr. Vail, had constructed a new home on the farm several years earlier. The original one room frame homestead house was still standing on the property a short distance south of the new farm house. Fred later converted the homestead house to a chicken coup.

Not wanting to forget the positive aspects of city life, the yard was always kept well manicured and several large flower beds were added to beautify the property. This city style yard was uncommon on farms of that time, and was considered one of the nicest yards on the Muscatine Island . Besides esthetic improvements to the farm, Fred also built several new farm buildings.

When Highway 61 was constructed, it separated eleven acres from the rest of the farm. Fred used this land as pasture for the 12-15 head of work horses used on the farm. The principle crops grown on the farm were sweet potatoes, watermelons, cantaloupes, wheat, and rye. In addition to crops, Fred also raised a large number of chickens, along with turkeys, geese, and ducks. Fred also raised a few cows and pigs.

Besides his farm income, Fred received rent on properties which he owned in Muscatine. These properties included his original home at 406 Evans Street and two homes in the Hintermeister subdivision. Every time Fred went to town he would stop by the three houses to collect the rent. Since this was a days trip by horse and buggy, these trips were infrequent.

Fred bought his first automobile while living on the farm. It was a black Model "T" Ford with wooden wheels. When it rained, curtains were put on the sides to protect the passengers from the rain.

In 1917 the decision was made to sell the farm and move back to Muscatine. Mary preferred city life and Fred was now 55 years old. The older children had already left home, and only the younger children remained to help with the farm chores.

The family purchased a lovely two story home from Fred Hoopes at 344 Stewart Road (now 2017 Stewart Road) in January 1917. This house had a beautiful lawn and flowers, and Mary liked it very much. This was going to be Fred's retirement home. A photograph of Fred relaxing in the living room of this home can be seen in Figure 3. It was taken about 1920. While living in this home Fred bought a new car, a seven passenger, black Chalmers. The 1920 Census shows that Fred worked as a laborer at the Sash and Door Company.

The year 1920 was the year for marriages in the Hintermeister household. Hubert and Elmer were each married two weeks apart on 24 March 1920 and 7 April 1920, respectively, and Hildred was married several months later on 30 September 1920.

After his marriage, Hubert and his brother, Charlie moved to Davenport and worked as carpenters and truckers. It is interesting to note that the large number of Hintermeisters in the Davenport area are primarily descended from these two brothers.

On 16 September 1921 the family suffered a tragic loss. Fred's youngest son, Ernest, came in contact with a downed power line and was instantly killed.

Fred and Mary attended the Nazarene Church located on Oregon Street, not far from their home on Stewart Road. Mary was active in the church and taught a Sunday school class.

In 1925 Fred was forced to foreclose on his farm. As a result of this, Fred and Mary moved back to the farm and sold their house on Stewart Road to their daughter, Hildred, and her husband, Archie King in March 1925. After moving back to the farm, Fred and Mary lost contact with the Nazarene Church due to the long commute and their increasing ages.

Fred stayed on the farm until his death on 2 November 1926. Prior to his death, Fred had suffered from throat cancer for several years. He is buried at Greenwood Cemetery in Muscatine, Iowa.

Fred will always be remembered for having a kind heart and for being a devoted husband and father. These qualities were demonstrated numerous times throughout his life. A few examples are provided as follows: When the husband of Emma Graw (Mary's sister) died, Fred agreed to become guardian of her children in the event of her death. When his son, Charlie became deathly ill with mastoidites, Fred spared no expense to have an operation performed by a specialist in Iowa City. When his father, John, was quite old, Fred provided him a home with his family for the remainder of John's life.

After Fred's death, Mary sold the farm to the city for use as the Muscatine Municipal Airport in June 1928. She also sold their three rental properties, and lived with her daughter, Hildred, for many years. When Hildred died in 1944, Mary lived with each of her sons, Hubert and Charles, for a short time. She then moved into the Muscatine Lutheran Home. She died on 18 February 1947 at Hershey Hospital after a short illness.