Giebink, Henry, 1863-1935

GIEBINK, KLEINHESSELINK, DELANCEY, BLENKIRON

Posted By: Lydia Lucas - Volunteer (email)
Date: 6/13/2021 at 20:33:38

From the Alton Democrat, March 29, 1935:

HENRY GIEBINK OF ORANGE CITY DIES OF HEART STROKE

Henry Giebink of Orange City suffered a stroke at four o’clock Saturday afternoon, while conversing with his wife, and died without regaining consciousness. Mrs. Giebink made some remark to him and he failed to answer. He had been seriously ill with heart trouble for the past six months, but it had been reported that he was gaining and able to be up some each day.

One of the most remarkable men in this section of the state, Mr. Giebink was born at Waupun, Wis., on June 2, 1863, receiving his early education at Hope college, Holland, Mich., and coming to Alton in the ‘90s where he built up a tremendous business in buying hogs, farmers hauling them to Alton from 12 and 15 miles away because of the higher prices to be had here. When he sold his business here he invested in several thousand acres of wheat land at Litchville, N.D., which he owned at the time of his passing.

A keen observer, Mr. Giebink had the reputation of having successfully “bucked” the board of trade on more than one occasion. He was unusually well posted as to probable market trends.

He was [one or two lines obscured by a fold in the newspaper] ert, who are both students at the University of Iowa. He is also survived by two brothers and two sisters—Jane Schuppert, John Giebink, Doris Giebink, and Mrs. H. J. Loomans, all of Waupun, Wisconsin.

Editor Will A. Wells of the Webster, S.D., Journal, and formerly publisher of The Alton Democrat, and Mrs. Wells, came to attend the funeral services of their long-time friend which was held at the home Tuesday afternoon at two o’clock, with Rev. Bert Brower, pastor of the American Reformed church, officiating. The Masonic ritual was carried out at the grave by the members of Floyd Lodge of which Mr. Giebink was a member.

Others from Dakota who came to attend the funeral were A. P. Hanson, president of the Litchville bank, William Haack, manager of the Giebink elevator there, J. A. Edlund and Herman Vaders, tenants on the Giebink lands at Litchville.

Mr. Giebink was widely known for his political and economic beliefs which he had expressed for many years through the medium of this paper. In the early days he was a strong advocate of “free silver” and a great admirer of William Jennings Bryan.

Since his marriage in 1914 he made his home in Orange City, Mrs. Cambier’s [Mrs. Giebink’s?] home town, although Mr. Giebink lived at Alton forty years and had many warm friends here, retiring entirely from business but with an ever watchful eye on the livestock and grain markets.

Mr. Giebink will be greatly missed by a host of warm friends and his observations on matters of timely interest will also be a distinct loss to people in this section of the state. He had many admirers, not only here but in a surprisingly large number of communities, who thought he was exactly right in his observations. The Alton Democrat, especially, regrets the passing of this man who was so keen mentally and so concise in stating his views which had matured from a lifetime spent in a farming community, the result of years of study and actual experience gained in the livestock business.

Seldom does the general public have an opportunity to profit from the experience and years of observation such a man can give. It is to Mr. Giebink’s great credit that he was willing to give the benefit of his own long years of experience and study to others, although it meant many long hours of composition and deep thought.

He was a good man, greatly attached to his family and his home, where his kindly counsel will be sorely missed. The Alton Democrat and a host of readers joint in heartfelt sympathy and condolences, realizing that the loss to the rest of us is not one iota as compared with their personal loss.

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An editorial in the same issue of the Democrat:

HENRY GIEBINK

The passing of Henry Giebink who had contributed his common sense “Observations” to The Democrat over a period of more than ten years and who had been one of this paper’s most loyal friends ever since the early days of its existence back in the ‘80s, cannot but have a profound effect on this writer who has so many times gladly opened the envelope containing his contribution and placed his copy “on the hook.”

During the past dozen years or more, after he had retired from active business and had plenty of time to think about the economic issues of the day he began his practice of writing his views, based on his accurate knowledge of the facts pertaining to agricultural production and consumption. One of his most famous observations, based on actual fact, was that “in the long run one thing raised on the farm will pay as well as another,” or words to that effect.

More than ten years ago he pointed out how greatly the growing use of tractors was reducing the domestic demand for oats and other horse feeds, an observation that was brought keenly home when in later years the market for oats, in the face of overwhelming overproduction, was practically non-existent.

He advocated earnestly, in some of his articles, that the government take millions of acres of land out of production by leasing or purchasing so-called “marginal lands” in order to reduce production of crops in the nation. He ridiculed tariffs on farm products and clearly explained their fallacy by proving that the United States farmer competes with the entire world and must accept a world-price for his products because of the overproduction for domestic needs. He demonstrated plainly what everyone now thoroughly realizes—that the exported surplus crops set the price for the part of the crops consumed in this country.

Mr. Giebink’s ideas, printed in The Democrat, were widely read and quoted and had more influence than many realize, perhaps, on recent legislation. For many years he had advocated week after week that the government reduce the gold content of the dollar to make money “cheaper.” President Roosevelt did adopt this [one or two lines obscured by a fold in the newspaper] degree, and stimulating export business especially, because of the lower exchange value of the dollar in foreign countries.

Because of his undoubted knowledge of grain and livestock supplies, Mr. Giebink was a recognized authority on agricultural matters. A successful livestock buyer for many years and later a trader in futures to some extent on the Board of Trade, he had made an exhaustive study of every angle of the business. He knew what he was talking about when he set down the result of his observations on paper and those who read his articles appreciated the truth in them.

He liked to write the articles, he said, and we liked to publish them. He would never listen to any offer of payment for them. Mr. Giebink would mail his copy to The Democrat by Thursday or Friday of the week before the article was to be published, unusual enough in itself, to give the compositor plenty of time for setting it up, and the postage alone amounted to considerable over a period of years. Still he insisted on paying his subscription promptly in advance in spite of protests from this office.

Knowing what he did about the damage to prices that overproduction of farm products causes, it was natural that he should be a strong booster for the AAA and curtailment of crop production, and one of his last articles published a month or two ago urged that all farmers co-operate in the efforts the government is making to remedy this condition.

We had believed him to be gaining in strength and word that he passed on Sunday was received with sadness and regret. Not only his observations but his quiet, genial personality were a tonic to a vast number of sincere friends. The Alton Democrat staff feels it as it would the departure of a regular member of its organization and deplores the passing of a true gentleman who has accomplished more good than has been realized by even his closest friends. We shall miss his soundly based and keen observations on economic and farm matters. The Democrat only can say, again—“Thank you.”

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RESEARCH NOTES

A brief note on his death in the Hawarden Independent adds that since 1925 until recently he had served as receiver for closed banks at Alton and Ireton. His sons Gilbert and Roger are both students at the University of Iowa.

His death certificate gives his birth date as June 2, 1863, Waupun, Wisconsin; parents Wesley Giebink and Hannah Kleinhesselink, both born in the Netherlands; wife Jennie Giebink; died at 4:00 a.m. March 24, 1935, cause, apoplexy/cerebral hemorrhage, onset March 21, 1935; contributory cause, cardio-vascular disease, onset 1931; buried at Orange City.

He does not appear in the Sioux County Cemetery Index.

The 1930 U.S. census shows him (age 66) and his family living in Orange City: His wife is Jennie (age 50); sons Gilbert (14), born in South Dakota, and Robert (13), born in Florida.

Nebraska Marriage Records on Ancestry.com has groom Henry Giebink, age 40, resident of Alton, Iowa, born in Waupon, Wisconsin, parents Wesley Giebink and Hannah Kleinhesselink; bride Mrs. Sadie E. Blenkiron, age 40, resident of Randolph, Nebraska, parents Stephen De Lancey and Amanda Haga; married at Randolph. Nebraska, January 15, 1903.

The 1910 U.S. census for Alton, Iowa, shows Henry Giebink, age 46, born in Wisconsin, first marriage, occupation: own income; wife Sadie, age 48, born in Ohio, second marriage, one child; step-son Earle Giebink, age 10, born in Nebraska. (They live next door to Susanna Cambier (66, widowed) and her daughter Jennie (29). The 1920 census for Orange City shows Henry Giebink (56), wife Jennie (39), sons Gilbert (4-3/12) and Robert (3-1/12). Jennie's obituary (posted separately) shows her to have been Jennie Cambier.

The Cass County, North Dakota divorce index on Ancestry.com shows Sadie and Henry Giebink to have divorced in 1914. In the 1920 and 1930 censuses she was living in Pasadena, California. Her FindaGrave page shows her as Sarah Elizabeth “Sadie” Delancey Giebink (1860-1951), buried in Altadena, California; husbands James Harker Blenkiron (1861-1899, married 1886) and Henry Giebink (1863-1935, married 1903); son Earl Leroy Blenkiron (1896-1960).

FindaGrave.com has a page for Henry Giebink, 1863-1935, buried in Forest Mound Cemetery, Waupun, Wisconsin, with a photo of his headstone. No other information.