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Reflections Of My Youthful Years In Lowden

    While in the 3rd or 4th Grade in the Lowden School (Main & Jefferson Streets) we had a teacher that was quite insistent in having us memorize certain OLD, OLD songs. Two that come to mind now were “Sweet and Low” and “Juanita.” This was in about 1909 or 1910. We knew them by heart after days, or maybe weeks of daily rehearsals when it came to Music Time afternoons after recess. Then in 1942, in Chicago, after getting the FM Radio Station built for the Chicago Board of Education, and serving as its Chief Engineer, I was at the Transmitter one day when they were playing 'Some Old-Time Favorites' during Recess Period. Among the tunes, were both Sweet and Low and Juanita. It was amazing to me that after over 30 years, the words to both of these songs came back to me as if I had just learned them the week before. I had not heard them in the interim, ever, nor thought of them. But the melody of each was fresh in my mind.

     Also, while at Lowden Public School, in winter, when several inches of snow were on Main Street, and the farmers were hauling their grain to town to the Scales and Elevator, as they passed the School at recess time, we would hop along, stand on one of the rear sled runners (about 4” x 4” or 4” x 6”) hitch a ride down town, then if another emptied sled were coming, hitch a ride back to school. If not, we would hurry back by running, hoping to return before the bell up in the tower above the south face of the building, rang to denote recess was over. Sometimes we would not get back on time and were punished for our ignoble deed, the teacher rapping our fingers with a ruler, in front of the entire class.

     In the summers of 1915 and 1916, on Saturday evenings after supper, all of the Stores were open until 9:00 and/or 10:00 p.m. That was the big night when many farmers came to town, bringing eggs and produce to town, taking it out in part on their grocery bill. Most every one that drove a car had a Model T Ford car. The gas tank was under the front seat. At Freund's Store*, they had a small shed (about 3 or 4 feet square and 6 feet high) in which was a gasoline pump. No glass bowl on top, that had not come then yet. Gas was dispensed into a 5 gallon can. A Ruler with a black strip adjacent to the numbers on it to improve visibility, was calibrated in figures saying “1/4” or “1/2” or “3/4” or Full, and numbers telling how many gallons would fill the tank, when inserted into it from the top. Then I would pump the five gallon can to whatever amount was requested. And believe me, when it was full that can weighed about 35 pounds. Many a Ford or other tank was gassed up on those Saturday nights. It was a favorite place to get the gas, as it meant a 'One Stop Service' while they were at Freunds Store anyways.

     During the summer vacation period, (no school) several of us boys, Ferdinand Conrad, Wayne Henry, my twin brother, etc. would walk down to the Coal Chute. When a west bound locomotive would come there for its load of coal, the engineer would get off and oil a few points up front on the engine. . . .

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. . . After seeing the same man a few times we felt we knew him well enough to ask him if we could ride to the Water Tank with him, up in the cab. When we got the OK from him, we would come aboard for this short ride. My, what high steps for our short legs!! But what a thrill, though, to ride those few hundred feet to the Tank. Sometimes we were allowed to ring the Bell, tho' some locomotives had a small cylinder attached to the bell frame and steam from the engine's boiler would move the piston to ring the bell. I always vowed I would be a Locomotive Engineer when I grew up, but what happened after I got out of college in the mid-20's was that the railroads were getting Diesel Engines and the glamor was somewhat gone.

     Some time after 1908, the many wooden sidewalks were gradually being replaced by cement walks. Some people had a smooth surface on their front and side walks. Others, had theirs finished by the contractor, who used a roller that had small pyramids about 1/4” square and about as high, and about an inch apart, protruding from the surface of the cylinder. This made dents into the cement surface, the idea being that perhaps a person would have more traction and be less likely to skid and fall when walks were wet. We 'kids' of that era did a lot of roller skating then, and my, what a 'shake-up' we got when skating over these surfaces, enough to make our teeth chatter!!! Some of these walks are still in evidence today, but from wear they've gotten during these about 70 years, the dents are quite shallow by now.

     Mr. Henry Northup was a Tinsmith employed by Freund's Store. This gentleman made all sorts of items of tin, galvanized or shiny, or thin sheet metal (steel). He had many Forming Tools, made half-round guttering of the galvanized metal, milk screens, pails, tin cups, etc. from the shiny sheets and stove pipes from the sheet metal. He lived for years in the house on the SE corner of 7th & Washington now next door north to Mayor Wenndt's home. He was quite an artist.

     Mr. William Horstmann had a Leather Goods Shop north of the old bank building** on McKinley, and about where the present new Drive-Up window now is. He made everything from a Saddle to a Bridle and everything-in-between that was needed by the “Well Dressed Horse” - He, too, was quite a Craftsman, as was Mr Northrup. One time, my Father had him cover a set of 2 steel rings about 10” inside diameter and perhaps 1 ˝ “ thick, with leather sewed at the outer periphery. Then some 2” wide leather straps were looped inside-to-outside of the rings and riveted, and another loop made above the ring, to allow a 2” Rope to pass through. These rings were then suspended from a horizontal . . .

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. . . branch of a large pine tree in our back yard, made high enough above the ground so we boys had to jump up to grab the rings. Then we did some 'gymnastics' like sitting in the rings, standing in them, and hanging down in them, from our knee joints. And later, turning over in them, great fun and good exercise, too.

     I remember climbing the many steps in Freund's Grain Elevator*** to the top and then taking pictures from the east window (now covered by tin.) Later, they installed a small 'lift' or elevator, it having a slotted platform about 2 ˝ ft. square. It had a counter weight, and to balance your weight, extra small weights were taken aboard, set into a holder on the side frames. The other 2 sides were open, so one could alight at a floor to either side. NO GATES!! One had to be very careful. The going up there to the top floor was easier and we often would go up there just for the view. It was magnificent. (See Picture on Page 44.)

     An incident that comes to mind, occurring in say 1906 or thereabouts, and for many years thereafter (until Lowden had electric lights) was when I saw how Wm Reinking printed pictures. All pictures were taken on glass plates, the use of film being limited to roll film, giving finished pictures of about 3” x 5”. Across the top of the box it came in,w as printed N_____C which meant 'Non-Curling' when the negatives were cut from off the roll after processing. I guess the earlier negatives were plagued with this trouble of curling, after being severed from the roll. Anyway, Mr. Reinking would put a sheet of printing paper under the glass plate, now developed to show the image in a negative mode. Then he would stand it out into the noon day sun in front of the south side of his Studio that stood just to the south of the Twachtmann house where Mr. Sternberg now lives. After a certain time interval, he would take the frames into his dark room where the paper sheets were then developed. An under or over exposure could be compensated for (within limits, of course) by regulating the time in the developer bath. Studio pictures were often 8” x 10”, the size of the glass plate.

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    In the Spring of 1919, I was home for a short vacation from the private school I was attending in Cincinnati, Ohio, and chanced to come to a group of men standing at the northeast corner of Freund's Store. The main person there was my neighbor, Fred H. Wiebel, just home from World War I where he had been stationed in Germany. The other persons were questioning him regarding his experiences 'Over There' and had he ever seen a German soldier, shot at any, had any 'action' while over there, etc. Little did I ever dream then, that some day he and I would be next-door neighbors.

     One Sunday afternoon in about 1916 or 1917, my brother and I hiked out to the Stolte Farm, called 'Fairview' or some such name. This was also the former Meseke Farm. The Stolte's had a Mitchell car, and in those day some cars had 'cut-outs' and this would make the putt-putts of the engine come out loud and clear. Mr. Louis Stolte (now resides across from Lowden Elem. School, NE Corner Main Street) got out the car and drove us back to town, going slowly up the hills, the engine chugged perfectly, its rhythm unbroken from the steady speed. Some Fun!!

     In the 1908-'09 school year, I remember how William Mensing & his brother, the late Albert, rode to school (the Lutheran Parochial at 8th & Washington) from the Farm, coming in a 2-wheel Sulky type of Buggy, drawn by a Shetland Pony. They kept it at their relative, Ernest Hoffmeier, in a barn at the back of the property. This was at the southwest corner of 7th St. & Washington Ave. Mr. Hoffmeier was their cousin, and Mr. H. was the grandfather of Lorenz Hoffmeier. After Albert Mensing finished his schooling here, William said he drove in alone for a year or two.

     In 1919, in August, the parents of our present Mayor, Carl Wenndt, were celebrating their Silver Wedding Anniversary. Their children thought of a plan to surprise them with a useful gift, that of having the home wired for electricity, to be furnished by a Delco Light Plant and some Batteries, for a 32 volt system. To place the wiring in the area over the kitchen and part of the dining room ceiling, there was a crawl space under the roof. Access to this space was gained by making a hole in the north wall of the house, between some studding. It was quite narrow, and too small for Frank Winters who was doing the wiring, (working for Freund's). So my twin brother and I, being smaller were able to crawl through that hole. We did the entire wiring for that area underneath, switches, ceiling outlets and wall plugs. The work had to be done while the folks were away to keep the project a surprise.

     There was a wooden water trough adjacent to the south of the Corner Cafe on Main Street, a wooden pump brought the water from the well below. Many times horses could be seen getting refreshed from the cool water stored there in the long trough. A tin cup also was provided but I don't know how good the water was for drinking. At the Lowden Public School there was a well also, near the corner of the lot by the Zion Church and Main Street. We, my twin and I, had a folding aluminum drinking cup, something novel, and everybody in the class wanted to drink from it. The cup could be folded down and carried in a coat pocket between uses, very handy and compact.

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MY GREAT UNCLE'S HOME WAS UNIQUE!

    The former home of our great-uncle and aunt, Mr and Mrs August Petersen, (One of the 4 Petersen Brothers that founded the former A. Freund & Company Business) stood at the north end of the lot on the west side of McKinley between 5th & 6th streets, and westward to the alley. At the turn of the century our Uncle August had a wooden, enclosed tower built that was about 20 feet tall. Atop of this structure was a large steel tank about 10 feet in diameter and 12 or more feet tall. This supplied water to the home and there were many hydrants in the garden, of 1” pipe. I can remember my Aunt Tillie watering her flower beds, encased in wooden boards like 1” x 6” and in a circular pattern about 15 feet in diameter, with 4 walkways bisecting it, these were about 2 ˝ feet wide. The center of the bed was devoid of framework, there being a large urn atop a pedestal in which were planted red geraniums. The flowers in the bed were snapdragons, marigolds, calendulas, aster and zinnias. For a border at the outer periphery of the frames, she had some sweet william in some quadrants and mixed colors of dwarf candytuft. Every afternoon at abut 4:30 she would go down from the front porch where she often sat for the afternoon, and attach a hose to a spigot that was atop a pipe about 3 feet high, and water the flower bed.

    In the center of the yard south of the house, stood a 6-sided, “Garten Laube” about 15 or 20 feet across, which had each side covered with screen wire, with a screen door at the north face. Here, on Sundays, after dinner, they would gather to play a game of “Skat” pronounced 'Skaaat' and at other times gather and do some Shakespearean Plays, being all decked-out in authentic costumes, many of which yet fill some of the trunks in our trunk room at the old home at 502 McKinley. That generation of the family was quite talented in the Performing Arts and they enjoyed putting on these Plays. Aunt Frida was an accomplished pianist, having a Concert Grand Steinway Piano at home to play on. She also composed some pieces, one of them being a Slumber Song, entitled “Schlummerlied” dedicated to her dear Mother, in 1900. The words were composed by her lifelong friend, Anna Raster, in both German and English. Mrs Raster of Chicago is the aunt of my twin brother's wife. Anna Raster's father-in-law, Hermann Raster was publisher and editor of the Deutscher Tags Zeitung in Chicago for many years, and one of the Elementary Schools is named for him. Aunt Frida also composed a Dance Melody, called, “Charity Two-Step,” which was published earlier, like in 1895.

    Getting back to the private water works at the August Petersen home, in the bathroom, they had a full sized bathtub. The warm water for it was heated right at the foot of the tub, where a copper-coiled type of gas water heater sat, vented through the ceiling. The water was heated as used, for both the tub and the lavatory adjacent. There was no storage tank, however. In the kitchen water for dishes was heated on the range and augmented with additional water from the side-mounted reservoir.

    A Fairbanks-Morse gasoline engine with vertical cylinder, and an attached pump jack was mounted on a base inside the tower, to pump water to the tank . . .

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. . . above. The entire tower was enclosed to protect the engine at all times. Later the engine was used in a large basement room under the kitchen to run a washing machine. Attached to the tub of the washer, was a long platform about 8' long, on which stood 2 metal wash tubs holding 'Rinse Water' – and the wringer slid along rails atop the platform, with a jack shaft under the whole platform running all the time, and operating the wringer when turned on by the operator. It could run the clothes back and forth to the tubs.

    When in the 4th or 5th grade prior to 1915 at Lowden school, our room was on the east side of the building. Mornings, if coming early, we would see August and Benjamin Meyer, (brothers) walking across the west field from their home (now the 3/30 Club) and soon they would come into our class room. There was nothing built up, home-wise in the area in between, so they were easily watched coming all the way to school. One time, a stream threshing engine broke through the bridge planking over the small creek down near the present Texaco Station. We could see it down there from school, but the teachers discouraged our looking and we were forbidden to go down there to watch them pull it out. Also, when they were putting Lightning Rods on our house and two big red barns, on McKinley, we had to go to school those days, and would like to have stayed home to watch the installation.

    In the summer of 1915, when Freund's were still selling Buick automobiles my father, 'Hans' Andresen went in to Chicago one night on old Number 6 Train, after midnight. I went along as I had a wisdom tooth that needed extraction and my dentist suggested it be removed under gas. So, I went along, and had it 'cut out' and when I 'came-to' all was much better than I had anticipated. Anyway, after some breakfast, he and I went down to about 22nd Street & Michigan Boulevard, Chicago's “Automobile Row” where we picked up a new Buick Open Touring Car, which we then drove back to Lowden for delivery later to a customer. It was a Model B-25, 4 cylinder car. As we drove through cities like Geneva, Dixon, Sterling, all in Illinois, we would get onto a brick pavement at the city limits. We always remarked how nice the going was and would say that if only ALL the roads were that good and smooth and dustless, how wonderful it would be. Well, today the roads are nice and smooth and dust free out in the country between the cities, and often now, the streets in places like Dixon and Sterling, are somewhat poorer in shape than the highways. My father also made many trips to Flint, Michigan to get cars for Freunds Agency of Buicks, but I never got to make that trip. On the trip from Chicago, our average speed was about 25 miles per hour. The car was an 'open' model with a roof only but no side curtains in fair weather, and with the dusty roads to travel on, my how we 'ate dust' if you got behind a slow-poke or had some speeder pass you.

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    Later when Freund's sold Chevrolets (and Kemmann's, Fords) the cars would come in a box car. It would be spotted along the cement platform in back of the Implement Shed, on the railroad's sidetrack. The cars were sort of wedged in, double layer, and we had a struggle to get the first one out. We used Chain Hoists, Jacks, etc. to get that first one onto the platform. Even had to take the left front wheel off to get more clearance. Some years later, Freund's and Kemmann's switched makes to sell. At present, Mensing Motor Company at 607 Main Street which was formerly Freund's handle the Ford Sales and Kemmanns, the Chevrolet line.

     Butcher Meier's Meat Market on Main Street always had sawdust on the floor, and I can remember when you could get T-Bone Steaks, good size, for 10˘ apiece. Oh! For those days again!!

     I remember when once making a trip to Cedar Rapids on the Noon Train with my Mother, we left hurriedly from home to catch the train, with the result that she left her handbag or purse behind. We did not have time to get tickets, and here she was without money, etc. So, old 'HAW-DAY' Kemmann was aboard, going to his Clarence Establishment, and he kindly gave my Mother money (on loan, supposedly) so we could make the trip OK.

     My twin brother and I were members of Alexander's Boy Band here in Lowden, and I recall that on Christmas, 1918, we played at noon down on 5th street, west of the bridge for a returned Veteran, one of the Gottschalk Boys. It was hard to keep our lips from freezing to the mouthpieces on our horns.

               Emil H. Andresen

* ~ * ~ *

    *Freund's Store was later Freund's Dept. Store, Inc. It was located on the southwest corner of the intersection of Main Street and McKinley Avenue.

     ** Bank Building – The American Trust and Savings Bank at 309 McKinley Avenue.

     ***Freund's Grain Elevator is now owned by the Rex Feed Elevator Company and is located on the south side of Main Street, just east of the southeast corner of the Main Street and Harding Avenue Intersection.

* ~ * ~ *

I REMEMBER

. . . . . rainy days would find us cutting out the picture of the prettiest girl and the best looking man in the old catalogue. They would be put in an empty shoe box and whenever a picture of a pretty dress or suit would be found in a magazine it would be added to the collection in the shoe box. Many an hour of pretending was spent with these first paper dolls.

. . . . . listening spellbound as Grandpa Mensing told stories of the haunted houses in the Lowden area.

              Mrs Melvin (Eleanor Mensing) Licht

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Picture of Kreinbring Gas Station & Tourist Park
     The above Gas Station and Tourist Park was built in 1937 by August Kreinbring. This is part of the section of fields over which August & Benjamin Meyer walked to school in the early 1900’s as told by Emil Andresen in his reminiscences, page 92. This is now the location of Stan’s Texaco Station on East Main Street.

Picture McKinley Avenue in 1920's
     The above picture was taken in the late 1920’s on McKinley Avenue. Standing in the doorway of the late Herman Steinke’s Produce station are the late Julius Behrens and Reinhold Pechiny. They are visiting with Milton “Mick” Sternberg who is standing on the sidewalk.