George Aulerich
George Aulerich was a youth of
nineteen years when he came with his widowed mother from
his German Fatherland to America and established a home
in Iowa, where it has been his to gain through earnest
and honest endeavor a generous measure of success and to
become one of the most substantial landholders and
exponents of agricultural industry in Clayton county.
Here he has
maintained his home for half a century and here he
resides upon his fine homestead farm in Farmersburg
township, though the autumn of the year 1916 will record
his attainment of the psalmist's span of three score
years and ten. The gracious prosperity that attends him
in his venerable years enables him to put aside the
heavier burdens and labors that were so long his portion.
He is one of the substantial and hononed citizens of the
county, is the owner of a large and well improved landed
estate of nearly six hundred acres in this county, and
none is more clearly entitled to representation in this
history. Mr. Aulerich was born in Germany, on the 30th of
September, 1846, and is a son of George and Dora
(Schultz) Aulerich, the former of whom passed his entire
life in Germany, where his vocation was that of farming.
In 1866 the widowed mother came with her three children
to the United States and established a home in Clayton
county, Iowa, where she passed the remainder of her life
and attained to the venerable age of 81 or 82. Of the
children two are living. He whose name introduces this
review gained his early education in the excellent
schools of his native land and was nineteen years of age
when he accompanied his mother to the United States and
to Clayton county. Here he found employment as a farm
hand for several years, and in the meanwhile he carefully
saved his earnings and bent every energy to the gaining
of independence and worthy prosperity. Finally he
purchased a farm of seventy acres, in Farmersburg
township, and upon the same he continued his residence
sixteen years, his energy and good management having
brought to him such measure of success that he was then
enabled to sell his farm to advantage and purchase a
portion of the fine homestead on which he now resides.
With increasing prosperity he continued to add to his
landed estate until he became the owner of two hundred
and fifteen acres of fine land in section 6, Farmersburg
township, upon which splendid domain he still retains his
residence and to the supervision of which he still gives
his vigorous attention, as the years rest lightly upon
him. At a later period he purchased other land to the
amount of three hundred and sixty acres, situated in
Monona township, and this property is given over to the
care of his oldest son, who is a substantial
agriculturist and progressive citizen of his native
county. Mr. Aulerich has been deeply appreciative of the
opportunities which have been afforded him in the county
and state of his adoption, and has stood exponent of
loyal and liberal citizenship. He is a staunch Democrat
in politics but has had no desire for public office, the
only position of the sort in which he has consented to
serve having been that of member of the school board of
his district. He and his wife are earnest communicants
and liberal supporters of the Lutheran church at
Farmersburg. In 1872 was solemnized the marriage of Mr.
Aulerich to Miss Minnie Klinge, who was born in Germany,
one of a family of six children, all of whom are living
and all of whom came with the parents, Frederick and
Elizabeth (Holtz) Klinge, to the United.
States in the year 1871, the family home being
established in Clayton county, where the father became a
substantial farmer and where he passed the rest of his
life, the venerable mother being still a resident of this
county and being nearly ninety years of age at the time
of this writing, 1916. Of the seven children born to Mr.
and Mrs. Aulerich the eldest is George, Jr., who is one
of the progressive farmers of this county, as is also
Henry, who remains at the parental home and is associated
with his father in the management of the farm; Bertha is
the wife of Charles Engelhardt and they reside in the
state of South Dakota; Matilda is a trained nurse by
profession and resides in the city of Chicago; Amelia and
Emma remain at the parental home; and Emil is another of
the aggressive young farmers of Clayton county, where he
has a farm of one hundred and fifty- acres in Monona
township.
source: History of Clayton
County, Iowa; From The Earliest Historical Times Down to
the Present; by Realto E. Price, Vol. II; pg. 24-26
-submitted by S. Ferrall
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