For
Muscatine County Iowa
1911
| Biographies For Muscatine County Iowa 1911 | |
Source: History of Muscatine County Iowa, Volume II, Biographical, 1911, page 68
GEORGE EICHENAUER. George Eichenauer, a cigar manufacturer and dealer on Muscatine, who has built up a large business through his energy and perseverance, was born in this city, January 12, 1858, a son of Conrad and Elizabeth ( Kurtz ) Eichenauer, both of whom were born in Germany. The father, as a young man, decided to cast his lot among strangers, believing that he could succeed better under conditions different from those which prevail in the thickly populated country where he was born. Accordingly he came to America and in 1854 began his battle with the world by driving a dray in Muscatine, later becoming a driver of a street sprinkler and engaging in general teaming. He was an industrious man of good character and for a time it appeared as though his ambitions would be realized, but in 1868, at the age of forty-five years he was called away. Mrs. Eichenauer survived her husband thirty-seven years and departed this life at the age of seventy-three, in 1905. They were both members of the Lutheran church. There were four children in the family: George; Anna; Charles, of Muscatine; and Johnnie, deceased.George Eichenauer was educated in the public schools, although obliged to work to assist in supporting the family even in his boyhood. At ten years of age he began to learn the tobacco business as a stripper, going to work at four o'clock in the morning and working late in the evening after leaving school. Later he learned the cigar-maker's trade, which he followed for many years as a journey-man. In 1897 he entered the cigar-making business for himself and has since continued in this line with marked success. Being a man of pleasing address, he has built up a fine patronage and made his establishment one of the most flourishing of the kind in the city.
On the 12th of September, 1888, Mr. Eichenauer was united in marriage to Miss Katie Gergen, a daughter of Gangolf ahd Catherine Gergen, both of whom were natives of Germany. They were early settlers of Muscatine and are now deceased. Five of their children are now living: Anna, the wife of Henry Meredith, of Davenport; Katie, now Mrs. Eichenauer; Clara, the wife of William Meerdink, of Muscatine; George, also of Muscatine; and Amelia, the wife of Frank Welch. Mr. and Mrs. Eichenauer are the parents of three children, Charles, William and Fred.
Mr. Eichenauer is not identified with any religious denomination but his wife is a stanch adherent of the Presbyterian church. He holds membership in Eagle Lodge, No. 10, Ancient Order of United Workmen, and Tent No. 9, Knights of the Maccabees, being also identified with the Merchants Life Insurance Company of Burlington. Politically he is independent, often voting for the man irrespective of the party he represents. He and his family are now living in a comfortable home at No. 1309 Cedar street, which he erected in 1890. Mr. Eichenauer is an independent citizen who by a life of industry has won his way to an honorable position among his business associates. The success he has attained is a striking illusttration of the possibilities that await any young man who is willing to deny himself during his earlier years in order to possess an abundance later in life.
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