Pike Township Family Stories
WILLIAM WIESKAMP
Nichols, Iowa Centennial Book 1884-1984, pages 213-214
Alberta Wieskamp BekkerWilliam Wieskamp was born in Gendringen, Holland, in 1867 and emigrated to this country in 1888. Arriving in New York by boar with two friends, he traveled by train to Nichols to the home of his aunt, Marie and Henry Salemink.
On the train from New York, William and his companions saw bananas for the first time, and they purchased some from the vendor. They found them to be very distasteful until they learned later that they should remove the peel first.
William was employed on the farm of Benjamin Nichols for several years and then worked in Rummell’s store, which was located where the park is now, at the corner of Ijem avenue and Short street.
In 1897 he married Elizabeth Milder atWest Liberty. They began farming on a farm located between Nichols and Lone Tree. In those days wedding gifts included a cow, pigs and chickens.
Two daughters were born there, Alverna Wieskamp and Marie Wieskamp. Both are now deceased.
In order to collect a bad debt, the family took over an acreage at the south edge of West Liberty. There, besides small farming operations, William worked at the brickyard in the summer and on the railroad as a section hand in the winter. Seven children were born there: Leda Wieskamp, now Mrs. John Skay of Iowa City; Leo Wieskamp, deceased; Dorothy Wieskamp, now Mrs. Arnold Fuegen of Muscatine; Frances Wieskamp, deceased; Raymond Wieskamp of Nichols, Edward Wieskamp and Bernard Wieskamp of Muscatine.
In 1913 the family moved by bobsled to the Henry Brugman farm northwest of Nichols. One child, Alberta Wieskamp, was born there. She is Mrs. Raymond Bekker.
In 1920 another move was made to a farm north of Nichols owned by B. F. Swickard, now [1984] the Beik farm. It consisted of 240 acres, until another 120 acres was added to it. Farm work was done entirely by horses until a Titan tractor was purchased in 1919.
The family attended St. Mary’s Catholic church in Nichols. Since the farm was on a dirt road, the family used horses to draw either a wagon, carriage or bobsled to take them to church or to town for groceries. For special purchases a horse drawn buggy took them to West Liberty.
The children walked to school in the country, but after they moved to the Swickard farm, they could “walk the tracks,” especially when the road was muddy. The Rock Island track ran parallel to the road. Even after the first automobile was purchased, the road was often too muddy to use it. The first auto was a used 1913 model Ford, followed by a 1917 Ford Touring.
In 1938 they retired from the farm and moved to a home in Nichols which they purchased from Ira Pike for $2400. This home is now [1984] occupied by Mrs. Ray Bekker.
The first radio was a small crystal set with one set of headphones. Later a set with a speaker on the top was purchased from Will Poole, who was selling the Michigan radio. Early stations were WOC Davenport, KTNT Muscatine, WSUI Iowa City and KDKA Pittsburgh.
When the family lived on the Brugman farm, the first airplanes were sighted. When any member of the family would spot one in the distance, he’d yell “airplane” and all the family would rush out of the house to search the skies for the tiny speck.
In 1921 a great event took place at the Swickard farm. An airplane landed in a field close to the house. People came from miles around to see it. The pilot offered rides of ten minutes for $10. Over a period of days, when there were no more takers, the pilot offered a pool. Put your name in a hat for $1 and a lucky person whose name was drawn out would receive the ride. Alphonse Heuvelman, a son-in-law of the Wieskamps, was the lucky winner. He asked him to allow him to take 3-year-old Alberta along on his lap. So Alberta was the first Wieskamp to ride in an airplane.
Two sons are veterans. Edward was drafted into the Army at the beginning of World War II. He served in the Pacific theater, seeing active duty in Hawaii, Attu, Okinawa, Philippines and the Marshall islands before he was honorably discharged in 1945 because of the illness of his father. Bernard served in the Navy as an airplane mechanic.
Mr. Wieskamp, being an immigrant, was particularly appreciative of the American democracy. An avid reader, he kept abreast of national and international affairs. He was insistent that all members of the family of voting age should vote in elections.
One of his special interests was listening to basketball games on the radio, for which he kept score on his own scorecard. Boxing was another interest. He could name the title holders in various weight categories from years back. How he would have enjoyed watching sports on TV!
Mrs. Wieskamp died in 1942, and Mr. Wieskamp died in 1946. Both are buried in St. Mary’s cemetery. There are 38 grandchildren living and two are deceased.
Return to Family Stories Index Return to Muscatine Co. IAGenWeb, Index Page
Page created December 20, 2010 by Lynn McCleary