Jacob F. Berner Family  

Jacob Berner was the eldest son of Gottlieb and Katharina Berner.  He was born in Jackson County, Iowa, on October 1, 1860.  He had four brothers: Gottlieb, Christian, Daniel and William; and two sisters, Louise (who was Mrs. George Zimmerman) and Mary (Mrs. Henry Schindel.)  The Berner family moved to Plymouth County about 1867 where they homesteaded on land southeast of Merrill.

Jacob Berner married Christina Schindel, born September 1, 1861, daughter of Peter and Mary Schindel, a pioneer family who homesteaded in the Melbourne vicinity.  They were married March 12, 1885. They had to postpone the wedding for 3 days as the Floyd River was so high it had washed out the bridge between the Schindel home and the church, and they had to wait for the water to recede.  They lived on a farm east of Merrill in the Stanton community and attended the Stanton church.  They lived to celebrate their 63rd wedding anniversary. They were the parents of two children, Urban and Ruth (Mrs. Dwight Hauff.)

Jacob and Christina moved to Merrill from the farm in 1898. Jacob Berner formed a partnership with his brother-in-law, John Schindel, and they built the brick building that now [in 1972] houses the Auction Shop and opened a hardware store there. Later they sold the building to Henry Nigg, who operated a drug store in that location.  In 1909, he purchased a farm north of Merrill and moved there in 1910.  Jacob Berner served for a number of years on the town council, and was Mayor for a short time.  He also was a member of the school board.  He was Justice of the Peace for over 20 years, a member of the Merrill Methodist church from the time he moved to Merrill until his death, and served many years on the church board.  He died August 9, 1952; his wife preceded him in death on November 9, 1948.

~Source:  Merrill Centennial 1872-1972, pp. 183-184