I am fascinated by news that informs the day’s newspaper reader that my ancestor has picked up a new car. Today, I learned that on 23 Apr 1911, Anton H. Tapper, Sr. picked up a brand new Speedwell motor car. It is described as being: “a 50-horse-power 7-passenger, 4-door touring car and is certainly one of the finest cars in Hammond. It is painted a light green and a darker green trimming, and is upholstered in a beautiful mixed green leather.”1 The 7-passenger Tourer rested on a 132-inch wheelbase.
State of the art 113 years ago
According to the US Inflation Calculator (https://www.usinflationcalculator.com/), which only goes back to 1913, a $2900.00 car would today cost $91,491.19.
The Speedwell Motor Car Company was founded in 1907 by Pierce D. Schenck, producing cars from 1907 to 1914. The factory was located in Dayton, Ohio, home of the Wright Brothers, and by 1910, Schenck had increased his production space to include nine buildings. In 1910, the market for Speedwell cars was not yet large enough to need all of the buildings; he leased some of this space to the Wright Brothers while their manufacturing buildings were being completed. The Speedwell was the first car to offer hidden door hinges and a horn built under the hood.
Known as the Brass Era of American automobile manufacturing, cars built between 1896 and 1915 used brass fittings for features such as lights and radiators. Although not the model Anton purchased, the brass is evident on this renovated 1911 Speedwell.
“Gets New Speedwell,” The Lake County Times, 24 Apr 1911, Monday, p. 5, col. 1; digital images, GenealogyBank (www.genealogybank.com : accessed 17 Apr 2024), Newspaper Collection. ↩︎
In 1925, at the age of 16, my grandfather, Robert H. (Bob) Sternitzky, graduated from Wausau High School, Wausau, Marathon, Wisconsin.
An all-around athlete, Bob “Butts” played football and basketball and was on the swim team during his high school career. He also participated in events sponsored by the local YMCA.
1925 Wahiscan. Bob is in the back row, 1st from left
Swimming
This team photo, dated 1924, was published in the 1925 Wahiscan. It was common to publish spring sports in the following year’s book. The high school swim team was a new addition to the sports program at the high school. The team was coached by Kurt Fox, the “boys’ secretary of the Wausau Y. M. C. A.” Young Men’s Christian Association.” The first interscholastic high school swim meet in the state of Wisconsin was held Friday, May 16, 1924, in Eau Claire, Eau Claire, Wisconsin, at the Y. M. C. A. pool. The evening events began at 7:30 p.m.: Diving, the 40-yard/Free Style, the 40-yard Backstroke, the Four-Man Relay, the Plunge for Distance, and the Breast Stroke.
Bob participated in the 40-yard Back Stroke, the Plunge for Distance, and the Four Men Relay. The Four Men Relay is a race “eight times around the tank, each man swimming twice around tank.”1
“The 100 yard relay race was the most exciting event of the evening when Eau Claire slightly outdistanced their opponents and in a flashy swim [Fred] Hilyer went ahead to the finish line a half-stroke ahead of his opponent. The 40 yard backstroke was another event filled with thrilling amazement when Sherman Olson remained a half head behind Sternitzky at the finish line when the two raced almost even on the last lap.”2 Bob’s winning time was 37 seconds.
Bob stood 5’8″
The evening ended with Wausau being awarded 31 1/2 points to Eau Claire’s 29 1/2 points. Wausau took home second in Diving, first in the 40-yard Free Style, first and third in the 40-yard Backstroke, first and third in the Four-Man Relay, second in the Plunge for Distance, and second in the breaststroke.
The second and final meet was held the following week, on Saturday, May 24th, at Wausau’s Y. M. C. A. pool. More than 100 students were there to witness the first home interscholastic aquatic meet. Bob again competed in the 40-yard Backstroke, the Plunge for Distance, and the Four Men Relay. The 40-yard Backstroke was his strongest event, as he easily took first place with a time of 33 4-5 seconds. While it was not reported how he did in the Plunge for Distance, the Four Men Relay team took first with a time of “one minute flat.” The “Local Swimmers Repeat Victory Over Eau Claire. Aquatic Meet in Y Pool is Won by Score off 36 to 25 Saturday Night.”3
Football
The schedule for the 1924 Football Season included eight games. It was a highly anticipated season as the team had participated in the newly inaugurated spring football training “previous to the summer vacation. It was thought in some quarters that this would lead to a general improvement in play.” Bob was one of only five returning players.
His yearbook entry reads: “Robert ‘Butts’ Sternitzky played the whole season at half-back. Until the introduction of the ‘huddle system of signals,’ ‘Butts’ called the plays. Sternitzky could plunge and many of his passes to team-mates resulted in good gains. This is Sternitzky’s last year.”
1924. Bob is in the 3rd row, second from right
The season roster:
vs Tomahawk 14-7
vs Marshfield 7-7
vs Stevens Point 7-7 “Butts Sternitzky scored the lone touchdown on a plunge through the line after a sensational fifteen yard sprint by Kieffer to the enemy’s four yard line. The men in line played a fine contest, opening many holes for the backs, while the ends and tackles were down the field fast on the punts”
vs Eau Claire 15-7
vs Rhinelander 14-7
vs Antigo 0-0
vs Merrill 7-0 Homecoming
The season’s final game was the championship game against Shawano High School. The 2:15 p.m. game was a home game played at Recreation Park in Wausau. In preparation for this game, Coach Ewers moved some players around, one of them being Bob. “He [Coach Ewers] will start Archie at right end instead of Swan, and Stone will begin at left half instead of Sternitzky. The latter is an aggressive player, but not as speedy as Stone…”4 Although favored to win, the team lost the game 20-0.
1925 Wahiscan
Basketball
The basketball season started immediately following the football season and spanned the first and second semesters. During this time, a school career was counted in semesters; eight semesters concluded your high school career. Two members of the 1924 team completed their eight semesters at the end of 1924, so they were ineligible to finish the season; these players were Ralph Patterson and Bob’s brother, Arthur. The yearbook states: “The players deserve more than passing mention for their splendid playing during the season…Robert Sternitzky showed up well when he was given the opportunity. Had Ralph Patterson and Arthur Sternitzky stayed with the team throughout the year, the outcome might have been different.”
1924 Wahiscan
On Friday, December 12, 1924, Wausau defeated Tomahawk High School in the first conference basketball game at the Y. M. C. A. The final score was 24-21. Bob, a left guard, scored 4 points during the game. The newspaper reported: “Sternitzky was the only Wausau player to attempt shots from the floor. He registered two, both in the second quarter for the only points made by his team in that period.”5
Hexalthon Meet
In early March Bob participated in a national Hexathlon meet held at the Wausau Y. M. C. A., where over 200 young men participated. “The boys’ hexathlon meet starts this week and continues throughout the month. There are five divisions, according to weight, 80, 95, 110 and 125 pounds and over.”6 In a hexathlon meet [a Greek word, hexa = 6, athlon = contest] there are traditionally six different track and field contests: 75m hurdles, long jump, javelin, high jump, shot put, and 800 meters. Lampert Ruffing (any relation to the Calumet County Ruffings?) took first place in five of the six events. In May the honor ribbons were awarded, and the newspaper reported that he had taken “fifth in the unlimited class.”7
Bob was awarded the “coveted” “W” for his participation in Swimming, Football, and Basketball. His older brother Arthur also received a “W” in Basketball.8
Arthur Sternitzky graduated from Wausau High School on June 4, 1925. Bob was just one credit shy of graduating and completed this credit during summer school. While attending summer school, he worked as a house painter.
That summer almost 100 years ago, a family story was born, and was told, and re-told. The first to tell the story to her grandson, Robert D. Sternitzky, was Verna Christine (Christine) Goerling Sternitzky, the mother of Bob. The story was then confirmed with the telling of the story by one of Bob’s high school friends. Robert D. (Bob) told the story to his grandchildren in 2004.
As he told it that day, this is the story: “The summer Bob (Robert H. Sternitzky) graduated from high school in 1925, at the age of 16, he worked as a house painter. He was still living at home. One day, his mother, Christine Goerling Sternitzky, answered the phone, and it was Curly Lambeau, coach of the Green Bay Packers, calling for Bob. Bob was working, so Christine took a message. Curly wanted him to play for the Green Bay Packers. The terms were $1.00 a minute for every minute played; Bob would buy his own shoes and insurance and pay for gas from Wausau to Green Bay. Curly was interested in Bob because, when playing high school football, he could throw the “old punkin” (this was the old heavy pigskin ball) 50 yards. He hurt his back playing football in high school, so he didn’t accept Curly’s offer.”
Instead of becoming a Green Bay Packer, Bob took the position of “office boy” at Marathon Corporation in Rothschild, Marathon, Wisconsin. “In 1928 he entered the firm’s accounting department cost section…He was named supervisor of the standard cost department of the firm in 1938.” “When [the] Marathon Corporation main office was shitted to Menasha in 1945, Mr. Sternitzky moved here with his family. From 1947 until several weeks ago he was manager of the manufacturing accounting department at the firm’s Menasha office.”9
In the late 1940s or early 1950s, Bob had his portrait taken by the Fabian Bachrach studio. Louis Fabian Bachrach, Jr. is the photographer best known for his portrait of Senator John F. Kennedy. His photo of Kennedy was used as the official photograph after Kennedy was elected President in 1960. I cannot tell if the photo was taken by Fabian Bachrach himself or by his studio, but I did find evidence of other Marathon Corp. executive’s photos being attributed to Fabian Bachrach. Did they travel to Massachusetts to be photographed? Did a representative of the company travel to Wisconsin at the request of Marathon? We may never know.
I never knew my grandfather; he passed away from a heart attack on 14 Feb 1952 at the age of 43. This strong man, this amazing athlete, had developed a heart condition, “coronary sclerosis and angina,” that failed “to respond under medical care.” His doctor wrote on 14 Jan 1952: “I feel it is imperative you be required to take a leave of absence from your present employment at Marathon Corporation. This leave of absence should be a period of at least three months.”10 He died in Long Beach, California, while he and my grandmother, Anola, were visiting her brother, Neal Cook. His body returned to Wisconsin via railway car, arriving in Wausau on February 19th, where he was met at the station by his father and his son. He was buried in Restlawn Memorial Park, Wausau.
Sources:
“Local Swimmers Repeat Victory Over Eau Claire,” Wausau Daily Record-Herald, 20 May 1924, Monday Evening, p. 8, col. 5; digital images, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : accessed 5 Apr 2024). ↩︎
“Local High Tank Men Lost First Meet to Wausau,” The Eau Claire Leader, 17 May 1924, Saturday Morning, p. 2, col. 6; digital images, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : accessed 5 Apr 2024). ↩︎
“Local Swimmers Repeat Victory Over Eau Claire,” Monday Evening, p. 8, col. 5. ↩︎
“Favor Wausau to Win Game and the Title,” Wausau Daily Record-Herald, 22 Nov 1924, Saturday Evening, p. 1, col. 7; digital images, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : accessed 5 Apr 2024). ↩︎
“Wausau High Defeats Tomahawk at Basket Ball, 24-21,” Wausau Daily Record-Herald, 12 Dec 1924, Saturday Evening, p. 11, col. 1; digital images, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : accessed 5 Apr 2024). ↩︎
“Sport Chatter,” Wausau Daily Record-Herald, 03 Mar 1925, Tuesday Evening, p. 11, col. 2; digital images, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : accessed 6 Apr 2024). ↩︎
“Sport Chatter,” Wausau Daily Record-Herald, 13 May 1925, Wednesday Evening, p. 5, col. 3; digital images, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : accessed 5 Apr 2024). ↩︎
“Students Given Merit Emblems for School Work,” Wausau Daily Record-Herald, 23 May 1924, Friday Evening, p. 3, col. 1; digital images, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : accessed 5 Apr 2024). ↩︎
“R. Sternitzky Rites Thursday,” Obituary, Twin Cities News-Record, 18 Feb 1952, Monday, p. 3, col. 6; digital images, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : accessed 8 Oct 2018). ↩︎
Letter, 14 Jan 1952, from David M. Regan, M.D. to Robert H. Sternitzky; Sternitzky Family Memorabilia; privately held by Susan Sternitzky Fassbender. Robert H. and Anola J. Sternitzky Family Archives, 1950. ↩︎
My grandfather, Roland John Tapper, was born in Hammond, Lake, Indiana, on August 1, 1909, to Anton H. Tapper and Louise L. Normann. He was their fourth child and third son.
Anton H. Tapper was a serial entrepreneur with many business interests, but he concentrated most of his time and energy on real estate and, later, banking. Grandpa, like his siblings, worked in the family business.
Shortly after 11:00 a.m. on 3 October 1968, two men armed with guns entered the Calumet Federal Savings and Loan Association. Roland, the president, was in the building along with the teller, Mildred Hill, and his son, Roland Tapper Jr., treasurer.
Pushing Mildred from her stool, one of the gunmen began to rummage through two cash drawers. The gunmen then forced the three to a back room, where they were told to lie down. Wallets were taken from the pockets of the Tapper men before the robbers cut the phone lines and fled out the front door.
At the time of The Hammond Times article, Roland Tapper Sr. did not know precisely how much money had been taken in the holdup. He stated that the firm started each morning with $2,200 in cash in the two drawers, but he did not know how many transactions had been made that morning.1
The next day, the paper published a follow-up story stating that the robbers had taken $1,914.00 from the cash drawers and $90.00 from “the bank president,” Roland Tapper. The police were still searching for the robbers, described as being in their mid-twenties. One was short and dark, the other tall with light hair and a southern accent. Both men used foul language. A red 1961 Pontiac was seen parked in an alley near the savings and loan around the time of the holdup. A man who appeared to be in his 40s was sitting behind the wheel. At the time the paper went to print, the police had no leads.
In the article, Roland Sr. stated that the savings and loan had no alarm system, although federal law would soon require them to install one. “Tapper Sr. said he prefers to wait until the federal requirements are spelled out before installing a system.”2
This was the 32nd robbery of an Indiana financial institution in 1968; the FBI 19 “considered solved” to have been solved. The year prior, there were 33 robberies in total.3
Friday, November 8, 1968, the FBI arrested Theodore James Franiak, age 22, and charged him with the robbery of $1,914 from the Calumet Federal Savings and Loan Association. There was no mention of his accomplices.4
The Hammond Times, 24 Dec 1964
At the time of the robbery, Grandpa was 59 years old. Uncle Rollie was 34. Sometime before the robbery, Grandma had given him a 1909 $5.00 Gold piece attached to a money clip for Christmas. It was in his pocket on this day. He was in the habit of carrying most of his cash secured in the money clip in his front pocket. He would put the money clip in his pocket, then a smaller amount of cash closer to the opening. Oh, how I envy the pockets in men’s trousers. So when the gunman searched his pockets while he was lying face down on the ground, he easily discovered the $90.00 that was in his pocket; we can assume he did not search my grandfather’s pocket any deeper, content to take the ready cash, and never imagining that there would be more further inside. Sometime after this, he took the coin off the money clip and gave it to my Grandma for Christmas as a pendant.
I can only imagine my grandmother’s fear when she heard the news that day in 1968. It had only been four years since the last robbery, which occurred on 26 Oct 1964. Grandpa was not at the Savings and Loan at the time of this robbery; his nephew, the firm’s vice-president/secretary, Clarence “Butch” Tapper, was there, as was his son, Roland.
During this armed robbery, a lone gunman, well-dressed and about 45 years old, entered the building and demanded money. Butch gave him $611 from the drawer of the first teller’s cage. The gunman stated, “I know you’ve got more than that,” so he was given $898 from another drawer. He then said to Butch and Uncle Rollie: “Get in the vault or I’ll blow you to bits.” They walked into the “standup vault at the end of the office area, and the gunman slammed the door shut“ before he walked out the front door of the savings and loan. When they heard the door close, Butch and Uncle Rollie were able to open the vault by an inside lever and call the police.5 I found no report that this lone robber had been apprehended.
Roland retired in 1973, remaining as Chairman of the Board until March 1974, at age 64. He had a long career with Calumet Federal Savings and Loan Association. He was elected to the board of directors in 1934, became assistant secretary-treasurer in 1937, secretary-treasurer in 1949, president in 1957, and chairman of the board in 1971. He passed away on 11 Nov 1981, at age 72. His grandson is now the owner of the 1909 $5.00 gold piece.
RESOURCES:
“2 Bandits Rob S&L,” The Hammond Times, 3 Oct 1968, Thursday, p. 1B, col. 1; digital images, NewspaperARCHIVE (www.newspaperarchive.com : accessed 2 Feb 2006). ↩︎
“Police Seek 2 Robbers,” The Hammond Times, 4 Oct 1968, Friday, p. 1B, col. 2; digital images, NewspaperARCHIVE (www.newspaperarchive.com : accessed 28 Apr 2004). ↩︎
“Robbers Get $2,200 Cash in Hammond,” The Palladium-Item and Sun-Telegram, 4 Oct 1968, Friday, p. 27, col. 1; digital images, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com: accessed 1 Apr 2024). ↩︎
“Arrest Made,” The Terre Haute Tribune, 9 Nov 1986, Saturday, p. 14, col. 2; digital images, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com: accessed 1 Apr 2024). ↩︎
“Bandit Gets $1,509 At Savings-Loan,”The Hammond Times” 26 Oct 1964, Monday, p. 1, col. 6; digital images, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com: accessed 31 Mar 2024). ↩︎
1929 was a momentous year for the Anton H. Tapper, Sr. household. A year that started with such bright promise and much excitement for the younger members of the household.
“Rollie in front of his platoon”
In June, sons Roland and Anton graduated from Culver Military Academy, located in Culver, Marshall, Indiana, on Wednesday, June 5th, 1929. Both Roland and his brother were members of the Culver Legion and the prestigious Black Horse Troop, with Roland receiving an honorable discharge as a 2nd Lieutenant from the troop. The whole Tapper family, along with “…Miss Verna Grey [sic]…attended the commencement exercises.”1
Two days later, Anton went to the clerk’s office of the U.S. District Court in Hammond, Lake, Indiana, and applied for passports for himself, his sons, Anton and Roland, and his daughter, Alice.2 They were going to spend the summer in Europe!
Anton Tapper, Sr.
Anton’s wife, Louise, was not able to make the trip as she was the primary caregiver for her granddaughter. 16-month-old Gwendolyn Warber’s mother, Gretje Tapper Warber had tragically died of an embolism at age 27, on 25 Mar 1928, one month after her baby was born.3 At this time, Anton and Louise had taken the baby into their home to raise as their own. Helping her family prepare for this trip had to be bittersweet for Louise, as it was only four years before, in 1925, that she and her daughter, Gretje, spent the summer in Germany. Their eldest son, Norman, was also staying home as he was married and had two young sons.
The preparations complete, on Friday, June 28th, the family loaded the car with their luggage, and set out on the to drive to New York City4 in anticipation of their ships departure on Saturday, July 6th.5 Nothing is known as to how long it took to drive to New York or where they stayed upon their arrival.
Anton Tapper, Jr.Roland TapperAlice Tapper
We do know that they set sail aboard the S.S. Veendam, heading for Rotterdam, Holland. The ship arrived in Holland on Monday, July 15th, after a nine-day journey.6
Anton celebrated his 22nd birthday on July 24th, most likely while traveling in England.
On July 27th, The Lake County Times published a report sent by Anton Jr., where he writes that “his trip to Europe has been fine and they are enjoying the sights.” The last report from the family, they were “enjoying the sights of Plymouth Devon, England.”7
Roland celebrated his 20th birthday on August 1st, somewhere in Europe as sadly, no reports appear in the newspaper during the month of August, but the next report dated September 4th took place during the month.
The Lake County Times’ report is a good one and bears the sub-heading: “Tapper Boys Climb Snow Covered Mountain in Switzerland.”
“Word has recently come from Interlaken, Switzerland from a reader of The Times, of an interesting day which Anton Tapper, his sons, Roland and Anton and his daughter, Alice, enjoyed in Switzerland, one of the countries they have been visiting on the continent during their stay abroad.
The Tappers were said to be up on the Jungfrau, Switzerland’s highest mountain. From there the Tapper boys took a guide and climbed one of the neighboring peaks, while Mr. Tapper, Senior, and his daughter watched them through a telescope as they made their way over the rocks and snow of the Mathildaspital, which is 3,560 meters high.
The descent was a hazardous one for the course took the boys over dangerously slippery rocks. Both young travelers are said to have declared the mountain climb the real thrill of their lives. They both seemed relieved to return to solid ground.”8
As they made their way from Switzerland back to Holland for the return home, they stopped in Germany, in the Black Forest.
They set sail on Wednesday, September 4th, from Rotterdam, Holland, aboard the S.S. Volendam. Later that day the ship picked up additional passengers in Southampton, and Boulogne-Sur-Mer, before heading on to New York, and arriving in New York Harbor on Friday, September 13th.
The passenger list was manifested,9 and they were recorded as:
No. 10, Anton H. Tapper, age 61, Male, Married, If Naturalized: Citizen by Father’s Papers, Address: 616 Ann str, Hammond, Ind.
No. 11, Anton H. Tapper, age 22, Male, Single, Native of U.S., b. 24th July 1907, Hammond, Ind.
No. 12, Roland Tapper, age 20, Male, Single, Native of U.S., b. 1st Aug 1909, Hammond, Ind.
No. 13, Alice Tapper, age 17, Female, Single, Native of U.S., b. 26th Sep 1912, Hammond, Ind.
Not knowing what time the ship arrived in the harbor, we do know it would have taken time for them to disembark, retrieve their luggage, wait for the car to be taken to shore, and finally be ready to head home. They must have been eager to return to Hammond, as they made good time, arriving in Hammond on Sunday evening, September 15th.10
Ten days later, Alice would celebrate her 18th birthday at home in Hammond.
Louise Tapper
The family was not allowed to end 1929 on this high note, as on 8 Nov 1929, Louise entered St. Margaret’s Hospital in Hammond to have her appendix removed. She passed away, at the age of 49, on Friday, November 29th. The newspaper report of her death states that “She [had] stood the operation well but physicians were concerned over a blood clot which had formed, threatening a condition similar to that which had resulted in the death of Mrs. Gretje Warber, daughter of the Tappers about a year ago. However she had shown a marked improvement in the last week.” The whole family had been gathered in her hospital room that night, discussing plans for her return home in the next day or so. Leaving at 9:00 p.m., they went home looking forward to bringing her home. She passed away just a short while later at 10:46 p.m., “as an unabsorbed portion of the blood clot was carried to her brain.”11
I just can’t imagine the grief, the loss. After her death, Anton pasted this small piece of paper onto the glass of a framed image of Louise, which says: “‘I Put All the Girls in the World in a Row and Picked Your Mother'”
Why am I writing this story now? I have been slowly attacking the vast amount of family heirlooms that need to be recorded so that my children will have some understanding of what is junk and what is special. Then it will up to them to decide what to keep, and what to toss. Items purchased on this trip have long been part of my family life. Purchased in the Black Forest region of Germany are two music boxes, one a bowl that my mother always used for nuts for cracking at Christmas, and another square box that was given to me so many years ago, I have no memory of NOT owning it. Other pieces purchased in the Black Forest piece are a trick Vesta match safe and a Cuckoo clock that Roland purchased as a gift for Verna Gray.
One piece that I would like to share here is a framed piece of Edelweiss, “Picked on Jungfau Mt.”
“College News,” About Our Young People, The Lake County Times, 7 Jun 1929, Friday, p. 24, col. 5; digital images, Newspapers.com(www.newspapers.com : accessed 7 Aug 2017). ↩︎
“Did You Hear That,” The Lake County Times, 8 Jun 1929, Saturday, p. 15, col. 1; digital images, Newspapers.com(www.newspapers.com : accessed 1 Mar 2024). ↩︎
Indiana Archives and Records Administration, “Indiana, U.S., Death Certificates, 1899-2017,” database and images, Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2015, Ancestry.com (ancestry.com ; accessed 19 Aug 2019), Lake County, 1928, Registered no. 140 (penned), no. 8107 (stamped), Gretje Sophia Warber; citing Indiana State Board of Health. Death Certificates, 1900-2011. Microfilm, Indianapolis, Indiana. ↩︎
“Personals,” The Lake County Times, 28 Jun 1929, Friday, p. 24, col.3; digital images, Newspapers.com(www.newspapers.com : accessed 1 Mar 2024). ↩︎
“Personals,” The Lake County Times, 15 Jul 1929, Monday, p. 10, col.4; digital images, Newspapers.com(www.newspapers.com : accessed 1 Mar 2024). ↩︎
“Did You Hear That,” The Lake County Times, 27 Jul 1929, Saturday, p. 1, col. 2; digital images, Newspapers.com(www.newspapers.com : accessed 1 Mar 2024). ↩︎
“Hammondites Have Thrill in Europe,” The Lake County Times, 4 Sep 1929, Wednesday, p. 10, col. 3; digital images, Newspapers.com(www.newspapers.com : accessed 7 Aug 2017). ↩︎
National Archives, “New York, U.S., Arriving Passenger and Crew Lists (including Castle Garden and Ellis Island), 1820-1957,” database and images, Ancestry.com Operations, Inc. 2010, Ancestry.com(www.ancestry.com : accessed 23 Aug 2018), 13 Sep 1929, S.S. Volendam, p. 1 (penned), p. 40 (stamped), e74, No. 10-13, Tapper Family; citing The National Archives at Washington, D.C. ↩︎
“Personals,” The Lake County Times, 16 Sep 1929, Monday, p. 17, col. 6; digital images, Newspapers.com(www.newspapers.com : accessed 1 Mar 2024). ↩︎
“Mrs. Tapper Dies from Embolism,” The Lake County Times, 30 Nov 1929, Saturday, p. 1, col. 6; Hammond Public Library Microfilm Collection. ↩︎
Last night, I prepared for dinner a turkey breast with homemade stuffing – or, in this case, dressing. The meal choice sparked memories, and the conversation turned to 2001.
I came down with pneumonia as Gary was preparing to spend the week of October 8th at the Fluno Center in Madison, Wisconsin, where he was taking a continuing education management course. He had no choice but to pack his bags and head to Madison for the week.
It was a rough week. I have vivid memories of sitting in the family room, alternately dealing with the heat as I spiked a high fever and, when it broke, freezing to death. I had a follow-up visit with the doctor, that I was somehow able to drag myself into the car to go to. I learned that my lungs were full, and I was still sick.
28 Mar 2011. In the breakfast room. Marie’s birthday at our home.
Thankfully, we were on the bus route, and the kids were old enough to get themselves breakfast and down to the bus for school.
By Thursday, we were eating the last of the food that I had in the house, with it looking dire that I could get to the store to fill the fridge. Dinner was looking pretty lean. Thankfully, Gary was scheduled to return home the next night following the last class session. We could do this!
The kids were home from school, and at 4:30 (or so my memory tells me), we heard a car drive up the driveway, and then the doorbell rang. Looking out, I could see my mother-in-law’s car and Marie standing on the step at the side door. Opening the door to speak to her, she quickly backed off the step. Today, we would say that she was practicing social distancing. Then she said something that was music to my ears: she had brought us dinner. BUT!!! She would not come in, and I was only to open the door wide enough for her to pass the dishes through.
Standing there in my nightgown, I cracked open the screen door just enough to grab a dish and put it on the counter next to the door. First to enter was a turkey breast, warm and smelling delicious. Next was a container of stuffing. We cannot remember if it was her homemade or if she had run up to Van Abel’s for a container. Most likely, the latter. None of us remember a veg, but if she had gone to Van Abel’s, she might have added an order of corn to the order for dressing. Last but not least was a pineapple upside-down cake, fresh from the oven.
Closing the door, the three of us yelled our thanks. Waving goodbye as she drove down the driveway. She was heading a few blocks south to Rennes Health Center to visit her husband, Butch. Her daily visits were the reason that she would take no chance in catching whatever I might want to spread. Butch had had a massive stroke on December 30, 1998, and moved to Rennes in early 1999. Daily visits were the lifeline for both of them.
Marie had spent the better part of the day preparing a meal for her family. And we were grateful. All three of us have vivid memories of how good the food tasted; we can still remember how thankful we were that Grandma Marie had taken the time and effort to feed us.
Gary returned home the next day. He filled the pantry, stocked the fridge, and life returned to normal. I could not shake the pneumonia and did not have clear lungs until after Halloween.
But the warmth of the memory of sitting down to eat that night will never leave us. A meal prepared with love. And for our family that night, a life-saving dinner delivery.
I first posted this piece on 13 Jan 2024 but soon realized that I had not dug deep enough. So this is the original post, plus the additional research.
The original 1934 label. Click to view a color image of this label.
Tuesday was a good day. It was a day when I had confirmation that my writing was reaching people, informing them, and encouraging questions.
Carol from the Stoneware Museum of Monmouth contacted me asking what I might know about the relationship between Hubert Fassbender and the Western Stoneware Pottery company. The Museum is dedicated to preserving the past of the Monmouth, Illinois community and sharing knowledge of stoneware. (Visit them at their website https://monmouthstonewaremuseum.com/ )
What DID I know? Well, Kaukauna Klub cheese has always been packed in crocks. Not the answer she was looking for. I knew I could collect bits and pieces from my research, but what did I know, and what was I missing? Challenge accepted. I created a timeline with accompanying documents, but I now feel compelled to flesh out the facts and take another look.
Kaukauna Klub Cheese is a spreadable natural cheese product, and as Hubert Fassbender, “the originator,” would say, “It is not processed cheese.” I believe it is a variation of the product that he first produced in 1915 for the Anona Cheese Co. in Appleton, Wisconsin. When Anona dissolved in 1931, selling its assets to the Borden company, I believe that Hubert began tinkering with the recipes he had produced many years ago. However, there is also the thought that he never STOPPED tinkering with the product. This idea is supported by comments that state: “Called Kaukauna Klub cheese, it represents the results of 15 years of experiments and development of special equipment.”1 1933 minus 15 equals 1918, which is the year that Hubert started the South Kaukauna Dairy Company and one year after Anona moved their production facility to Chicago, Illinois.
Company lore states that in the winter of 1933, “the lowest point of the depression,” Hubert mixed a small batch of cheese in a mixing bowl in the office of South Kaukauna Dairy. ‘He called in the help and asked people to taste it.’ Everyone liked it. Taking it home, ‘the folks at home liked it too.’2
Appleton Post-Crescent 8 Sep 1933
1918 to 1933. It was in 1918 that Congress passed the 18th Amendment to the Constitution prohibiting the manufacture, transportation and sale of alcoholic beverages, passing into law 17 Jan 1920. But now, at the end of 1933 (5 Dec 1933), Prohibition was ending, and Americans could once again legally sell and consume alcohol. A means of distribution was needed.
South Kaukauna Dairy had the refrigeration equipment needed, and so Hubert added a beer depot to his list of offerings, proudly distributing at least two products, Gettelman’s, a Milwaukee beer produced by the A. Gettelman Brewing Co.3 and Knapstein’s, produced by the Knapstein Brewing Company of New London, a beer “more perfect in every way than you’ve ever tasted. It’s the result of a great combination — Purity, Skill, and Proper Aging.”4
In a letter circa 1935, Hubert stated: “KAUKAUNA KLUB was perfected about the time when beer returned with the only object in mind for local taverns. The originator [Hubert] had not thought of nation wide distribution.” “The Conway Hotel in Appleton, Wisc. was the first account. They served it on their bar [as part of what was called their “free lunch]. Traveling men began to buy it and carried it home with them. They in turn showed it to their friends. It soon happened that they began to form clubs of six and sent to the plant for it to be shipped them. From there it spread all over the United States.”5
One of the drivers for this beer distribution route was Hubert’s nephew Arthur Ellenbecker, whom I interviewed when he was 98 years old, and he well remembered the excitement of the club cheese. He was also quick to state that these routes were not his favorite, as with each delivery, he was expected to sit down and enjoy a glass of beer. This not only delayed his deliveries but was too many beers throughout the day.
1934, the Conway Hotel
The first deliveries of the new cheese product to the Conway Hotel Tavern were packed in paper cottage cheese containers, which Hubert labeled simply: Club Cheese, Manufactured by the South Kaukauna Dairy.6
His daughter, Mabel, reported in 1947 that he had not been satisfied with this simple packaging, which “proved unsatisfactory for keeping the cheese,” she went on to say that “Dad wrote to the stoneware company at Monmouth, Ill., and asked about a stone container. They sent us a three-pound jar they had on hand. He liked it and since then has made a number of patented changes in design to make it right for Kaukauna Klub.
‘When we used up what crocks they had on hand, we could not understand why they were not able to give immediate delivery on more. It was the depression, and they were not even in operation,’ she says.
At first only the three pound size was used. A small crock was made up for samples. Now [1947] there are four sizes.”7
In 1934, the company was ready to label its new product, and the time had come to decide upon a name. After much discussion, Hubert is reported as saying: “‘Why don’t we name it after the place where it is made and call it Kaukauna Club.’ Then it was decided to change the ‘C’ of Club to ‘K’ for copyrighting reasons.”8
The 1935 label. Notice the bail style and embossed lid, which is not domed like the 1934 crock.
On February 24, 1934, a label for Kaukauna Klub was submitted to obtain a Wisconsin trademark. The full-color label can be viewed at the Wisconsin Historical Society website – to view, follow the link: https://www.wisconsinhistory.org/Records/Image/IM91275. This label was not used very long as a second label was designed in 1935, and if you visit Kaukauna’s website, Our Story page at: https://www.kaukaunacheese.com/our-story/, you will see yet another old label (in addition to a collection of crocks).
If there is one common denominator that we can attribute to how a Fassbender does business, it is this: They view a good business relationship as a partnership and expect the same from the people they do business with. The crock contract with the Western Stoneware Company was no different. Each Labor Day, the company hosted a weekend event, advertising for visitors to stop at the Monmouth Pottery Show Room and Gardens, where, starting in 1935, “…the Kaukauna Klub Cheese organization…will demonstrate their Cheese Products on both days. Their Cheese is fine and you should get acquainted with it.”9 The last year that Kaukauna participated in the event (or at least was advertised to have been in attendance) was 1939, when “The Kaukauna Club Cheese will be here again demonstrating their products and purchases can be made.”10
A 1937 Advertisement showcasing the 1935 label.
As the sturdy crocks that held the Kaukauna Klub Cheese could be reused, a program was set up so that they could be returned for credit. The Kuebler Grocery Company in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, included the return value for each size in an ad they placed in The Oshkosh Northwestern on 2 Mar 1934. The ad tells us that In 1934,11 a 3-lb jar cost 95 cents, with a return value of 15 cents. The 24-oz jar cost 65 cents, and the 13-oz jar 45 cents. Both sizes had a return value of 10 cents.
I got curious and turned to the Inflation Calculator12 to see what the price would be today. The 13-oz crock of Kaukauna Klub cheese would cost $10.23, with a crock return value of $2.27. I looked at walmart.com to see what a tub of Kaukauna would cost today and learned that to purchase two 6.5 oz tubs, equalling 13 oz. of cheese I would pay $12.47.
The Kuebler ad also reported the sale price of two pounds of peanut butter was 21 cents ($4.78), you would pay 26 cents for a pound of butter ($5.91), and a dozen eggs cost 17 cents ($3.87).
Earl Mollet, an “employe” of South Kaukauna Dairy, was invited to speak at a Kaukauna Rotary luncheon. In his talk, he shared that only 2% of the crocks were returned. He went on to say about the crocks that were returned, “It seems that people get the jars confused in their homes and return the wrong ones. When they do, the boys at the plant have a little treat.” He stated, “…once we got one back full of mince meat, another full of salted fish, and some with pickles or candy in them.”13
The fact that only 2% of the crocks were returned indicates to me that Kaukauna Klub was prized not only for what came inside the crock but also for the crock itself. Young’s Market Company ad told readers that the cheese “…comes in cunning stone jars which may be returned for credit if you wish…but you’ll want to keep yours…”14 In 1939, the R. C. Wallace Co. of Helena, Montana, Kaukauna Klub advertisement even stated that the product was “Packed in Oven-Tested Earthen Jars!”15
While Hubert continued to expand the size and shape of Kaukauna Klub, the product continued to be packaged in stone jars for many more years. In 1954, a plastic lid was introduced. “This new lid makes it easier to store in your refrigerator or to stack the jars for display purposes.”16
Braniff International Airways crockThe reverse sideA plastic lid with the KK Logo
In the 1960s, the company partnered with Braniff International Airways to create a small crock of cheese to be served to the airline’s first-class passengers. While I have yet to find any written confirmation as to this partnership, examples of this small crock still exist.
By 1963, a brown crock had been added.17 In 1969, the cheese food caught the attention of a restaurant owner in Anaheim, California. The Aladdin Restaurant began serving the cheese as part of their appetizer offerings. “When each person is seated for dinner a wooden tray with an unusual cheese and crackers is brought to the table. The cheese is a good sharp soft (for easy spreading) Kaukauna Klub. It comes in an attractive brown crock–and it is a good appetizer with cocktails.”18
A crock with an early font, but the newer style of bailcirca 1959 – 1962circa 1975
The plastic tub was introduced following the sale of the company to International Multi-Foods in 1971.19 In 1975, recognizing the continued popularity of the original crock, International Multi-foods began to offer crock refills to their mix of products.20
International Multi-foods label
More research will need to be done to determine who manufactured these later crocks, including taking a hard look at the shape of the lid and the style of the bail. Not to mention what the bottom looks like, as this, too, is indicative of the manufacturer. SHUCKS, more parts to study.
To honor Hubert Fassbender’s achievement, in December 1947, the Kaukauna Common Council approved the appropriation of $1,301.50 for the purchase of a stone monument, a replica of the crock that is now synonymous with Kaukauna Klub. They granted Appleton Marble and Granite Works of Appleton the contract to create the monument of “polished granite with a stainless steel handle and clamp, and rough-cut granite base.”21 The Kaukauna Rotary donated the bronze plaque that reads: ‘Dedicated to the memory of Hubert Fassbender (1875-1947), the originator of the Kaukauna Klub, a dairy product which has made the city of Kaukauna known throughout the country.”22 The monument was dedicated on 8 Nov 1948 by his daughter, Mabel, along with L. C. Smith, master of ceremonies, Mayor Joseph Bayorgeon, and Kaukauna Rotary Club president, James Bamberry.
2023 – Fassbender Park, Kaukauna
If you visit Kaukauna today, you can head to Fassbender Park, next to the Associated Bank building, which sits on the site of the original South Kaukauna Dairy plant. Here, at the triangle of Crooks Avenue, Quinney Avenue, and E 4th Street, you will find a replica of the Western Stoneware crock that made both the product and the city famous.
I would like to end with one last crock story. In 2015 I received an email sharing details of a very large Kaukauna Klub crock. According to the story, Hubert had a large replica crock made for his daughters. His daughters, Mabel and Gertrude, did not want the crock, so it was given to an employee. Later the crock, standing about waist high, made its way back to Kaukauna Klub and was used in the cheese store as a sample table. The factory cheese store is now closed, and the location of the crock is not known.
An oversized replica
SOURCES
“Get New Pleasure From Cheese Made By Kaukauna Firm” Appleton Post-Crescent, 21 Apr 1934, Saturday, p. 18, col. 3; digital image, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : accessed 10 Sep 2018). ↩︎
Newspaper Clipping, The Kaukauna Times, 18 Jun 1947 (guesstimate); South Kaukauna Dairy Company History; privately held by Susan Sternitzky Fassbender, 2012. “Hubert Fassbender and New Cheese Product Made Kaukauna Famous.” Bernard and Marie Fassbender Family Archives. ↩︎
“H. Fassbender for Gettelman’s Beer,” Advertisement, Appleton Post-Crescent, 12 Jul 1933, Wednesday Evening, p. 3, col. 1; digital image, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : accessed 6 Sep 2018). ↩︎
“H. Fassbender for Knapstein’s Beer,” Advertisement, Appleton Post-Crescent, 6 Oct 1933, Friday, p. 14, col. 5; digital image, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : accessed 6 Sep 2018). ↩︎
Letter, written by Hubert Fassbender on South Kaukauna Dairy Company letterhead, ca 1935; South Kaukauna Dairy Company History; privately held by Susan C. Sternitzky Fassbender, 2012. ↩︎
Newspaper Clipping, The Kaukauna Times, 18 Jun 1947 (guesstimate); South Kaukauna Dairy Company History; privately held by Susan C. Sternitzky Fassbender, 2012. “Hubert Fassbender and New Cheese Product Made Kaukauna Famous.” Bernard and Marie Fassbender Family Archives. ↩︎
“Visit the Monmouth Pottery Show Room and Gardens” Advertisement, The Rock Island Argus, 29 Aug 1935, Thursday, p. 5, col. 6; digital images, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : accessed 10 Jan 2024). ↩︎
“Monmouth Pottery” Advertisement, The Rock Island Argus, 1 Sep 1939, Friday, p. 22, col. 5; digital images, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : accessed 10 Jan 2024). ↩︎
“Kuebler Grocery Co. Look! At This,” Advertisement, The Oshkosh Northwestern, 2 Nov 1934, Friday, p. 16, col. 5; digital image, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : accessed 11 Jan 2024). ↩︎
“Cheese Jars Sometimes Come Back With Pickles,” Appleton Post-Crescent, 5 Aug 1937, Thursday Evening, p. 18, col. 2; digital images, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : accessed 4 Feb 2018). ↩︎
“Young’s Market Company,” Advertisement, Los Angeles Times, 8 Mar 1938, Tuesday Morning, Part II, p. 5, col. 1; digital images, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : accessed 11 Jan 2024). ↩︎
“Kaukauna Klub,” Advertisement, The Helena Daily Independent, 24 Jun 1939, Saturday, p. 3, col. 7; digital image, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : accessed 11 Jan 2024). ↩︎
“Has New Plastic Lid. Kaukauna Klub Begins New Advertising Campaign” The Appleton Post-Crescent, 16 Oct 1954, Saturday, p. 9, col. 1; digital image, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : accessed 28 Jan 2024). ↩︎
“Beechners,” Advertisement, The Lincoln Star, 13 Dec 1963, Friday, p. 10, col. 3; digital image, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : accessed 26 Jan 2024). ↩︎
“Food and Fun,” The Santa Ana Register, 19 Sep 1969, Friday, p. D, col. 6: digital images, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : accessed 26 Jan 2024); Marilyn Nelson. ↩︎
“Firm Buys Kaukauna Dairy Co.,” The Post-Crescent, 2 Mar 1971, Tuesday, p. B12, col. 2; digital image, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : accessed 28 Jan 2024). ↩︎
“Kaukauna Klub” Advertisement, The Chicago Tribune, 20 Nov 1975, Thursday, Section 6, Food Guide, p. 4, col. 4; digital image, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : accessed 26 Jan 2024). ↩︎
“Memorial to Be Erected For Fassbender,” Appleton Post-Crescent, 17 Dec 1947, Wednesday, p. 10, col. 2; digital images, Newspapers.com (www.newspapers.com : accessed 11 Sep 2018). ↩︎
Newspaper Clipping, The Kaukauna Times, 19 Dec 1947; South Kaukauna Dairy Company History; privately held by Susan C. Sternitzky Fassbender, 2012. “$1,301.50 Appropriated for Hubert Fassbender Memorial.” Bernard and Marie Fassbender Family Archives. ↩︎
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