For Rent: a House on Lincoln Street

Among the kinds of wants that existed in Hobart in October 1921 was William Rossow's wanting to rent his house on Lincoln Street — address unspecified, but maybe somebody out there knows it? I may have a photo of this house, but we'll get to that in the next post.


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Hobart Gazette 28 Oct. 1921.

The "Local Drifts" column reports that Sarah Read has gone back to keeping house for the Nolte "boys," Henry and Louis, who were then about 30 and 23 years old, respectively (1920 Census).

Jack Hahn

On an unknown day in an unknown year, in the yard of the old McAuliffe farmhouse on east Cleveland Avenue, a dog stood still long enough to be photographed — a dog who (if we judge by the handwritten caption) belonged to the Hahn brothers, and who (if we judge by the fact that someone took a photo of him) was much loved.


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Image courtesy of the Hobart Historical Society and Jocelyn Hahn Johnson.

Obscene Graffiti

It seems that Halloween festivities have gotten more civilized nowadays than they were in 1921.


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"Local and Personal." Hobart News 27 Oct. 1921

The Gazette likewise scolded local boys for writing "'smutty' and obscene words upon store fronts and windows," as well as marking up cars with chalk or soap, or otherwise damaging them. And the Town Marshal, in a published warning, suggested that even girls could be guilty of such things:



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The "Local and Personal" column above included news of more innocent activities: William Raschka is campaigning for office in the new City of Hobart (as is his son-in-law, John Fleck), but takes a day off to go hunting; Louis Wojahn is proud of the potatoes raised on his farm near Ainsworth — though they might have been raised by a tenant, Louis having announced his retirement from farming in 1917; and Bertha Rossow gets a surprise birthday party.


Additional Sources:
♦ "Local Drifts." Hobart Gazette 28 Oct. 1921.
♦ "Warning Notice." Hobart Gazette 28 Oct. 1921.

They Are Nervy

From the steamer trunk.


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Images courtesy of Eldon Harms.

It's December 1913; the weather is cold, the nights are long, there's no radio, TV, or internet; and Herman Harms isn't "nervy" … he's just missing his Minnie.

Death Comes for the Groom-to-Be

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Images courtesy of the Hobart Historical Society.

Let us go back for a moment to a couple of those wonderful old glass-plate negatives — specifically, the two that include William Olson, Andrew Melin, Tekla Anderson, and a young woman whose identity we don't know. In the photo above, William is standing at left, Tekla is standing at right, and Andrew is seated at right. The young woman seated at center, wearing a high-necked white blouse and an amused expression, is unidentified. They are all together again in the photo below, a trick shot that makes William (standing) appear twice.




CK Melin has furnished me with William Olson's obituary from the Hobart News of October 6, 1910, and pointed out that it may contain a clue as to the possible identity of that mysterious young woman in the images.


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That article is largely reprinted from the Hammond Times. The Hobart Gazette followed the next day with its own article, which included a few more details:

Wm. A. Olson who formerly lived in Hobart was found dead in his room last week Thursday, Sept. 29, at the home of Mrs. W.H. Rifenburg at Hammond where he had roomed several years. Mr. Olson had passed the evening before at the home of his aunt, Mrs. Eric Melin, in Chicago, and was in his usual good spirits and health. He did not arise at his usual hour the next morning and after forcing in the door to his room his body was found upon the floor, face downward, and it was evident that he had died in an epileptic paroxysm, of which he had been afflicted from youth although of late years he was much improved. The remains were shipped to Hobart via the Nickel Plate Friday afternoon and conveyed to the home of his cousin, Andrew Melin, on Michigan avenue. The funeral in charge of Rev. Otto A. Johnson was held at 10:30 last Sunday forenoon at the Swedish M.E. church, but the sermon was preached by Presiding Elder Anderson of Chicago. The burial was in the Hobart cemetery.

Mr. Olson was thirty-two years old. He was born in Sweden and came to this country when a youth of ten years and had made his home at the Melin residence. He learned the tinner's trade when a young man and was employed by his cousin, Andrew Melin, when he conducted a hardware store in Hobart some years ago and then by A.J. Swanson the hardware dealer but for the past five years he was employed by P.H. Mueller at Hammond. He was a young man of excellent habits and was an expert tinner and plumber. At the time of his death he was secretary of the Tinner's union at Hammond and a social member of the Maccabees in Hobart. He was engaged to be married to Miss Theresa Lindgren, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Chas. Lindgren of Lake street and the ceremony was set for Saturday of this week. His death is very regrettable. He is survived by a mother, a sister and a brother in Sweden.

Well, after reading all that, one can't help but jump to the conclusion that the lovely young woman in the photos is the fiancée, Theresa Lindgren. It's such a cozy and intimate little group there, and in the first photo William is resting his elbow on her chair in an almost proprietary gesture. Knowing what we know now, we see the poignancy in these playful images, as they capture the happiness of young lovers spending a perfect summer afternoon together, never suspecting how close they are to death and heartbreak.

Officially, however, I still have to consider her unidentified.


There are a few more photos in which I believe she appears …

I think she is seated at the far right in this one (while William Olson is standing at the far left) (original post here):



In this one, she's second from the top (original post here):



Here she's at left (original post here):



At left again (original post here):



And again (original post here):



I'm not 100% sure, but that might be her standing second from the right in this one (original post here):



In the choir photos, I think the young woman at right in the middle row might be her (and William Olson is at right in the last row) (original post here):

John Barney

A westbound Grand Trunk train stopped at the Ainsworth station on the morning of October 24, 1921, to deliver a sad cargo: John Barney, born and raised in Ross Township, was making his last trip home.


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Hobart News 27 Oct. 1921.

I've seen the Barney name every now and then in social news, but I didn't realize until now how long the family had been in this area. A couple of posts ago, I mentioned Thomas Chandler buying a farm from "Charles E. and Maggie E. Barney at Palmer" — John's parents — which farm I haven't identified; but oddly enough it seems that Charles E. and Maggie E. Barney sometime between 1874 and 1891 bought 80 acres that had belonged to Thomas Chandler's grandfather; namely, this parcel on the south side of E. 73rd Ave.:


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On this image from the 1908 Plat Map, the land that belonged to Charles and Maggie Barney in 1891 is outlined.

That's the only land I have found ascribed to the elder Barneys in any plat map.

John's widow, née Lena Maybaum, belonged to the large Maybaum family. They had married in 1887, not 1886 as stated in the article above.

Their two sons, Edward Ray and Charles Leslie, often went by their middle names.


Additional Sources:
♦ 1874 Plat Map.
♦ 1891 Plat Book.
♦ 1900 Census.
♦ 1910 Census.
♦ 1920 Census.
♦ Indiana Marriage Collection.
♦ "Obituary." Hobart Gazette 28 Oct. 1921.
♦ WWI Draft Cards.

Fred and Olga (Foreman) Rossow

Just recently we encountered this young couple moving onto the Ella Roper farm in Ross Township in 1921. Today let's go back five years and look at their wedding portrait.


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Image courtesy of Eldon Harms.
Photographer: J.J. Naumann, Hobart, Ind.

They were married February 20, 1916, when both were 21 or 22. Olga, whom we've met once before, was the daughter of William and Emma (Manteuffel) Foreman of Hobart; Fred was the son of Theodore and Anna (Bergman) Rossow, whom we've also met.

Here is the Gazette's report of their wedding:


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I am wondering whether the "Burkman" in the article is a mistake for "Bergman" — Olga's mother's maiden name.

Per the 1920 census, Fred and Olga were renting land in Porter County, apparently near the Gottlieb family.


Sources:
♦ 1910 Census.
♦ 1920 Census.
♦ Indiana Marriage Collection.
♦ "Rossow-Foreman Nuptials." Hobart Gazette 25 Feb. 1916.