Page:History of Southeast Missouri 1912 Volume 1.djvu/649

From Wikisource
Jump to navigation Jump to search
This page needs to be proofread.
589
589

HISTORY OF SOUTHEAST MISSOURI 579 subject of this sketch, Andrew T. Sclmltze, is not only owner of a large farm tliree miles east of Washington, in Fi-anklin county, Jlis- souri, but he is closely allied with several other successful business enterprises. The father of Andrew T. Schultze was An- drew Schultze, Sr., who was a native of Ger- many, his birth having occurred at Leun- burg in 1810. It was the wish of his par- ents that he enter the ministry, and aecord- ingl.y he supplemented the education ob- tained at the common schools in his native land by a course in the theological depart- ment of the University of Berlin, from which he was graduated. Being especially fond of the languages, he devoted all his spare time to mastering Greek, Latin, French and sev- eral other European tongues, all pi-eparatory to his engaging in the ministry of the Evan- gelical church. However, "the best laid plans of mice and men gang aft agley, " and Andrew Schultze decided to visit the United States and, if this new country pleased him, to settle here. Accordingly he immigi-ated to the United States, and in 1849 settled in Missouri, near the present homestead of his son, the aforementioned Andrew T. Schultze. He immediately adapted himself to the new world methods and manners, and made him- self agreeable to all his neighbors, who es- teemed and respected him for his splendid educational equipment, and at the same time loved him for his manly character and strik- ing personality. At the breaking out of hostilities in the Civil war period Mr. Schultze supported the flag of the Union, but, being too old to en- list in active service, he could do no more than enthuse those about him in the cause. He was thus strongly Republican in poli- tics, but veered off with the liberal element of that party during the Greeley campaign, later, however, coming back into the fold of his parent party. His extreme popular- ity and the confidence reposed in him by the citizens of Franklin county is best evi- denced by the fact that in November, 1872, Mr. Schultze was nominated for county judge by the Democratic party, and elected, chiefly upon the local issue of opposition to the payment of the road bonds which had been wrongfully saddled upon the county. He died the next month, however, December, 1872, before assuming his official position, and this sudden demise delayed for several years the final adjustment of the matter. Though Mr. Schultze never entered religious work as had been originally planned, yet his interest in everything good continued un- abated, and he did much in a quiet way for the betterment of conditions in his immediate conununity, and was one to whom much credit is due in the building of the present Evan- gelical church in Washington. Mr. Schultze was married in Germany to Johanna Kaiser, born in 1830, and to them were born the fol- lowing children : Bertha, the widow of Wil- liam Daetweiler, of Franklin county ; Andrew T., whose biography follows ; Charles, of Ari- zona; Fredrick, who died at fourteen j^ears of age ; Adolph, who died at the age of forty ; Rudolph, now a resident of Union, Missouri ; Otto, living on the old homestead in this county ; Ernst, of Union ; Louise, who died when fourteen years of age ; and Anna, wife of George Hausmann, of Washington. Mrs. Andrew Schultze, Sr., is still living in Frank- lin county, Missouri. The man who has before him a living example of honesty, integrity, manliness and innate culture is bound to live up to that standard. With such a father Andrew T. Schultze could not be less a man. His birth oecun-ed March 19, 1854, in Franklin county, so that he has lived all his life in south- eastern Missouri. Though the educational facilities in Missouri at that time were not what the father had had in Germany, yet he determined that his son should be edu- cated as well as possible. Young Andrew therefore attended private schools and pub- lic schools at Washington, the high school at Hermann, and later took a commercial course in one of the business colleges of St. Louis. Having a love for nature and na- ture's handiwork, our subject had early de- cided that he would follow in his father's footsteps a little farther, and would adopt farming as his life work, and wath the ex- ception of two years passed in Colorado, 1883-84, in the cattle business, Mr. Schultze has carried out his original plans. As before stated, the attractive farm which was originally the old Bell homestead, three miles east of Washington, is now owned and operated by Andrew T. Schultze, but IMr. Schultze does not confine his interests en- tirely to agricultural pursuits. He is presi- dent of the Farmers' Jlutual Insurance Com- pany of Franklin county; is a stockholder in the National Cob Pipe Works of Union ; and is president of that thriving institution.