Henery Bernard Eising Family

Henry Bernard Eising Family (1848-1926)

Henry Bernard EISING had been the first child of Bernard and Elizabeth EISING to be born in Illinois and, it appears, was the first son to reach adulthood. At the age of 15, he served in the Civil War as a cook. From census data we know that “Henry B” held various jobs in the Warsaw area. In 1880, just a year before he was to be married, he was working in a local woolen mill and living at home with his parents.

 The 1900 Quincy City Directory and Census indicate that Henry and Sophie had by that time moved to Quincy, Adams County, Illinois. Henry was working as a cabinetmaker and living at 1832 Lind. Sophie was known in Quincy as the “Angel of Vine Street” (Vine Street was later renamed College Street). She assisted local doctors during and after childbirth, bringing sterilized cloths and medical supplies and caring for the mother and child for a 2-week period. Not surprisingly, Sophie sometimes reached the scene of the delivery before the doctor and actually handled the delivery of a fair number of children. The family subsequently moved to 1121 Chestnut, 1438 Elm, and finally 332 South 7th. Shortly after moving to Quincy, Henry was employed as a laborer by the City of Quincy, where he worked for over 25 years. Henry B was regularly seen sweeping the streets of Quincy, but the grandchildren remember him visiting the family, dressed in a suit and handing out candy. Henry died at his home (332 South 7th) at 11:15 PM on 19 Sep 1926 [Footnote E3-1] and is buried in Calvary Cemetery. He had been ill for about 5 years before his death. Sophie died at the home of her daughter Antoinette BLAESING (723 North 3rd) on 13 Jun 1928. She is also buried in Calvary Cemetery.

HENRY AND SOPHIE'S CHILDREN

Louis J EISING was born in Warsaw in 1882. In 1900, he was 18 years old, living in Quincy, Illinois with his parents at 1832 Lind and working as an upholsterer [Footnote E3-2]. Louis had served his apprenticeship in upholstery at a shop at 6th and Elm. He married Rose Hilgenbrink and later moved to the Chicago area. It was there that their children were born – Margaret on 5 Feb 1905, Frank in 1906, Ida in October 1909, and Louis J, Jr. 

Louis partnered with his brother William to start a furniture factory and eventually established an upholstery business in two separate buildings behind his home. Louis did upholstery in one of the buildings and his son Frank did refinishing in the other. Ida made slipcovers and draperies and other members of the family helped with the sewing. The children all worked in the shops as they grew up. Louis EISING died on 28 Aug 1945 in Des Plaines, Cook County, Illinois. 

Margaret repaired dolls at Carson, Pirie, Scott Department Store in Chicago. She married George Mancel and they had one daughter, Margaret. After George retired, he and Margaret moved from the family home at 1377 Prairie Ave in Des Plaines, Illinois to a smaller place in the area and then on to Houston, Missouri. Margaret subsequently died at the Texas County Memorial Hospital at Houston from Huntington’s Chorea disease. Frank and Ida worked as clerks at Carson, Pirie, Scott. Ida became a nun for several years. Louis, Jr. continued to work in the upholstery shop with his father when he returned from service. He earned an accounting degree and later moved with his wife, Beth, and his sister, Ida, to Santa Barbara, California.

William EISING was born in Warsaw in 1885. In 1900, he was 15 years old, living in Quincy, Illinois with his parents at 1832 Lind. In 1906 he was working as a laborer at Quincy Engine Works and living at 1121 Chestnut. William married Rose M. CRAMSEY, daughter of William and Emma Zanger CRAMSEY. Rose was born in Burton Township, Illinois on 2 Jan 1886. In 1910 [Footnote E3-3] William and Rose lived at 2019 Oak. William was employed as a shipping clerk. They had two children, Florence (born in 1906) and Ralph (born in Nov 1908). By 1912 the family lived at 1841-1/2 Broadway and William was then employed at Electric Wheel. 

At some point the William EISING family moved to Chicago, where he partnered with his brother, Louis, in a furniture factory. William died in Chicago on 21 Dec 1940 and was buried at Quincy in Calvary Cemetery. After his death, Rose moved back to Quincy and lived with her sister. Rose died in St. Mary’s Hospital in Quincy on 12 May 1974. She is buried in Calvary Cemetery. 

Florence married Edward CARY. Florence and Edward moved to Quincy and lived at 22nd and Chestnut. Edward then worked as a painter and decorator. They had one son, Ronald, and later moved to Albuquerque, NM. Ed’s hobby in Quincy was beekeeping and they made a business of it in New Mexico. Ralph moved back to Quincy and lived in the 2000 block of Oak.

John Bernard EISING was born in Warsaw on 02 Dec 1887. In 1906, the Quincy City Directory indicates that John, then 19 years old, was working at Electric Wheel Company and lived at 1121 Chestnut. In 1908 he was still employed at Electric Wheel, but then lived at 1438 Elm. Sometime before his marriage in 1910 he moved to St. Joseph, Buchanan County, Missouri and began working as a fireman on the railroad. On 25 Sep 1910, he married Agnes Margaret THIEMANN. This family will be the topic of the following chapter.

Antoinette Clara (“Nettie”) EISING was born on 01 Dec 1891 in Quincy, Adams County, Illinois. In 1906, when she was 15 years old, she was working as a domestic. By 1908 she lived at 1438 Elm with her parents. In 1912, still at 1438 Elm, she was employed by Monroe Drug Company (dye manufacturer at 3rd & College). 

On 17 Jun 1914, Antoinette married Albert B BLAESING (born in 1890) at St. Francis Catholic Church in Quincy, with Father Didacus performing the ceremony. They had three children: Paul Louis (born in 1915), Albert William (born 4 April 1920), and Verna Joann (born in 1935). About 1935, Nettie and Albert lived in a house on North 3rd Street in Quincy. On the back of that lot there was a second house where Albert’s mother, Lisetta BLAESING, had lived until she decided to move in with one of her daughters. The second house was torn down and the lumber was used to start a home on the Old Broadway Road. In June of 1939, the family sold the property in Quincy and moved to the farm. At that time Albert had to learn how to drive in order to get around. With the use of a 1928 Nash, he eventually made the transition. 

Verna married August “Jake” JACOBS. They later purchased the house and the land in the country from Nettie and Albert. Nettie and Albert lived with Verna, Jake and their family until they died. Nettie died on 3 Oct 1973 after being hospitalized and temporarily moved to Lincoln Hill Nursing Home. Albert died on 14 Mar 1974 in St. Mary’s Hospital. Both are buried in Calvary Cemetery.

Anna Mary EISING was born on 18 Jan 1899 in Quincy, Adams County, Illinois. She married Herbert Everett BUXMAN, son of Carl William and Hermine Wukitsch BUXMAN. They had two children: Aileen Mary (born 5 Aug 1919) and Richard Lewis (born 16 Jun 1924). Anna and Herbert BUXMAN had a home about a block from her parents and took in boarders. They later divorced. Herbert BUXMAN died on 3 Jan 1942 at Alexian Brothers Hospital in Chicago, Cook County, Illinois. After the divorce, Anna married Emil Johnson. Anna and Emil then had one daughter, Janice Jean, born 20 Mar 1939. When Anna was pregnant with Janice, she was diagnosed with cervical cancer. She elected not to have an abortion and submit to cancer treatment because Emil very much wanted a child. By the time Janice was born, the cancer had metastized to her breast. Anna Mary Johnson died in 1945 and was buried in Calvary Cemetery in Quincy. Just before her death, Anna took Janice to live with her sister-in-law, Agnes Eising. Agnes had often visited with Anna, referring to her as “My Dear Sister.” [Footnote E3-4]  Emil regularly sent Agnes $15-30 a month for Janice’s care. 

Aileen Mary BUXMAN married John Carl OTTO in Evanston, Cook County, Illinois on 30 May 1947 and they had three children: Joleen Ann (born 19 Oct 1949), Carleen Mary (born 02 Feb 1953), and Gail Lou (born 27 Sep 1954). John was a vice president of Curtis Candy Company and Aileen ran a Currency Exchange in Chicago. 

Richard Lewis BUXMAN had a troubled youth. He eventually married and had a daughter in Chicago. The family moved to Seattle, Washington and he had a dealership for Kirby vacuum sweepers. 

OPINIONS AND FOOTNOTES

E3-1 - Henry B Eising Obituary, Quincy Herald Whig, 20 Sep 1926, Page 14, Column 3.

E3-2 - 1900/01 Quincy City Directory, H. N. Stone Co.

E3-3 - 1910 Census data for Quincy, Adams County, Illinois

E3-4 - Personal letter from Agnes Eising to Anna Johnson when Janice was born. Letter is currently in the possession of Janice Johnson