Volume 41, number 8
May 2020
Grand River Times The Newsletter of the Grand Rapids Historical Society
Inside this issue: Cover Story: Little Bohemia Letter from our President page 2 Local History and the Expressway page 4 Share Your COVID-19 Story page 5 Grand Rapids Herald Headlines page 6 Preusser Jewelers page 6 Photo Sleuth page 7
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Little Bohemia: Part I From Kratzau to Grand Rapids, Michigan By: Nan Schichtel—GRHS Trustee My mother, Esther Shears Schichtel, and her uncle, Fred J. Esbaugh, loved to share stories about our family’s roots in the Sudeten Mountains of Northern Bohemia. The Riemer family came from Kratzau, now Chrastava, Czech Republic. The Schitky side came from Grottau, now Hrádek nad Nisou, Czech Republic. Both towns are north of Prague, near Liberec, formerly Reichenberg, close to the German and Polish borders. One Thanksgiving afternoon when I was about 11 years old, while most of the clan were watching football or playing setback, Uncle Fred sat me down on the couch with the family albums and a box of treasures. He told me that his mother, Anna Figure 1 Real photo postcard of Kratzau, Bohemia Riemer Esbaugh, was born in Kratzau in 1863 and came to America in 1866 with her parents, Josef and Maria Anna Schitky Riemer. The Riemers had planned to emigrate earlier, but the US Civil War deterred them. They were joining extended family who already were living in Grand Rapids, Dorr, and Alpine. Upon arrival, they initially stayed with Mrs. Blumrich, whose husband, City Physician Dr. Wenzel Blumrich, had died in 1862.
Grand Rapids Historical Society Figure 2 Anna Riemer, age 3, Kratzau, Bohemia
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GRAND RAPIDS HISTORICAL SOCIETY Dear GRHS Members,
Flu pandemic 1918. Imagine, no radio, no television, no cell phone, no internet. How did they stay informed? How did they stay occupied? The written word. Newspapers were very important. The printed word has taken a lesser role today. The first radio station license was issued October 27, 1920. The first public demonstration of televised silhouette images in motion was March 25, 1925 at a British Department Store. The cell phone and the internet The Grand River Times is the came much later. I am sure many have family stories that have been handed newsletter of the Grand Rapids down about entertainment in the good old days, whether or not during a Historical Society, published six times annually. Established in 1894, pandemic. Allow me some reminiscing. the Grand Rapids Historical Society My grandfather was a snowbird, meaning he lived in Florida in the is dedicated to exploring the history winter. In the summer he stayed with us. It was in of West Michigan; to discover its the early 1950s that he bought a television into the romance and tragedy, its heroes and scoundrels, its leaders and its house which included mom, dad and four or five ordinary citizens. The Society collects and preserves our heritage, kids at the time. What I remember the most is how small the screen was and that sometimes we, the passing it on to new generations through books, lectures, and kids, would watch the test pattern because that was education projects. all that was on. Today we have television 24/7, and can keep up on the news by connecting to one of Executive Committee: the cable news channels. We have the internet Gina Bivins, president where we can connect with friends and family Matthew Daley, vice-president across the world with a few clicks on a cell phone or a computer, or with instant messenger, etc. John Gelderloos, treasurer What are you doing to keep busy during Nan Schichtel, secretary this pandemic? I have accumulated a sizable number of wind up toys, you know, the plastic ones that break after you over Board members: -wind them. Sure, I have a couple of the metal ones, but none are vintage. Charles Bocskey They are to play with. So play with them I am. Every day I have made a Thomas Dilley video of my toys and post it on Facebook, 29 so far. It helps me keep a smile Matthew Ellis on my face, something to look forward to and a way keep track of the days I Chris Kaupa have been home. Continued on page 4 Gordon Olson, emeritus Wilhelm Seeger, emeritus Jeff Sytsma Julie Tabberer Jim Winslow Kurt Yost Jessica Riley, editor Grand Rapids Historical Society c/o Grand Rapids Public Library 111 Library St. NE Grand Rapids, MI 49503 Website: www.grhistory.org Email: grhs.local@gmail.com Grand River Times
About the Grand Rapids Historical Society. The Grand Rapids Historical Society sponsors eight programs each year, beginning in September and running through May, including lectures, audio/video presentations, demonstrations, collections, or special tours. Membership. Membership is open to all interested persons with annual dues of $30 per family, $20 for seniors and students, or $400 for a lifetime membership. The membership year runs from May to the following May. Members of the Grand Rapids Historical Society receive eight newsletters each year. Members also receive a 20% discount on books published by the society as well as books published by the Grand Rapids Historical Commission. Change of Address. If you will be permanently or temporarily moving to a new address, please notify GRHS before your change occurs. Let us know your new address and the date you plan to leave and plan to return. Email to grhs.local@gmail.com, or mail to Grand Rapids Historical Society, c/o Grand Rapids Public Library, 111 Library Street NE, Grand Rapids, MI 49503 2
GRAND RAPIDS HISTORICAL SOCIETY Continued from front page Mrs. Blumrich took in all the Bohemians when they first arrived in Grand Rapids, until they got settled with a place to live and a job, often at a business owned by a relative. Uncle Fred never made it to Kratzau, although he did see his paternal homeland while serving in the First World War. But he knew a lot about the place and the people, since he was a regular and welcome visitor in the homes of German-speaking Bohemians who called West Michigan their new home. On that Thanksgiving Day, Uncle Fred shared photos and postcards from Kratzau, gave my Mom a primitive painting of a Kratzau street scene, and showed me the furniture his grandfather, Josef Riemer, built. I didn’t know it at the time, but Fred was passing the baton of family history onto me. Mom, her sister, Barbara Shears, and Uncle Fred always made it a fun family outing to place flowers on family graves on Decoration Day where each family member was remembered with stories. Mom recalled planting bushes in early 1930, next to her great-grandparents’ gravestones on the steep “Kratzau Hill” of Greenwood Cemetery along Bristol Avenue. Those same bushes help present-day Memorial Day visitors find their burial plot more easily. For decades, the family has also tended the grave of Marie Zech, a Bohemian woman without any family in the area, because “we Bohemians have to stick together.” A few years ago, the Chrastava Historical Society Figure 3 A. Jonas painting of Kratzau residence and carriage approached the Grand Rapids Historical Commission with a request for information about families from their region who had moved to Michigan; I provided text and photos about some of the better-known. Over the next few GRHS Newsletters, I will share the histories of some of those families who were links in a huge chain immigration. There will be names you recognize from Grand Rapids history – maybe even your own family name. Andersch Ansorge Appelt Arnold Blumrich Breuer Betz Elger (Alger) Elstner Friedrich Froebel Gies Glauz
Greilick (Greulich) Hanisch Herkner Hockeborn Jantsch Kern Kiel Lautner Leitelt Lichtner Mierlenbrink Neumann Pettersch
Peuker Preibisch Riemer Richter Schindler Schinkmann Schitky Scholz Schwertner Schwindt Seidel Siebeneicher Siegel
Sitte Simon Sommer Stoelzer Tandler Thiel Urich Vielkind Werner Worfel Worm Zech
Continued from page 2 I also make masks. The kind they are telling us we should wear in public. I am a quilter and quilters are known for having a stash of material, scraps really. So, I have been using up those scraps and giving masks to people I know. How are you getting through this difficult time? Consider writing it down. Stories are being collected by different groups so they don’t get lost. So we can look back, as we do now with the programs sponsored by the Society. Although we have cancelled the May program we are looking forward to seeing you in the fall. Please keep well and stay safe. Happy trails to you, until we meet again (homage to one of those early TV shows). Grand River Times
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GRAND RAPIDS HISTORICAL SOCIETY
Local History and the Expressway: The Case of I-196 and US-131 By: Matthew Daley, Associate Professor of History, Grand Valley State University GRHS Board of Trustees Member “We at Union believe our school is a place of learning, but it is an important part of our lives…we would like to show the many faces of our school. To us Union is…One whole tree, a foot of grass. A super highway overpass.” Union High School Aurora, 1964. The role of the interstate highway system for transportation of individuals and goods throughout the United States is critical regardless of how one feels about it. At the heart of Grand Rapids on the banks of the Grand River is the tangled junction of US-131 and I-196, the Gerald R. Ford Expressway. These ribbons of concrete extend through a valley cut in the bluffs along the east side of the river, rides along a viaduct through valley, features an S-curve on downtown’s south side, and then proceeds north along the river. For my students at GVSU, its presence is simply a given, a transportation conduit that speeds them between campuses. How the highway came to follow a certain path, the decisions made for implementation, or the impact on surrounding areas do not immediately occur. During the Fall 2019 semester, I had the opportunity to restart a course, Local and Community History, at Grand Valley State University. Though I had taught it a number of times, changes in the curriculum had sidelined the class. Instead of having students do individual papers it was my objective to have the class work on a single class project with multiple components. They would still have a specific individual piece, but then had to integrate their work into the larger project. I selected the expressways after reading about the Lansing Historical Society’s efforts to document the impact of I-496 on the African-American community along that expressway’s path during the 1960s. Along with local history, my research focuses on cities and I was curious as to the impact of the expressways on Grand Rapids’ physical landscape, communities, and public policy choices. These three areas formed the initial prompt for the student project. The class of eleven students met on Tuesday evening and featured a range of traditional-age students and returning adults. The formal classroom section featured readings and discussion on local history theory, expressways, and planning for the semester project and students would address the sections. A final part of the course had students not simply write another term paper, but to work with a web-based program, Omeka, to create a digital collection to describe and display their research. Though often portrayed as being “digital-natives,” many students have limited experience with creating sophisticated content for the web despite its increasing importance. This different method pushed students to rethink how they would approach storytelling and how to select images to best convey the findings of their research. Students focused on four specific areas: the area around St. Isidore Catholic Church, the Grand River waterfront to College Avenue between Michigan and Hastings Streets, the area surrounding Union Station, and near the former Union High School on the West Side. A final group examined the decision making by local and state leaders regarding the funding, route, and impacts of the expressways from the late 1940s to the mid-1960s. The class conducted research as a group at the Grand Rapids Public Library’s Grand Rapids History & Special Collections and had the chance to use the vast collections housed there, including newly donated newspaper holdings from Dr. Carl Bajema that proved invaluable. At the Grand Rapids City Archives students examined maps and planning documents along with images of construction and neighborhoods.
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GRAND RAPIDS HISTORICAL SOCIETY
Share your story with the Grand Rapids Public Library The Grand Rapids Public Library is asking West Michigan residents to share their personal COVID-19 stories. These stories will be preserved in the library’s archival collections to be used by future researchers to understand the local impact of the pandemic. Stories can be submitted at www.grpl.org/covid-19-stories/ The COVID-19 pandemic is something that most people have not experienced in their lifetime. While there are many news reports, the library would like to capture personal stories about what is happening in our community to help create a shared memory of this time. Submitted stories will become a part of the Grand Rapids Public Library's permanent archival collections and will give scholars, historians and medical researchers a record to study in the future. Anyone is welcome to participate by simply filling out the form on the website. Most of the questions are optional, and people can answer what they are comfortable with. Participants can also share images, audio or video. “We usually think of our history as something in the past, but right now it’s clear that we’re living through a historic moment,” remarked Julie Tabberer, GRHSC manager. “Sharing our own stories can help us process some of the rapidly changing emotions we’re feeling. Hearing about other people’s experiences is powerful. I hope it builds empathy in our community and encourages us to provide real, tangible support to our neighbors.” To learn more about the project, visit www.grpl.org/covid-19-stories or contact the library at stories@grpl.org or 616-988-5492.
Continued from page 4 Students were surprised at the scale of the physical changes, the large role that local public officials had in the planning of the system, and the links to both the Riverfront Development Plan and downtown urban renewal. While to those of us deeply interested in local history may find their responses amusing, the majority of students noted that they had studied history in far-flung areas not something so close to them. Perhaps the most frustrating experience many students had was in crafting their answer to the initial prompt since history has often been presented as a “fixed” concept with defined boundaries. This time, they had to set the boundaries, shape the narrative, and find the evidence for analysis to provide for their narrative. Working through the uncertainty of the project was both daunting to students and yet very motivating as well. As most of the class walked with me from the GVSU DeVos campus to the library and back, the class called this “second class” and frequently featured energetic discussions. The construction of the expressways through Grand Rapids in the early 1960s came at a very different point regarding public engagement with infrastructure projects. The class observed that unlike the protests surrounding the Embarcadero Expressway in San Francisco and the proposed Vieux Carré Riverfront Expressway in New Orleans, the construction of expressways in Grand Rapids generated comparatively little controversy. The image and observation from the students at Union High School left a mark on the class, particularly as they learned that the school remained open even after the expressway’s opening. From this image the students grew only more curious regarding the impact of the expressway and its impact on the city. The expressway project will continue forward each time this class is offered. The most frustrating component students found was that they had only fifteen weeks to address the subject, and they identified even more topics for their successors to engage. The storytelling opportunities afforded a digital platform also proved a successful outcome and it will hopefully be publicly available within the coming months. This project could not have been possible without the staff of the Grand Rapids History & Special Collections at the Grand Rapids Public Library, the Grand Rapids City Archives, GVSU’s University Archives at Seidman House, and the Grand Rapids Historical Commission’s historygrandrapids.org. Grand River Times
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GRAND RAPIDS HISTORICAL SOCIETY Here’s a look at a few articles that made it to The Grand Rapids Herald over a century ago. Issues spanning the dates 1894-1916 of The Herald can be viewed online through the GRPL website. By: Jeff Sytsma—GRHS Trustee April 19, 1911 CITY NEWS IN BRIEF Now at Asylum “Mrs. Sarah Hagle, who recently attempted to end her life in the Detention hospital by holding her nose, has been taken to the asylum at Kalamazoo. She gave considerable trouble on the trip.” WATCHED BY PUPILS: Fire Destroyed Upper Part of Alba Holmes’ Residence “Fire originating presumable from spontaneous combustion among a lot of clothes and paper in the attic, destroyed the roof of Alba Holmes residence, 574 Wealthy Ave yesterday afternoon, caused a loss of about $2,000 and furnished a decided treat to about 250 school children from Wealthy avenue school….” CORNER “COPS” FORBIDDEN TO TALK As several of the crossing policemen better known as the “traffic squad” have complained to him of having too much of their time taken up by “visitors,” Commissioner Jackson wishes attention called to the fact that the regulations controlling the officers prohibits them indulging in “gossip” during their tour of duty. And here’s one paragraph describing the scene of a local crime. This shocking crime will be looked at in detail this Fall by at a Society program give by local historian Julie Rathsack! Continued from April 2020 Newsletter, President’s Column—Preusser Jewelers The new partners wished to maintain the store’s long tradition by retaining the Preusser name, but there was some question as to the family’s wishes. Albert Preusser’s daughter, Mrs. Annie Hodenpyle, wrote to Henry Merkle, reassuring him that she had no objection to continuing the business under the Preusser name, adding that “Father was always very fond of you”. Preusser Jewelers remained at the Sheldon Street address for eighteen years. During that time, Fred Merkle, who began at Preusser’s as a clerk hired by his father Henry, was accepted as a partner, and Fred Geller and William Frey withdrew. When the senior Merkle died in 1948, his son Fred became sole proprietor. In 1952, the business was moved to its present site at 16 Monroe NE., opposite Monument Park. Today the business is managed by Marian Merkle Ter Keurst. Mrs. Ter Keurst became associated with Preusser’s in 1946 when joined her husband Fred Merkle in the store’s operation. She took over as the buyer in the mid-1950s and became a full partner in 1959. Widowed twelve years later, she has been the store’s sole manager and proprietor since 1971. Mrs. Ter Keurst feels that Preusser’s has changed little in the three decades she has been associated with the business. The store continues to carry well-made jewelry for a clientele that “tends to be older and conservative in its jewelry tastes”. Thomas McGuire wrote that originally Preusser’s sold “only Swiss watches, the old-fashioned kind that your great-grandfather used to carry – key wind and key set – great silver watches as big as apples with a tick that could be plainly heard, but reliable as timekeepers.” Those customers from more than a century ago would not be uncomfortable with the quality of merchandise available today. Preusser Jewelers has grown along with Grand Rapids, and today represents an important part of the city’s history and tradition. Its present owner, Marian Merkle Ter Keurst, the only woman member of the Downtown Development Committee of Downtown Inc., is active in the growing effort to revitalize the downtown area as the commercial hub of the region. As a strong advocate of the downtown redevelopment plans, she has her eye fixed firmly on the future of her business and her community’s future as well. 2020 update – Preusser Jewelers is located at the corner of Pearl and Ottawa in the historic Ledyard Building. Grand River Times
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GRAND RAPIDS HISTORICAL SOCIETY JOIN THE GRAND RAPIDS HISTORICAL SOCIETY OR GIVE A MEMBERSHIP AS A GIFT The Grand Rapids Historical Society sponsors eight lectures each year.
Members of the society enjoy these benefits:
The Grand River Times is the newsletter of the Grand Rapids Historical Society. Published and mailed to members eight times a year, it includes current items of historical interest, details of upcoming lectures, historically relevant activities, and short articles.
20% Discount on all books and other items published by the society.
Please enroll me as a member of the Grand Rapids Historical Society: ____ New ___Renewal ____Gift _____Lifetime:
$400.00 one-time fee
_____Individual/Family Membership
$30.00 per year
_____Senior Citizen or Student
$20.00 per year
Name: Address: City/State/Zip: Email:
Please make check payable to the Grand Rapids Historical Society and mail it with this form to: Grand Rapids Historical Society, c/o Grand Rapids Public Library 111 Library Street NE, Grand Rapids, MI 49503
GRAND RAPIDS HISTORICAL SOCIETY PHOTO SLEUTH Our May Photo Sleuth selection comes from the Robinson Photo Studio Collection. A group of ten women in March of 1943 pose and in the item description it says that they are an “award group”. If anyone in this picture looks familiar, please email the Grand Rapids Historical Society at grhs.local@gmail.com Grand River Times
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Non-Profit Org. U.S. postage PAID Grand Rapids, MI Permit No. 234
Grand Rapids Historical Society, Inc. c/o Grand Rapids Public Library 111 Library St. NE Grand Rapids, MI 49503
GRAND RAPIDS HISTORICAL SOCIETY INSIDE THIS ISSUE Cover Story: Little Bohemia Letter from our President page 2 Local History and the Expressway page 4
Share Your COVID-19 Story page 5 Grand Rapids Herald Headlines page 6 Preusser Jewelers page 6 Photo Sleuth page 7
For more information on Historical Society programs, please visit www.grhistory.org Grand River Times
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