Moritz von Dobschütz
Moritz Julius von Dobschütz , called himself in the USA only Moritz J. Dobschutz (born March 20, 1831 in Rheine , Westphalia , Germany, † June 24, 1913 in Belleville , St. Clair County , Illinois ) was a businessman and entrepreneur who Emigrated from Germany to the USA in 1856, where he achieved prosperity and reputation. The house he built in 1866 is now the Victorian Home Museum and the seat of the St. Clair County Historical Society .
family
Dobschütz came from an old Silesian noble family and was the son of the royal Prussian lieutenant colonel August von Dobschütz from Brieg ( Lower Silesia ), a privateer in Rheine since at least 1829 , and the goldsmith's daughter Elisabetha (Lisette) Jörden from Rheine.
He married in 1858 in Sioux City , Iowa , Nicey Ann Moore (born June 3, 1836 in Pitt County , North Carolina , † June 1, 1869 in Belleville, Illinois). There were six children from this marriage.
In his second marriage, Dobschütz married on July 15, 1869 in St. Louis , Missouri , Elisa (Louisa) Zimlich (born July 28, 1848 in Baltimore , Maryland , † November 27, 1940 in St. Louis), the daughter of German immigrants from Hesse -Darmstadt . There were nine children from this marriage.
His grandfather was the royal Prussian major general Carl Moritz Wenzel von Dobschütz (1726–1807) in Oels (Lower Silesia).
Life
Dobschütz completed a business apprenticeship in Rheine and was mentioned as a merchant there as a merchant at the age of 18 (1849) until he emigrated (1856). For an unknown reason, Dobschütz left his home in March 1856 and reached the port of New York in April 1856. From there he immediately moved on to Sioux City in northwestern Iowa.
Moritz must have met his future (first) wife Nicey Ann Moore there very soon . Immediately after the wedding (1858), the couple moved to St. Louis for a short time, but then moved on to Belleville in St. Clair County in southwest Illinois that same year. In Belleville at the latest, he simplified his family name and was only called Moritz J. Dobschutz .
After his arrival in this German-ruled city, Dobschutz initially found a job as a worker and gardener, then worked for Messrs. Brosius & Geiss , a foundry and manufacturer of agricultural machinery and equipment, and lived in very modest circumstances. After three years (from 1862) he worked as a freelance accountant for several companies and also took care of their financial affairs. Soon he opened the first agency of its kind in Belleville as a money broker . He later expanded his field of work to include real estate brokerage . Thanks to his good business connections to industry and trade and his personal integrity, he quickly built up a prosperous business, which earned him a high reputation and respect in Belleville's public.
In 1870, at the age of almost 40 and after only twelve years in Belleville, Dobschutz was a successful businessman and large landowner of 1,200 hectares .
In an eulogy in History of St. Clair County from 1881, which describes Dobschutz's career, concludes (translated from English):
- “In his life he was much too busy to deal with this idea <to take on a political office> or even to exert political influence. He never asked for an office, nor would he allow his name to be used in that context. When he goes to the polls, he always votes for the Republicans . With all his fellow men, Mr. Dobschutz has the reputation of an honorable, upright citizen and trustworthy man. In all of his business relationships, his integrity has been tainted by personal dishonor and shame. "
Three months after the marriage of his daughter Martha to Frank Kreitner of German origin , Dobschutz and his son-in-law founded the " Belleville Clay Mining and Washing and Pottery Co. " in 1882 with a share capital of US $ 50,000, although he alone should have guaranteed the financing ( Source: Belleville Weekly Advokat ).
In 1866 he and his family built a stately home for himself and his family in the center of Belleville as a sign of his prosperity, which can now be viewed as the Victorian Home Museum and is also the seat of the St. Clair County Historical Society (address: 701 East Washington Street ). He ran his agency in his own office building on East Main Street , where his second wife Louisa , whom he married so quickly in 1869 just 6 weeks after the death of his first wife, probably for childcare reasons, also ran her business as a freelance fashion designer . Dobschutz spent his old age as a respected businessman in his new home (address: 101 South Church Street ), which had to give way to a parking lot in the 1990s.
Dobschutz died on June 24, 1913 in Belleville at the age of 82 and was buried in Walnut Hill Cemetery , where Theodor Engelmann (1808-1889), lawyer and editor of the German " Belleville Zeitung ", and Gustav Körner (1809-1896 ), the former Lieutenant Governor of Illinois, have their graves.
Memberships
- Knight of Honor of the Brotherhood " Ancient Order of United Workmen " in Belleville.
literature
- Sigismund von Dobschütz: The rich uncle in America: Moritz Julius von Dobschütz - a Silesian from Westphalia in Belleville, Illinois , in: Ostdeutsche Familienkunde 53 (2005), pp. 283-304.
- History of St. Clair County, Illinois - Prepared for the County Centennial Celebration of American Independence, July 4th, 1876 . Page 228, Advocate Steam Printing House, Belleville 1881.
Web links
- More information about Belleville
- Homepage Victorian Home Museum
See also
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Dobschütz, Moritz von |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Dobschutz, Moritz J. |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | German businessman and entrepreneur in Belleville (Illinois, USA) |
| DATE OF BIRTH | March 20, 1831 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Rheine , Westphalia |
| DATE OF DEATH | June 24, 1913 |
| Place of death | Belleville , Illinois |
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