Granite City Newspaper Articles
POST OFFICE ESTABLISHED
Source: Alton Telegraph, October 31, 1838
We learn that a post office has been lately established in the
precinct of Six Mile, in this county, and placed under the charge of
J. Squire, Esq. as Postmaster. This will be of great utility to the
people of that settlement, who have long been subjected to much
inconvenience from the deficiency of mail facilities.
PRIZE FIGHT ON CHOUTEAU ISLAND
Source: Alton Telegraph, November 14, 1873
Jack Looney of St. Louis was indicted for participating in the late
prize fight on Chouteau Island, between Allen and McCoole. Looney
appeared before the circuit court on November 5 at Edwardsville, for
trial. Through the influence of his lawyers, the trial was postponed
until next term of court. After giving bail in the sum of $2,500 for
his appearance at that time, he was released. The design is to
procure the arrest of all the other prize fighters indicted, and try
them all together at the next term of court, which convenes in March
1874.
FREDERICK G. NIEDRINGHAUS CLOSES LAND DEAL
Source: Alton Telegraph, January 29, 1891
The immense land deal mentioned as about to be closed to Mr. F. G.
Niedringhaus was formally closed yesterday morning, the terms
accepted and the deeds are now being made. The deal is even larger
than at first supposed, as farms of Mrs. Deterding, Mrs. Allers,
Jacob Wachter, William Huddleston, and Happy and Travoss are also
included. The whole tract, which is situated near the new town of
Madison, Illinois, includes over 1,300 acres, and the prices range
from $175 to $400 per acre. The tract of Fred Kohl was purchased for
$80,000. The entire tract was purchased a few years ago by Mr. Kohl
for $10,000. All the other property could have been purchased three
years ago at less than $100 an acre. It is claimed also that Brown’s
estate of 53 acres, which was sold at auction two weeks ago for
$397.50 per acre, is also included in the deal. Just what Mr.
Niedringhaus will do with all this land is not known, as his factory
will only take up a part of it. The establishment of a stockyards on
a large scale is rumored to be one of the prospective improvements.
GRANITE CITY CHRISTENED
Source: Alton Telegraph, September 17, 1891
Granite City is the name to be given the location of the
Niedringhaus manufacturing plant adjoining the town of Madison. The
great manufacturer, it is said, proposes to build a city at that
point, the nucleus of which is to be his granite and tin plate
factories. He has purchased hundreds of acres of land in that
vicinity, at high prices, and within the next ten years there will
arise in that location a city of large dimensions.
NOTES:
Granite City, founded by brothers William F. and Frederick G.
Niedringhaus of St. Louis, was incorporated in 1896 with a
mayor–council form of government. The brothers immigrated to St.
Louis around 1858, after having trained under their father,
Frederick Sr., a tinner and glazier. In 1857 they opened their own
tinware shop, where they made and sold pots and pans for the
household. When they began using a machine that stamped out tinware
from a single sheet of tin, their business grew rapidly. In 1866, it
was incorporated as the St. Louis Stamping Company. They developed
and patented their famous granite ironware, by inventing a process
in which a sheet-iron body was coated in highly vitrified glass,
blocking cooking oils and food acid that caused oxidation in iron.
The brothers sought a new site for the company’s operations, turning
their sights to the Six Mile Prairie in Madison County, Illinois.
No Niedringhaus family members ever served in the city government,
although they had a hand in the finances of everything from banks to
gas companies. The city hired Henry Fossiek as its first policeman.
The first brick building erected in Granite City was located at the
corner of 19th and State Streets. The building was home to the
Julius Rosenberg store, who was a former mayor of the city.
In 1894, the Bluff Line Railroad hauled stone to Granite City for
the erection of the new rolling mills and the new St. Louis Stamping
Company. The stone came from the quarries of J. T. Watson, located
in Hop Hollow, and the Job Quarry.
GRANITE CITY
Source: Alton Telegraph, June 01, 1893
About 2,500 excursionists visited Granite City, a few miles above
Madison, in this county, last Saturday, and everybody was
plentifully supplied with eatables and drinkables by the
proprietors, the Neidringhaus Bros. The grounds on which Granite
City is situated is high and dry, 14 feet higher than the
neighboring town of Madison, and 5 feet higher than the Mississippi
has ever risen. The highest rise which the river has ever reached in
historic times was 44 feet. During the flood of last year, which was
one of the worst, the water had a height of 36 feet. The area the
future city embraces for the present is 5,600 acres, of which 700
acres have already been laid out into streets. The main
thoroughfare, which is in superlative condition and has granitoid
sidewalks, runs from the railway station right through the middle of
the town, and bears the name of Niedringhaus Avenue.
In course of this week, the St. Louis Stamping Company will begin
building their new factory, which will be situated near the station,
and it is to be under roof by next Fall. Besides very soon the
“Galtra Steel Casting Work” will begin the erection of their new
plant and the building of the new O’Hara Steel Works is to be begun
very soon.
GRANITE CITY NEWS
Source: Alton Telegraph, July 26, 1894
The Bluff Line is now busy hauling stone to Granite City for the
erection of the new rolling mills and the new plant of the St. Louis
Stamping Company. The Hop Hollow quarries of J. T. Watson are busy
in getting out much of this stone, while the Job Quarry Company has
large quantities of rip rap and crushed stone orders, and Henry
Watson is equally as busy with his quarries. Business is booming
with the Bluff Line, and the pay car should begin to get here a
little oftener.
GRANITE CITY NEWS
Source: Alton Telegraph, December 6, 1894
The Granite City correspondent to the Venice Times says: “the St.
Louis and Alton Telephone Co. has been hauling and distributing
poles along our most prominent streets, promising in the near future
to spoil the looks of our town by the unsightly poles and wires.”
GRANITE CITY NEWS
Source: Alton Telegraph, February 20, 1896
By April 01, the St. Louis Stamping Company will have moved its
entire plant, except the rolling mill, from St. Louis to the new
town – Granite City – founded by the Niedringhaus Bros. Two thousand
men will then be employed in the stamping works and steel mill, and
as most of the employees will move from St. Louis to Granite City,
it will make a city of four or five thousand in population, and will
add considerably to the wealth and resources of Madison County.
2,500 EMPLOYEES ADDED TO CITY'S MANUFACTORIES
Source: Alton Evening Telegraph, May 02, 1900
The officers and directors of the National Enameling and Stamping
Company, whose general works are at Granite City, were the guests
yesterday of Mr. Frederick G. Niedringhaus, the president of the
great concern. The gentlemen met for the purpose of inspecting the
several plants at Granite City, including the addition to the big
rolling mill. During their trip over the town yesterday, the
gentlemen witnessed the starting up of the eight new rolling mills,
which are now a part of the company's plant. These mills, in
connection with the other portions of the plant, enable the company
to turn out the finished article of commerce from the raw material.
The latest addition to the mills will supply sheet steel and tin
plate for the factories of the company located at Granite City,
Milwaukee, Brooklyn, Baltimore, Md., and Bellaire, Ohio, and the
product will be worked into all kinds of tin and enameled ware. The
output will be 300 tons of thin sheets every twenty-four hours,
valued at present at $20,000. The addition consists of thirty-four,
thirty-ton basic steel furnaces and twenty-two finishing sheet
mills. The buildings are of steel and brick, and cover over five
acres, employing an additional 1,500 skilled men and 1,000 unskilled
laborers. The average pay of the skilled men will be over $5 per day
[Equal to $140.05 in 2014], and the unskilled $4.50 per day. This
great industry in our neighboring city, in this county, is the
direct result of the protection to American industries, fostered by
the administration of William McKinley. Twenty-four hundred men
added to the manufacturing industries of Granite City will add much
to the county's prosperity and population. It is a different
condition from that left by Grover Cleveland, the last free trade
Democratic administration. And it ought to be the last for fifty
years. Democracy and free trade are the enemies of prosperity and
manufacturing institutions.
GRANITE CITY LUTHERAN HOSPITAL DEDICATED
Witnessed by Thousands
Source: Troy Weekly Call, August 19, 1905
The dedication of the new Lutheran Hospital at Granite City last
Sunday [August 13, 1905] proved a gala day for Granite and a
memorable one for the German Evangelical Lutheran Church of that
city, as well as those throughout Southern Illinois, which
contributed largely to the founding of the institution. It is
estimated that an audience of about 10,000 persons were present on
the occasion, to witness the all-day exercises which marked the
dedication.
All the railroads entering the Tri-cities and East St. Louis offered
excursion rates for the event, and there was a great outpouring of
people from Southern Illinois in particular. Visitors were there
from East St. Louis, Mt. Olive, Venedy, Collinsville, Edwardsville,
Troy, Okawville, Carlyle, Covington, Mascoutah, Belleville,
Millstadt, Nashville, Hoffman, St. Louis, and other places. The
attendance from Troy on the occasion numbered about 150 persons.
A committee composed of the officers and directors of the
association met the excursion trains, and received and directed the
visitors. The committee was composed of Rev. A. H. Almstedt of
Granite City, Rev. W. Von Schenk and Thomas Deffner of Belleville,
Gerhardt Schneider of Nashville, Christian Busse of Troy, and E. G.
Gerding of Collinsville.
The opening services began at 9 o’clock in the morning on the lawn
in front of the hospital, and were conducted entirely in German. The
opening was a hymn by the congregation, accompanied by the Mt. Olive
Band. A fervent prayer was then offered by the Rev. Walter Von
Schenk of Belleville, followed by another hymn by the congregation.
Then ensued the solemn opening of the hospital in the name of the
Triune God, by the Rev. A. H. Almstedt of Granite City. Headed by
the band, the immense congregation afterwards proceeded to one of
the large buildings of the Niedringhaus Steel Works, where a
platform and seats had been provided, and the program was resumed by
opening with a hymn. The next was the reading of a scripture lesson
by the Rev. G. Schaaf of Mascoutah, followed by a sermon by the Rev.
Prof. Martin Luecke, former pastor of the Troy church, now president
of Concordia College at Ft. Wayne, Indiana. A selection by a
Belleville male choir was then rendered, and was followed by an
address by the Rev. Martin Daib of Troy. A Collinsville choir then
rendered a selection which was followed by the reading of the
history of the Granite City hospital by Thomas Deffner of
Belleville. Prayer and benediction closed the morning program, and
the audience was given an opportunity to inspect the new hospital.
Dinner was also announced, and this was served in a large tent near
the hospital, where nearly 2,000 persons partook of the bountiful
fest.
The afternoon program was entirely in English, and also took place
in the main building of the Niedringhaus Steel Works. The platform
was a specious affair, and seating capacity for more than 3,000 was
provided. On the platform were: Rev. Martin Luecke of Ft. Wayne,
Indiana; Rev. A. H. Almstedt of Granite City; Rev. Martin Sommers of
St. Louis; L. Reith of Carpenter; C. Abel of Mt. Olive; C. Purzner
of St. Louis; W. C. Steinmann of Venedy; W. A. Schermann of
Covington; M. Daib of Troy; F. Von Strohe of Collinsville; Emil Koch
of Okawville; J. Schoenleber of Carlyle; G. Schaaf of Mascoutah; H.
Markworth of Pleasant Ridge; W. Von Schenk of Belleville; H. W.
Lessmann of Okawville; Theo Lobrmann of Millstadt; J. C. Ambacher of
Nashville, the officers and directors of the hospital; Mayor Morgan
Le Masters and the city council of Granite City; the Mt. Olive Band;
the singing societies of Collinsville and Belleville; and prominent
ladies and business men of Granite City.
The program was opened with a hymn to the melody of “Allein Gott in
der Hoeh’ sel Her.” Then followed a scripture lesson by the Rev.
Theodore Lohrmann of Hofman. Selection by the choir of Zion’s Church
of Belleville. Hymn by the congregation. Sermon by the Rev. Martin
Sommers of St. Louis. Selection by the choir. Hymn by the
congregation to the melody of “O Gott, du frommer Gott.” Prayer by
the Rev. J. C. Ambacher of Nashville. Hymn by the congregation to
the melody of “Es ist das Heil.” The closing was in prayer,
repeating of Lord’s Prayer, and benediction.
Rev. Martin Sommers of St. Louis was the principal speaker in the
afternoon, and preached an excellent dedicatory sermon. Mayor Morgan
Le Matters thanked the officers and directors of the association,
and all those who had been instrumental in the erection of the
building, which, he said, was an ornament to the city and would be a
haven for many afflicted. Thanks were also especially extended to
Rev. Almstedt for the courage and energy he has displayed in
promoting the plans.
The Granite City Lutheran Hospital was built at a cost of about
$30,000 to the Hospital Association, but the actual cost is greatly
in excess of that figure, for the reason that the site and
furnishings for the building were donated by various persons and
institutions. The whole construction was made possible by the free
will offerings of the Lutheran congregations of Southern Illinois,
in particular. While conducted under Lutheran auspices, it will be
for the benefit of suffering humanity without regard to sect, color,
or creed.
At the beginning, the Messrs. Niedringhaus, through George
Niedringhaus, donated two lots valued at $2,000, at Twenty-First and
I Streets, as a site for the institution. The plans and
specifications for the building were submitted by Architect Theodore
C. Kistner of Granite City, and after these had been submitted to
the association and to head nurses and hospital physicians of note,
they were pronounced excellent and accepted. The construction work
on the building was commenced about the first of the year.
The building is a handsome, commodious, and well-appointed structure
of three stories. It has a frontage of 105 feet, with a depth at
center of 63 feet. The basement walls are of broken ashlar Grafton
stone, and the walls above are of brick, faced with buff and gray
speckled brick with trimmings of Carthage stone. The roof is of
slate, with red tile copings. The basement contains the kitchen,
dining room, pantries, lecture room, laundry, and heating apparatus
– the latter being the “fan system” of heating and ventilating,
which is automatically controlled. The first story contains a
reception room, superintendent’s office and private room, a large
ward, four private rooms, an apothecary, and a bedroom for nurses –
all of which are elaborately furnished. In the second story are one
large and one small ward, and seven private rooms. The third story
contains the operating room, sterilizing room, anesthetic room,
surgeon’s toilet and dressing room, laboratory, one large private
room and bedrooms for nurses. Bath and toilet rooms, serving rooms,
and linen closets are on each floor.
The building also has the service of an electric elevator, with push
button control, and an electric dumb waiter, both of which are
operated from the basement. In addition, it has a call bell system,
and a system of telephones with outside connection. Floors in the
basement are cemented and the halls and corridors above have
terrazzo floors. Wards and rooms have hardwood floors, and operating
rooms have skylights, tile floors, and glazed tile walls and
ceilings. Sterilizing rooms, anesthetic rooms, and all bath and
toilet rooms have tile floors and glazed tile and marble
wainscotings. In all, the hospital is one of the finest and most
complete to be found anywhere, and was pronounced such by thousands
of competent judges who inspected it last Sunday.
The officers of the Granite City hospital are: Rev. A. H. Almstedt
of Granite City, president; Rev. Walter Von Schenk of Belleville,
vice-president; Theodore Deffner of Belleville, secretary; and G. G.
Schneider of Nashville, treasurer. These, with E. G. Gerding of
Collinsville, and Christian Busse of Troy, also comprise the Board
of Directors. The head nurse is Miss Marla Brockmann, graduate of
the St. Louis Lutheran Hospital, and formerly superintendent of the
Military Hospital at San Francisco. Miss Maria Stahl of Mascoutah is
the assistant head nurse, and the other nurses are: Misses Brockmann
of Hofmann; Roffman of Worden; Hoffmann of Collinsville; and
Buhrmester of Troy.
By Tuesday, the hospital had nine patients, and a report received
from there Thursday stated the number had been increased to
fourteen.
NOTES:
The Lutheran Hospital in Granite City was located at 21st and Iowa
Streets (the hospital faced 21st Street until the late 1920s, when
it was remodeled and additions constructed so that the building
faced Madison Avenue). Construction began in 1904, and the hospital
was dedicated and formally opened on August 13, 1905. By March 31,
1911, the Evangelical Lutheran Hospital Association was bankrupt,
and the first meeting of its creditors was held at the city hall in
Granite City. The hospital closed April 29, 1911. In June 1911,
Father Peter Kaenders of Venice purchased the hospital for
$9,250.00. He had previously bought bonds of the hospital in the
amount of $23,200.00, and two judgments for the sum of $7,681.14.
Father Kaenders changed the name of the hospital to St. Elizabeth’s.
Today, the Gateway Regional Medical Center occupies the property.
BOY STRAYS TWO DAYS BLIND ON GABARET ISLAND
Source: Alton Evening Telegraph, July 03, 1909
His eyes destroyed by the accidental discharge of a shotgun, and
crazed with heat and thirst, Gregory Buginsky, 14 years old, of West
Granite City, Illinois, wandered about over an uninhabited island in
the Gabaret Slough for two days and nights. The lad was found
yesterday afternoon by a party of hunters. His arms were clasped to
a tree, and he was gnawing viciously at the bark. While the shot had
entered only one eye, the sight of the other had been ruined. His
face was covered with clotted blood and his blackened tongue was
hanging from his mouth when the hunters found him. He had been
bitten and tortured by mosquitoes and insects until nearly crazed.
While he was being carried to the boat, he fought fiercely,
muttering incoherently. His clothes were torn to shreds by the
brambles, and his body had been burned almost black by the sun. At
the Granite City Hospital last night, it was said that there was
little hope for his recovery. His eyesight is gone. Gregory sought
to get a number of his companions to go hunting with him Wednesday
afternoon. When they refused, he got his father's gun and rowed
alone to the island in the slough to hunt for snipe. At the
hospital, the boy was able to give a disconnected account of what
happened on Gabaret Island. "When I got in the middle of the
island," he said, "I got the trigger caught in the branch of a tree.
The gun went off. I fell to the ground. When I got up - I guess it
was a couple of hours afterwards - I couldn't see anything. The pain
in my head was awful, and I was so thirsty. I was afraid to move
because there is water all around the island and it is deep, I was
afraid I would fall in. But I got so thirsty after a while that I
couldn't stand it anymore, and my head began to hurt more and more
every minute. I got on my hands and knees and began crawling around,
looking for water. I must have crawled around in a circle, because I
did not get near the water. After crawling a long time, I found some
tule weeds and sucked them. The sun had dried them out, and they did
not help me much. After a while I got under a rock and it was a lot
cooler, but my head hurt me awfully and I was thirsty. I think I
went to sleep for a little while. When I woke up I was burning. My
head was hurting worse and I was so thirsty. I bit my arm to get
some blood to drink, but it hurt so much that I stopped." It is
thought the boy became crazed after this and did not know what he
was doing. When the first drop of water the hunters gave him touched
his lips, the lad laughed wildly. He fought with the men when they
took the cup from his lips. He was allowed to drink only a small
quantity of water at a time.
PRIEST BUYS THE GRANITE CITY LUTHERAN HOSPITAL
Source: Alton Evening Telegraph, August 11, 1911
From Granite City comes the information that the Granite City
Lutheran Hospital, which has been closed since April 29 on account
of financial troubles, was sold yesterday to Father P. Kaenders,
pastor of the Venice Catholic Church, for $55,000. It was announced
that the institution will be opened within a week as a hospital,
under the supervision of Father Kaenders and in charge of the
Sisters of Charity. The deal for the purchase of the institution was
in progress for four months. By the terms of the sale, the creditors
will receive about 10 cents on the dollar of the original
investment. The hospital was dedicated by the Lutheran church in
1905. According to the contract of sale, Father Kaenders will assume
the bonded indebtedness and accrued interest, which amounts to
$47,000, and in addition will pay $3,000 in cash. It is planned to
make the institution free. A bathhouse, chapel and sisters' home may
be erected as additions to the building.
SCHOOL GIRL WINS MUCH COURTED MAN - 3,000 WOMEN WANTED HIM
Source: Alton Telegraph, September 19, 1912
Granite City, Sept. 18 - Though for six years he had withstood the
courting of 3,000 women and had turned down approximately 1,000
proposals of marriage, the charms of a little school girl he met ten
years ago have proven too much for Clarence Lile, druggist of
Granite City and founder of its once famous Bachelor Club. The
little school girl is Miss Gertrude Alexander, daughter of J. C.
Alexander of Cape Girardeau, Missouri. Lile admits he "popped" the
question this time. The couple are to be married September 25 at the
bride's home. The ceremony will be performed by Rev. E. Holt of
Centenary M. E. Church of Cape Girardeau.
The bachelors' club, which Lile organized, and of which he was the
first president, threw the glove at the foot of unmarried womanhood
in the form of a matrimonial ball about seven years ago. Three
thousand women attended, coming, it is said, from all parts of the
country. St. Louis and the Tri-Cities sent the greatest
representation. Mistaking his intention in forming the bachelors'
club, old maids, grass widows, and real widows alike flocked about
Lile to congratulate him for conceiving the idea. Some became
profuse in expressing their thanks and admiration. Almost every
woman at the ball wanted to marry, or at least to dance with Lile.
After the ball was over and the husbandless women had returned to
their homes apprised of the real purpose of the bachelors' club, the
one-sided matrimonial correspondence between Lile and the women
began. The druggist received an average of one proposal a day for
three years. But the membership of the bachelor organization
remained intact until the spring of 1911. At that time, Lile,
without giving any reason, dropped out, and soon after the club
disbanded, several of the "boys" marrying.
With the announcement of the coming wedding, Lile last night
recounted a little personal history, which threw great light on his
sudden desertion of the ranks of the bachelors' club. When Lile had
just begun the study of pharmacy in 1902, he met a little
13-year-old schoolgirl, whom he called "Gertie." About the time he
organized the bachelor club, she departed to enter the normal school
at Neosho, Missouri. About eighteen months ago, the spring of 1911,
or the time of the disbanding of the bachelors' club, she was
graduated from the school.
After the ceremony the couple will spend their honeymoon in
Minnesota. They will return to Granite City to make their home there
about the middle of October.
[Note: Clarence Lile established a drugstore in Granite City in 1907
at 1901 Edison Avenue. In 1916 he moved his store to 1402
Niedringhaus Ave., and the last location for his store was 2101
Delmar Avenue.]
MYSTERY SHROUDS HEADLESS BODY FOUND ON ISLAND
Source: Alton Evening Telegraph, August 17, 1920
The inquest over the body of an unknown man found yesterday on
Chouteau Island near Granite City was held last night at Granite
City. The verdict of the jury was that death was due to "an unknown
cause, probably drowning." Dr. J. H. Wedig of Granite City, who was
foreman of the Coroner's jury, said the body is that of a man. The
body was in such a state that it was almost impossible to determine
if it were that of a man or woman. Dr. Wedig said it was very
difficult to tell without a post mortem. Examination of the body
showed that the left leg had at one time been fractured and was two
inches shorter than the right. This is believed to be the only means
of identification. The body was headless. Both hands and feet were
also missing. One of the legs had been severed at the knee. It is
not known if the head, hands and feet had been cut off, or if the
long stay in the water had caused them to fall off. The body was
nude. The fact that there were no clothes was the only ground for a
theory of murder. The body, it was believed, had been in the water
about three months, and if the body had been clothed when thrown
into the water, it is not believed the clothing would have
disappeared.
ROSENBERG DEPT. STORE, GRANITE CITY, GUTTED BY FIRE
First Brick Building Erected in Granite City
Source: Alton Evening Telegraph, February 18, 1921
A disastrous fire, originating in the basement of the Julius
Rosenberg store in Granite City this morning caused damage to the
extent of about $40,000 according to estimates made by the owner of
the store. The building is located at the corner of 19th and State
Streets, and was a landmark of the city, since it was the first
brick building to be erected in Granite City, and is said to be
worth about $75,000. Rosenberg was on the second floor taking stock
when the fire was discovered about 8:30 this morning. His only
escape down the stairway was cut off by flames, and his rescue was
effected through the efforts of Constable Nelson, who incidentally
weighs about 250 pounds and is six feet four inches tall. Nelson
took Rosenberg from a window on the second floor by means of a
ladder. Mr. Rosenberg is a former mayor of Granite City, and has
been operating a store there for some time. In the basement where
the fire originated, considerable china was stored in excelsior, and
this is considered responsible for the destructive flames. The loss
is said to be covered by insurance.
NOTES:
The Rosenberg Department Store in Granite City was established by
Julius Rosenberg in 1894. It was located at 1846-1850 State Street
(State and 19th Streets). Rosenberg and his wife, Matilda Goldberg
Rosenberg, moved to Granite City shortly before its incorporation in
1896. There were fewer than 1,000 inhabitants at the time. He
erected the first three-story brick building in Granite City, and
operated a grocery and dry goods store there. He later became the
third Mayor of Granite City, and headed the building of sidewalks
and sewers, and the installation of electricity and telephones. He
served two terms, but was defeated in the 1903 election by John B.
Judd, who ran on the Labor ticket.
In January 1916, Rosenberg was found guilty of failing to keep a
register of the daily working hours of women employees. He was fined
$1.00. In 1918, Julius Rosenberg turned his business over to his
son, William. He moved to Clifton Terrace near Alton, purchasing the
former Meston poultry farm overlooking the Mississippi.
On February 18, 1921, a disastrous fire originated in the basement
of the Rosenberg store in Granite City. Julius Rosenberg was on the
second floor taking inventory when the fire broke out, and his only
escape was cut off by flames. He was rescued by Constable Nelson,
who put a ladder to a second-floor window. Damage was estimated to
be approximately $40,000. The building was repaired and the business
reopened.
In April 1928, a fire destroyed the home of Julius Rosenberg in
Clifton Terrace. The home was located on the highest point in
Clifton Terrace, and commanded a view of seven counties. Mrs.
Rosenberg was alone in the house at the time of the fire, and Mr.
Rosenberg hurried to the house when he saw the smoke. The stone home
with frame additions was built by George Newton, who had purchased
the land from the government in 1836. In 1865, it became the
property of Louis Allen, then Louis Stiritz purchased the property.
Stiritz sold it to C. R. Meston, who established a poultry business
there. He named his farm the Kilbagie Chicken Farm. It was not
financially profitable, and he sold the farm to Rosenberg. After the
fire, the Rosenbergs moved to a cottage they owned in the valley at
Clifton Terrace, named “Peter Pan.” Rosenberg also owned a farm at
Belltrees.
Sometime before 1928, a Rosenberg store opened in Edwardsville at
114 Main Street, opposite the courthouse. The Edwardsville store
closed in July 1930, due to the small size of the store, and the
fact that no further space was available to expand. The store in
Granite City closed in 1935, and Leader Department Store took over
after making modifications to the building.
Matilda Rosenberg died in October 1947, and Julius Rosenberg died in
June 1955, both at Clifton Terrace in Madison County. Surviving were
five children: Mrs. Helen Neiderberg, William Rosenberg, Mrs. Leonie
Frankel, Herbert B. Rosenberg, and Perle Rosenberg. Burial was in
the Mt. Olive Cemetery, St. Louis County, Missouri.