Johann and Elizabeth -- Immigration

I've been working to uncover as close as possible when Fred's parents moved to America. There are a few different documents to consult here. The first place considered was the naturalization records, which typically spell out the Date and port of arrival in the U.S. Johann's records show this occurred on April 11, 1871. However, whomever took these records was not the most thorough. His address is just listed as "Jamaica Plain" and the Date and port of arrival is listed as empty.

The 1900 US Census has a convenient Citizenship section, which includes an input for "Year of Immigration to the United States," followed by "Number of Years in the United States." There are inputs for Fred and Elizabeth in the census, both for the year 1852, and thus calculating against the 1900 date of the census, they'd spent 48 years in the United States.

This sets us pretty well in the year 1852, but I wondered if I could get any more specific. Prior to migration, Johann and Elizabeth had given birth to some children, and consulting their records (particular Jean Kohlhepp, who was born, baptized, and died in 1852) we can get a closer date.

Ancestry's collection of "Hesse, Germany, Lutheran Baptisms, Marriages, and Burials, 1661-1957" has 3 entries for Jean Kohlhepp born to a Johann Friedrich Kohlhepp and a Maria Elisabetha Benedicta Wetzler:

(a) General record of birth, baptism, death

Name: Jean Kohlhepp

Gender: Male
Birth Date: 11 Mrz 1852 (11 Mar 1852)
Baptism Date: 21 Mrz 1852 (21 Mar 1852)
Baptism Place: Evangelisch,Grossenlinden,Oberhessen,Hesse-Darmstadt
Death Date: 17 Jul 1852
Father: Johann Friedrich Kohlhepp
Mother: Maria Elisabetha Benedicta Wetzler
FHL Film Number: 269706

(b) Baptismal record

Name: Jean Kohlhepp

Gender: männlich (Male)
Event Type: Taufe (Baptism)
Birth Date: 11 Mrz 1852 (11 Mar 1852)
Baptism Date: 21 Mrz 1852 (21 Mar 1852)
Baptism Place: Hessen, Hessen (Hesse), Deutschland (Germany)
Father: Friedrich Kohlhepp
Mother: Maria Elisabetha Cramer [NOTE: Name from prior marriage]
Author: Evangelische Kirche Großen Linden (Kr. Gießen)
City or District: Großen Linden
Parish as it Appears: Großenlinden
Page Number: 16;17

(c) Burial record

Name: Jean Kohlhepp

Death Age: 4/12
Event Type: Beerdigung (Burial)
Birth Date: abt 1852
Death Date: 17 Jul 1852
Burial Date: 20 Jul 1852
Burial Place: Hessen, Hessen (Hesse), Deutschland (Germany)
Father: Johann Friedrich Kohlhepp
Mother: Maria Elisabetha Kohlhepp
Author: Evangelische Kirche Großen Linden (Kr. Gießen)
City or District: Großen Linden
Parish as it Appears: Großenlinden
Page Number: 12;13

Based on these records (I do not have the originals, it is a text only record database), they would have not left prior to Jean's burial in Grossenlinden on July 20, 1852. So the immigration occurred in the latter half of 1852. These records also cast further doubt on the Jewish heritage question; one could argue that one parent just accommodated the other in religious matters, but at the moment all we have is evidence of is a Lutheran background.

While this might seem to lock us into the 1852 date, there is some ambiguity in the records. The 1910 federal census, after Elizabeth passed away, still contains similar Citizenship information, and for Johann, this time it lists the year as 1856. Which is correct?

I'll need to find the specific records whether birth or marriage records documenting Amelia's birthplace, but the generic online records have her born in 1855 in Massachusetts, which would mean that Johann and Elizabeth migrated earlier.

Johann, Anna, Eda - Palm Leaf Workers (1865)

The 1865 Massachusetts state census makes mention of Fred's family, and interestingly enough, does not describe Johann Friedrich as a dyer. Instead, it lists him as a "Palm Leaf Worker." This is not a common term used today, so I was curious what this meant. A Compendium of the Census of Massachusetts: 1875 extrapolates that a palm leaf worker is involved with the production of hats. It lists, "hat maker, hat finisher, hat presser, hat packer, hat stamper." Palm leaf was used for other products as well (i.e. floor mats, tea mats).

Dyer and Dye House Worker were noted as occupations, with dyeing broken away into industries under "bleaching and dyeing" and Dyestuffs. So what Johann was doing at this time was not dyeing (dyeing did not fit in the palm leaf category). The Compendium makes a few other interesting notes on palm leaf production. It notes that in 1875, the average value of a palm leaf hat was $2.32 and of a palm leaf tea mat $0.19 respectively. 33,180 dozen palm leaf hats were made, and 7,000 dozen sets of palm leaf tea mats. As an industry, palm lead work rolled up under "Straw and palm-leaf goods," for $5.9 million. An interesting comparison is made of this industry from 1845 - 1875 (each column representing 1845, 1855, 1865, and 1875, respectively):

We can see that the number of establishments making straw/palm leaf goods more than doubled between 1855 and 1865, but then dropped 75% between 1865 and 1875. Interestingly, the number of employees dropped slightly between 1855 and 1865 (we might have expected an increase along the lines of the number of establishments made), but plummets to 5,004 in 1875. The value of goods made, however, increases over $1M in 1875. What can explain this shift? To speculate on the data, one might predict that there was greater entrepreneurialism in 1865, and then consolidation of businesses in 1875. There appears to be a reduction in force, but that stat can be quite deceptive. The Compendium notes later that "To the number of persons employed on Straw and Palm-leaf Goods, should be added 14,762 women furnished with work at their homes; the number in the table includes those only who work in the factory." Given only 5,004 were listed as employed in the factory, this entails that roughly 75% of the work force for the industry were women, who worked at home. It also breaks down the women furnished with work at home statistic between Palm-life goods (790 women) and straw goods (13,972). Another 1,000 were involved in "palm leaf splitting."

This likely included Johann's family. The 1865 census notes next to his step daughter, Anna Kramer (18), and his daughter, Eda (16), that they too worked as palm leaf workers (notice the '' in the occupation field, referencing the most recent written entry), so multiple members of the family were involved in doing this work, and would have been part of the statistic. The 1875 Compendium does not let us know how many women were working in 1865 in palm-life goods, but expecting it to be smaller in number than 1875, Eda and Anna would have been among ~750-1750 (grouping palm leaf goods and splitting together) women in Massachusetts doing this work from their home in 1865. There may have been a general transition from work at the factory to work at the home.

Fred was 3 at the time, and his autobiography makes no reference to this trade engaged upon by his family.

UPDATE [1/15]: This data is interesting, as it makes one wonder why Johann transitioned [temporarily] from being a dyer by trade to acting as a palm leaf worker. The 1860 census, when the Kohlhepps were still in Rhode Island, lists Johann as a dyer there, so it is not something he transitioned to following doing Palm Leaf work.

1860 was prior to the American Civil War, and 1865 at the tail end. Perhaps dyeing business was not as good then? Family lore describes that Johann dyed uniforms for the Union soldiers in the American Civil War, but if he was primarily a palm leaf worker in 1865, it does make me question that somewhat. But he could have done it prior to 1865 at an earlier part of the war, or done these jobs simultaneously. Johann had also moved the family over to Boston, at least by 1862, and perhaps had not yet found work as a dyer there?

After 1865, Johann did go back to the dye business. I'm looking for the earliest account of it past 1865. What I've found thus far is that in May 18, 1869 issue of the Boston Transcript there was an ad for his Dye House in Jamaica Plain (which repeated in later issues). He transitioned quite quickly back to running his own dye shop in the short span of 4 years. It's interesting to see the recommendation from a doctor, William P. Wesselhoeft, on the effectiveness of his work:

"F. Kohlhepp. Jamaica Plain Dye House. For washing, steaming, bleaching and purifying woollen blankets. I can recommend Mr. K.'s process of cleansing old woollen blankets. Besides making them look as good as new, this process destroys all contagion after diseases." The latter statement, I presume, was to reference removal of infectious diseases such as tuberculosis.

If I find any earlier references, I'll modify this post.

NOTE: It's unfortunate that no other state census survived in MA than the 1865 and 1875, but this document is still a treat for disclosing this.

Daniel Bertoch - Railroad Incident

I have already documented different accounts of the eye incident Fred received while working on the railroad, which Eda claimed included a back injury. I've wanted to investigate the incident more fully somehow, and the frequency and common types of railroad injuries.

Interestingly enough, I found an article where another family member was injured. This was Daniel Bertoch, Fred's son-in-law, who had married (and later divorced) his eldest daughter Marie. The marriage had only occurred 1.5 months prior, and no doubt Daniel being immediately out of work would have caused a strain on the relationship. The injury here appears to have been less devastating than Fred's, but I am sure was quite difficult. I do not know much about the wheel press, and how Daniel would have had to handle the wheels.

Document Type: Newspaper Article
Written by: Newspaper editor?
Written on: June 14, 1905
Periodical: Deseret Evening News
Originals: Yes
In Possession by: Multiple Venues

Content:

Pocatello, Idaho.

Injured in Car Shops.

Daniel H. Bertoch Has a Leg Broken by Falling Wheel

Special Correspondence.

Pocatello, Ida., June 22.--Daniel H. Bertoch, 37 years of age, an employe[e] of the Oregon Short Line shops here, was seriously injured this afternoon about 3:30 o'clock. He was engaged in rolling a car wheel away from the wheel press, a new work for him, when the wheel fell on him, breaking one leg. He was given medical attention at once.

Mr. Bertock was born in Salt Lake City, but came here from Magrath, Canada, last winter, and recently married Miss Marie Kohlhepp of this city.

Letter to Wilford Woodruff -- Settlement in Utah

In July 1893, Fred was struggling to determine a proper home for his family. There were other LDS men in this situation in Pocatello, who'd come from different locations. They determined, with Fred writing the letter, to reach out to Wilford Woodruff, the fourth President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Woodruff had been in this position since 1889) for guidance. They came to him with a proposal to dig a well and create an establishment in the desert lands west of Salt Lake. It's hard to determine exactly where they proposed -- "Granite Mountains" in the Dugway District southwest from Salt Lake on the American Desert.

It no doubt seems to reference this general region in the desert west of Tooele (where George Reynolds and Joseph F. Smith directed the feedback). Here's a map from Google, not looking very hospitality. The Dugway here is the government facility built around WWII for testing purposes reg. chemical agents and other top secret projects. It would not have been the reference Fred was making. The pin on here is for Granite Peak. A not very hospitable place. I don't believe Fred and his family every attempted to settle out here in the end.

I've included the document, along with response notes from Joseph F. Smith and George Reynolds.

Document Type: Letter
When Written: July 16, 1893
Location: Pocatello, Idaho
By whom: Frederick J. Kohlhepp
To whom: Wilford Woodruff
Additional Notes from: Joseph F. Smith, George Reynolds
Originals: Yes
In Possession by: LDS Church History Library

Content:

Wilford Woodruff,

Dear Brother We your bretheren have contemplated going down to the Desert near Granite Mts. in the Dug way District south west from Salt Lake on the American Desert, for the purpose of sinking an artesian well for the purpose of irigation, and if we could strike water there we intended to go down there and take up land colonize there, and before taking any further steps, we thought it adviseable to ask your advise on it.

[p2] Being acquainted with the Well driveing buisness, and we brethren have families and no land and we would like to get homes for us and our families; We have an Idea that if we could get water there, it would be a great opening for settlements.
Please write as soon as convenient, as we would like your aproval and ever wishing to be dictated by those in authority, ever praying for your wellfare, we remain your brethen in the Gospel.

Fred J. Kohlhepp
John. Ethos Olive.
John J Cairns
William K. B[??]seter

[p3] P.S.

We are all from different places, here working for means to make us homes somewhere.

I have been through that part of the country several years ago, and think by the lay of the land that wells could be got there.
Fred. J. Kohlhepp
Pocatello Idaho

In other handwriting by J. F. S. [Joseph F. Smith]:

I think these brethren should counsel with the Presidency of the Tooele stake, as they may know something about the region they speak of. If they can spend the means + time to test the wellboring question, and if successful, enough land could be reclaimed thereby to make a settlement where schools + meetings could be had allright. Otherwise, they had better locate [wards?] to other settlements. J. F. S.

[return note]

Fred J. Kohlhepp
July 16 '93

Dear Bro Ruben: Will you read this on the train, and present the matter to the Presidency of the Tooele stake as suggested in Prest. J. F. Smith's memo:
G. R. [George Reynolds]

Minerva Wade Letters to Ella - Part 2

The second letter that I have was also written during Fred's mission, the following year in 1906. In it we hear about a trip of Minerva's, and that afterward she got quite sick from the cold weather.

North Ogden March 6th 1906

Deare Ell and family

I left Magies Friday 23th after you wente on Monday got home on Saturday it was real nice when I left thier and I was feeling as well as usual but when the train got about half way down to the Springes it began to Storm when I got to the Springes I wanted to go to sister Woodlandes I went and it snowed and blowed all the up thier I must of taken some cold but I came home on the one oclock train Saturday verey well wente over to Rhodeyes et some diner  She came with the keyes and we opened up the house and fired up to get things dry the bed close were spred out and the bed was first to dry but everey thing must of ben so damp that it must of ben a weekes wor to get thinges dry  I took more colde from the dampness of the house and I hav ben verey sick ever since this is the first time I hav tried to sit up to write and I thought I would let you know how sick I hav ben  I can not tell you what I hav suffered the tereble pain  the pain was in my musseles it was like flesh was being torn loose from the bones that effected my nerves  I was lik Sallys boy but I had to kepe moving  the 3d knight I had not slept I had tried to get the Bishop here and had failed  he sente the elders here but did not shoe up his self I had a little sweet oil  (consecrated oil) I be thought my self cloraform  I had that in the house a little sweet oil and a lot of cloraform I had the room warm I rubed my self will and layed down before that I could not lay down  the pain was worse but it numed the pain and I fell into a fitful sleepe that quieted my nerves and I have ben graduly getting better  it will be some time before I get well  Sally said as soon as she maree got the baby blest she was going down to stay with you if she takes the baby out of that warm room in the colde air and a colde house the chances is she will lose it  I hav suffered so much I can realize about howit will be   Rhody and Nelly and sister Williams are as good  to me as they can be on ther neighbors  I have none
As ever Moather.  M W Hickman

Questions and Observations from letter:

(a) Who are the people/places mentioned?

Magie = Margaret Rose Hickman Driscoll, Minerva's daughter and Ella's sister.

Springes = Perhaps the Utah Hotsprings right near North Ogden. See it noted here in this 1903 Utah map.

Woodlandes = Minerva's son Warren was married to Barbara Jane Woodland. This was probably a reference to the in-laws, Sarah Wray and Thomas Steepleford Woodland.

Rhodeyes = Not sure, sounds like a last name. Usually Rhody is a first name. No quick searches turned this up. Seems like Minerva Wade Hickman trusted them for them to have held the keys to her home in her absence.

Sally = Sally Francis, her daughter and Ella's sister.

Bishop = Not sure which bishop this would have been.

Sister Nelly = Noted as neighbor, not sure whom.

Sister Williams = Noted as neighbor, not sure whom.

Maree = ? Looks to have been pregnant at the time. Could not have been Marie Elizabeth Bertoch [later Nash], Ella's daughter, as she had already given birth to Elva in January.

(b) Minerva rides the train, would have been the OSL. I am curious what the train cost for such a trip would have been. I'm not sure where the Driscoll's were located at this time, so as to make the practical train stops.

(c) Minerva sounds like she was in much, much pain. I am curious what would have caused all of the dampness in the home to have required a week's worth of fuel to be burnt to dry the place up.

(d) Sweet oil -- perhaps consecrated oil, or just olive oil. I know her granddaughter Minerva thought that olive oil had general medicinal persons.

(e) Chloroform -- a common anesthetic at the time, and also dangerous in causing cardiac arrhythmia (irregular heartbeat). She had so much around the home, it makes one wonder if this was used by her as a midwife, or other practical doctoring.

(f) Sally's boy -- I don't know about the reference here, but he clearly had health issues.

Minerva Wade Letters to Ella - Part 1

I have various letters and documents from Ella's mother, Minerva Wade, which flesh out not only her life, but the lives of Fred and Ella. I'll need to do research to uncover who is being referenced in the letters and some of the other matters, and will take notes for myself as they are figured out. The letters that I have only transcribed copies (so I will not be posting original images) start in 1905, while Fred was away on his mission, and proceed thereafter through 1915. Minerva Wade passed away in 1918. I'll post these letters letter by letter.

North Ogden Oct. 21th 1905

Deare Ella

Saturday morning is heare and Scot will soon be here for the fruit.  I see now I might of put in a few more apples but I did not know how they would be till I got them Sowed up but they will help you some   For the first time the peares has ben a failure .  Thier is quite  a few fairmane apples on one tree, the one neare the peare tree. Susanah Wad said she would let Orlando come and help me pick them to day if Eddy could let him have the little buggy to come up and get some of them.  I can give them to moste any boddy for the picking of them.  I would of ben so pleased to of had some of the children come and got them.  Vive, I wanted him to have some fruit.  Warren will be in later on.  I got a letter from him yesterday  with a 20 twenty dollare check in it to helpe me (for to go to the temple)  and get cole (coal) with.  He has just finished 10 miles fensing so he can begin to geather some of the stock and weane the calves.  He is working his self to death to get things fixed up to live there,  he thinks.  Wall Deare Ella do the beste you can and try to keepe warm and keepe the children warm and (a bill will be put  in this letter) will the way bill will be put in this letter (to help grpa. Kohlhepp on the mission)  by by and love to all and kisses for the children xxxxxxxxxxxx

As ever youre Deare Mother 

M W Hickman

Questions and Observations from letter:

(a) Who are the people mentioned?

Scot = ? I can't find an obvious relative this would refer to. Regardless, it appears that Scot was to bring fruit up for Fred's family from Ogden.

Susanah Wad = Makes me think this is a Wade, of course, but cannot identify this one amongst Edward Wade's children.

Orlando = ? No luck figuring out this one either.

Eddy = Too many possibilities here to make a determination.

Vive = I expect this to be Survivor Hickman (1860-1950), Minerva's son and Ella's brother; Fred and Ella also had a Survivor (Viva), but I do not believe him to be referenced in this case. Survivor was a common name in the Hickman family line. I've heard a bit of folklore around its origin. Some claim it's issued when a boy finally survives after many other children before them have perished. This is true of both Minerva Wade's and Ella's sons. However, I personally reject this explanation, because how would you know that the newborn child would survive when you named them? Yes, you could hope so, but then I'd expect more deceased instances of the name Survivor. Another story I've heard is what someone captured for Survivor Hickman on Family Search:

"Christmas Day 1859 Bill Hickman was shot by Lot Huntington.   Two Mormon doctors attended to the wound but reported him mortally wounded and left.   Three weeks later Dr. Hobbs of the U.S. Army, Bernetta's cousin, visited from Camp Floyd.   Hobbs and his associates reopened the dangerously infected  wound  and removed a dirty green piece of cotton, saturated with something, which the first doctors had failed to remove. While he was recuperating several attempts were made on his life. Hickman's wife Minerva gave birth to a son on May 22 1860 and named him Survivor in memory of the traumatic event.   The name was passed on for three generations among Minerva's descendents."

This sounds more plausible; I'd need to investigate it more fully.

Warren = Warren Wade Hickman (1862-1920), Minerva's son and Ella's brother.

(b) Fred is referred to as "grpa. [grandpa] Kohlhepp." Fred at this time was 43 years old. While Marie Elizabeth, his eldest daughter, had married a Bertoch, she did not give birth to a child until the following January (Elva), after this letter was written. However, given the pending birth, perhaps he was prematurely called "grandpa."

(c) Fruit. Bringing up produce from North Ogden up to the Kohlhepps in Idaho is noted here. This was not an uncommon thing from another document I have, a eulogy for Minerva Teichert written by my grandmother, Agnes Laurie Teichert. Another thing I'll need to share in another post! Apparently, when crops didn't go well, or the right produce couldn't be found in their region, Ella would often go down to get food from North Ogden (and her mother), where apples and pears were available.

I am not sure what a Fairmane apple is? It's no variety I've heard of or been able to discover.

(d) Notes of coal for keeping warm, and the concern with winter setting in for keeping the Kohlhepp family warm.

(e) Warren looks to have taken good care of his mother.

(f) I'm not sure of the way bill note. I think of way bills as a description of shipped goods or passengers, but in the context of this letter, it helping Frederick on his mission, I can only assume that this is some sort of financial aid?

1919 -- Fred's Death

Fred Kohlhepp died on September 14, 1919. While I have not been able to find an obituary for Fred (the American Falls Press records I have reviewed end just prior to his death), I have located his death certificate.

Of note:

(a) Occupation at this time is listed as Rancher. I find this somewhat surprising as Fred at this time was also a business operator and real estate owner, who rented out some commercial properties. I'll share more on this in a future post.

(b) He was treated by a doctor from September 13th to September 14th, and died that morning of the 14th at 4 AM. The cause of the death at this time is listed as "Tuberculosis of lung," which was the common form of tuberculosis. It was commonly known as consumption, due to the weight loss it often caused. Fred's old photos show that very thing. Some have called tuberculosis as man's oldest infectious disease, and today (while treatable) it is still the #1 cause of death by an infectious disease (transmitted by bacteria). Many people today are carriers of "latent tuberculosis", not manifesting the symptoms of active tuberculosis. Some family records claim that Fred gained tuberculosis on his mission, and while that's possible, I don't know if it's probable. The bacteria do multiply at slow rate, but 12 years later seems to me like a long time to question if it was contracted on his mission. Also, Eda's earlier account claimed he was diagnosed with tuberculosis in his childhood. Fred seemed to be fighting lung problems during a good chunk of his life. On January 28, 1915, the American Falls Press contained a note on his poor health, which was likely related to the pulmonary tuberculosis that did him in, and at the time described as pneumonia:

"F. J. Kohlhepp, one of the oldest residents of American Falls, and a pioneer of southern Idaho, has been bedfast a month with a severe attack of pneumonia. He is improving at present but will be unable to be out again for several weeks."

It would be interesting to know if tuberculosis was a common cause of death in the American Falls area at this time. I'd need to do some study of the death records to determine that. For another day!

(c) Fred is noted as having been buried the very next day (September 15th) in the Falls View cemetery. This cemetery fortunately was not buried under the flooding of the American Falls reservoir, and can still be visited. Below is a picture of his grave:

While the head stone notes Ella Hickman, his wife, she is not actually buried here. Ella had remarried (George Martineau) and when died, she was buried in the Ben Lomond Cemetery in North Ogden, Utah, in a family plot her mother purchased. There's a sadness to this -- and my family lore claims George refused to let Ella be buried next to Fred. A little surprising given that she was his second wife (and he'd have 2 more). I admit there may have been a practicality in not carrying a body back up from Utah to Idaho.

Progressive Party Member and Candidate

Fred is noted in the American Falls Press in multiple places as belonging to the short lived Progressive Party (symbolized by the Bull Moose). For those not familiar with the Progressive Party, it is one of several "third parties" that have sprung up in the United States' history. It was originally established by Teddy Roosevelt in 1912, after he lost the Republican presidential nomination. The progressive party advocated several government reforms, some of which at the time were radical.

Some examples of items that platform called for, which would have been of interest to Fred:
- A national health service to include all existing government medical agencies.
- Social insurance, to provide for the elderly, the unemployed, and the disabled
- A minimum wage law for women
- Farm relief
- Workers' compensation for work-related injuries (He'd recall this from his injury working at the Union Pacific/OSL)
- Women's suffrage (which Ella would end up advocating heavily for in Arizona)

Some of the Progressive Party's platform to provide "direct democracy" are also interesting:
- The recall election (citizens may remove an elected official before the end of his term)
- The referendum (citizens may decide on a law by popular vote)
- The initiative (citizens may propose a law by petition and enact it by popular vote)
- Judicial recall (when a court declares a law unconstitutional, the citizens may override that ruling by popular vote)

The party dissolved fairly quickly after Roosevelt's failed attempt at the presidency (although on the Progressive Party ticket, he was the first third party candidate to gain more of the popular vote than a major party member -- securing 27.4% of the vote) in 1918. Fred in the April 27, 1916 issue of the AFP is noted as an alternate delegate for the Progressive Party at that time. Alternate delegates are substitutes for normal delegates. if there are delegates that don't show up on the designated day, alternates are seated in their place. if a delegate has to leave, an alternate is supposed to be seated in their place. I'll capture in a later post how Fred one time ran for the Power county assessor office on the Progressive Party ticket.

American Falls Commercial Club Member -- 1909

The American Falls Press on April 24, 1909 (page 7) has an entry that Fred at a meeting on the prior Thursday (April 22nd) Fred was elected to Commercial club membership.

Commercial clubs at this time were generally male exclusive clubs for both social gathering and to coordinate stimulating of business in and growth of their respective communities. The American Falls Commercial Club generated both advertisements and pamphlets extoling the virtues of American Falls, focusing on the available land, farming capacities, and town features. This note above describes gaining funds to promote the town in Seattle. I have found some such ads in other community papers:

One such pamphlet published the year following Fred's joining the Club (1910), contained a note at the end stating, "The American Falls Commercial Club, which maintains a paid secretary, will be glad to answer inquiries concerning the town and its resources, and extend every aid within its power to prospective homesteaders and investors."

Fred was quite involved in assisting prospective homesteaders around this time (following the return from his mission in Switzerland and Germany), so participating in an organization with this mission was quite up his alley. 

The Department of Commerce's 1917 catalog of the Commercial Organizations of the United States on page 50 has this note regarding the American Falls Commercial Club:

It notes how it had 60 members at this time, which paid on a variable rate of $6 - $60.

Southeastern Idaho Maps -- 1880 - 1920

There are no detailed maps of the settlements of American Falls, Neeley, or Rockland where Fred lived most of the time. Perhaps one of Pocatello could be found, where Fred at times went to work, but on the whole there are only general maps of Idaho made available to look at. I've selected many of these and tried to "zero on" on the region where Fred lived most of his post-married life. I'll share them in chronological order. You'll notice that the small towns of Neeley and Rockland are not always mentioned, but the creeks that ran by or through them are often noted on the maps.

1876:

1880:

1882:

1883:

1889:

1897:

 1903:

1911:

1924:

1927: