Adolph Gustav Engert got married on this date in 1894, making today his 124th wedding anniversary. However, before we can go any farther, we must make sure that we have the right person. Below, you will see baptism records for two Adolph Gustav Engert babies, and they were both baptized at Immanuel Lutheran Church in Altenburg, Missouri. They were only six years apart in age. Here is the first one, who was born in 1869.
This child was the son of Fritz (Friedrich) and Maria (Seibel) Engert and born on July 11, 1869. Next, we see a baby that was born and baptized in 1875.
This child was the son of Gotthilf and Anna (Gerler) Engert and born on October 29, 1875. The only slight difference between the two boys is that one is spelled Adolph and the other is spelled Adolf. Fritz and Gotthilf Engert were brothers, so these two children were cousins.
The one whose story we tell today is the top one, born in 1869. When Adolph was 25 years old, he married Martha Mueller from Frohna. Martha was the daughter of Martin and Lina (Naumann) Mueller. Here is a photo of Martha’s parents.
Below is Martha’s baptism record.
Martha’s gravestone will be shown later, but it is one of those rare gravestones on which you find a photograph of the deceased. It is the only photo I found of Martha, and it has not weathered well over time.
Adolph and Martha were married on November 8, 1894. This is the record of that wedding which can be found in the Concordia, Frohna church books.
It is in this record that it is stated that Adolph was a farmer from Fountain Bluff, Illinois, which is located right across the Mississippi River from Perry County. Here is the Perry County civil marriage license for this couple.
This record has no indication that Adolph was from Illinois.
Our German Family Tree records that 6 children were born to this couple. One of them lived only 5 months. The first census in which we find Adolph and Martha was the 1900 census from Brazeau Township where we find that he was a farmer.
The 1915 atlas of land ownership shows A.G. Engert owning a piece of property along what is now Highway Y, the road that leads from Altenburg to The Ridge.
I think this is the correct Adolph Engert since his father’s land was located nearby.
In the 1910 census, we find that Adolph was then working as the proprietor of a saloon.
This census shows 4 children. One had died, and another one would be born in 1912. On May 6, 1917, Martha died. She was buried in the Immanuel Lutheran Cemetery in Altenburg. This is her gravestone with her photo on top.
In 1919, Adolph married again. His second wife was Henriette (Petzoldt) Illers. This is their marriage license. I think this marriage took place at St. Paul’s Lutheran Church in Jackson, Missouri.
We find this couple in the 1920 census for Brazeau Township. This time we find Adolph operating a soft drink parlor. That was probably because Prohibition began to be in effect in 1920.
Before 1930, Adolph and Henrietta (Hattie) moved to St. Louis. Here is the 1930 census. I wouldn’t doubt that he may have moved because the soft drink business was not successful.
This census says the 61 year-old Adolph is a helper in a poultry business. I think it is helpful to look at his son, Edgar Engert’s census record for that year. He also was in St. Louis, and his occupation is given as a salesman for a poultry business. My guess is that they worked for the same poultry business.
In this 1932 city directory for St. Louis, we find Adolph Engert shown as an egg candler.
Egg candling is a process of viewing the interior of eggs using a bright light source. In the old days, the source of light was a candle. The process is used to check for how embryos are developing inside the shell, and to check the quality of eggs. This is a photo showing the old technique of using a candle to check eggs.
On August 30, 1932, Adolph died in St. Louis. This is his death certificate.
It records that Adolph was in the egg business. After he died, he was buried in the Immanuel Lutheran Cemetery in Altenburg. This is his gravestone.
Henriette died in 1963, and there is a reference in our GFT that she is buried in Goodland, Kansas, but I could not find her gravestone.
I could not resist the title I used for this post, but it is a little misleading. Like so many folks that have been the subjects of these blog posts, many spent their lives being involved in a variety of occupations. Adolph was one of those.
