The birthday girl for today led me to the story of one of the men who was a proprietor of the Perryville Mercantile, a store that was once located on the courthouse square in Perryville. I will begin with that birthday girl.

Ellen May Zahner was born on May 14, 1870, thus making today her 155th birthday. Ellen was the daughter of John and Julia (Tucker) Zahner. I took a trip back into the Tucker family of Ellen’s mother, and I ended up going all the way back to the original people who settled in Virginia in the 1600’s. Since the Zahner’s were members of a Catholic church, Ellen’s baptism record is likely found in one of the local Catholic church’s books. Since Ellen is found living in the Saline Township when the 1880 census was taken, I think there is a good chance that her baptism record may be found in the books of the parish in Brewer. Ellen is listed as being 8 years old in the 1880 census, but I think she was closer to 10. Her mother had died in 1876 when Ellen was very young, so her father was a widower when this census was taken. Ellen’s father was a farmer.

Ellen would get married in the 1890’s, so since we are unable to view an 1890 census, we will now turn our attention to the man who would become her husband. His name was Heinrich Carl Vogt, who was born on September 17, 1869. Like so many others with the name Carl, he would be called Charles during most of his life. I will use that name. Charles was the son of Casper and Theresa (Schindler) Vogt. He was baptized at Trinity Lutheran Church in Friedheim. We can take a look at an image of his baptism record from that congregation’s books below.

Charles is found in the 1870 census at the age of 11/12 (11 months). He was the firstborn child in this Vogt family. Charles’s father was a farmer in the Apple Creek Township.

The only other census entry in which we find Charles prior to his marriage is the one taken in 1880. In the case of Charles, his father was another parent who died at a rather young age. He died in 1879, so when this census was taken in 1880, Charles’s mother was a widow. Theresa was called a housekeeper and farmer in this entry, and Charles, at the very young age of 11, was helping on her farm. A young man named Henry Wilke was living with the Vogt’s and also working on the farm.

Charles was confirmed at Trinity, Friedheim in 1883. His confirmation record below indicates that he was a Vogt who was confirmed by Rev. Voigt.

I will speculate that at some point when Charles was a bit older, he made the decision to move to the Saline Township of Perry County to operate a store. Charles Vogt married Ellen Zahner on May 9, 1893. According to the Missouri marriage license below, this couple was married by a Catholic priest in Perryville.

This pair had just one child, a daughter named Ella, who was born in 1894 and baptized at Trinity, Friedheim. However, this marriage did not last long because Ellen died in 1895 at the age of 24, leaving Charles as a widower with a very young daughter. Charles would get married again prior to the 1900 census, so we will now take a look at the woman who would become his second wife. Her name was Mary Ellen Krater, who was born on August 3, 1869. Most of the time, she went by the name of Ellen, so both of Charles Vogt’s wives were named Ellen. Ellen Krater was the daughter of John and Sara Anne (Tucker) Krater. That means both of Charles’s mothers-in-law had the maiden name of Tucker. Those two Tucker’s were likely related to one another, but I do not think their relationship was very close. The Krater’s were also Catholics, so her baptism record is probably found in the books of a Catholic parish. Ellen is found in the 1870 census at the age of 1. Her father was a farmer in the Cinque Hommes Township.

In the 1880 census, Ellen was 12 years old. This time, the Krater’s were living in the Bois Brule Township.

Like Charles Vogt, Ellen would get married and have a spouse die at a very young age. She married Edward Huber on October 18, 1892. The marriage license for this pair is displayed below.

This couple had a son named Andrew in 1893, but then Andrew, Sr. died later in 1893 at the age of 27, leaving Ellen as a widow.

On November 9, 1898, Charles Vogt married Ellen Huber at St. Mary’s Seminary in Perryville. We can view this pair’s Missouri marriage license here.

It was in 1898 that Charles also was appointed as the postmaster in Brewer, Missouri according to the document below.

I think that this Vogt couple had 6 more children. When the 1900 census was taken, there was one Vogt child and one Huber child. Charles’s daughter from his first marriage was not living with him. She was living with Charles’s mother, Theresa, who had married Frederick Oehl. There was also a teenage cousin named Mary Tucker living with Charles and Ellen. Charles was a dry goods merchant in the Saline Township.

The Vogt’s moved into Perryville during the next decade. In the 1910 census, The Vogt’s had 5 children of their own, along with Ellen’s son, Andrew Huber. Also, a teenage boarder named Jesse Mattingly was living with them. Charles was the proprietor of a general store in Perryville.

The advertisement below that was printed in the Perry County Sun in 1913 gives evidence that Charles was the proprietor of both a store in Lithium and the Perryville Mercantile in Perryville.

In the 1920 census, there were 5 Vogt children living with Charles and Ellen. Charles still had the same occupation.

The 1930 census was the last one in which we find Charles. He and Ellen had an empty nest, and they were both in their 60’s.

Charles Vogt died in 1931 at the age of 61. Diabetes is given as the cause of death on his death certificate.

A rather lengthy obituary was published in the Perry County Republican for Charles. I will place it here in 3 images that may have to be clicked to enlarge.

Ellen Vogt is found in the 1940 census living by herself in Perryville.

Ellen Vogt died in 1945 at the age of 76. Her death certificate is pictured here. She apparently had moved to St. Louis where she died.

An obituary was printed in the Perry County Republican for Ellen.

All of the characters in this post are buried in the Mt. Hope Catholic Cemetery in Perryville. Ellen (Zahner) Vogt has her own gravestone, as does Charles Vogt. The second Ellen Vogt is buried with her first husband, Andrew Huber.

According to some information I found, the Perryville Mercantile was located on the courthouse square in Perryville. We have several books in our research library that include old photos of businesses in Perryville, but I failed to find a photograph that included the Perryville Mercantile. Perhaps one of our friends at the Perry County Historical Society would have such a photograph in their collection and would be willing to share it with us. They have so many more photos of the Perryville area than we do at our museum in Altenburg.