If you look at the baptism record for Johann George Schmidt, it says he was born on July 5, 1896. If that is the case, then today would be his 130th birthday. However, other records for George indicate that he was born on the 4th of July. So, I figure he celebrated that birthday either yesterday or today. You get to read his story today. George was the son of Johann and Margaret (Schmidt) Schmidt. Yes, that means his parents were a Schmidt who married a Schmidt. A previous post was written about George’s parents titled, The Schmidt-Ermer-Weibrecht Story

George was baptized at Cross Congregation, a Lutheran church that existed for a short while between Longtown and Crosstown. We can view his baptism record from that congregation’s books here.

Before George was even one month old, his mother died. Then, his father married Sophia Ermer in 1897. However, she died early in 1900. So, when the 1900 census was taken, George’s father was a widower. George was 3 years old, and his father was a farmer in the Salem Township.

In the 1910 census, George is found at the age of 13. The Schmidt’s were living near Campbell Hill in Illinois where George’s father was farming.

George was a soldier in World War I, but I did not locate a draft registration for him. I suspect that he enlisted in the military before they began completing draft registrations for that war. A later application for a military headstone shown below gives a few details about his military service. It says he enlisted in May of 1917. He was called a horseshoer in the 86th Infantry.

George would get married prior to the 1920 census, so we will now look at the woman who would become his bride. Her name was Inis Isenhour. I was unable to determine an exact date of birth for her, but she must have been born in about 1903. I also found one document that says Inis was born in Rockwood, Illinois, which is found along the Mississippi River just south of Chester. Inis was the daughter of Harry and Elizabeth (Sandlin) Isenhour. Inis’s parents had been married in 1898 by a justice of the peace in Crosstown, Missouri. By the time of the 1010 census, the Isenhour’s were living in the Fountain Bluff Township across the Mississippi River in Jackson County, Illinois. Inis’s father was a railroad section hand. Inis is listed as being 18 years old, but I figure that was a mistake.

I failed to locate any wedding information for George Schmidt and Inis Isenhour. They likely were married in Illinois not long before the 1920 census was taken. In that year’s census, we find George and Inis living in Granite City, Illinois with no children. George was a laborer in a stamp mill.

We see that the Schmidt’s moved back to Inis’s hometown of Rockwood, Illinois during the next decade. In the 1930 census, there were 4 children in the Schmidt household. That would be all of their children. George was called a farmhand.

The Schmidt’s were still living in Rockwood when the 1940 census was taken. Once again, all 4 of their children were included in their household. George is not given an occupation in this entry. Based on what we see happening next in his life, I think George may have been struggling with his health, and perhaps that was because of issues resulting from his service during World War I.

George had a World War II draft card completed when America entered that war. He is given a Rockwood address, but no occupation. You can see his birth date is given as July 4th.

At this point, I lost track of what happened with Inis Schmidt. Then, when the 1950 census was taken, we find George living in the Illinois Soldiers and Sailors Home in Quincy, Illinois at the age of 53. In the marriage status column, it says he was never married, but that is not correct.

It must have been about this time that three of George’s sisters came to visit him at the Soldiers and Sailors Home and had this photo taken.

George Schmidt died in 1957 at the age of 61. George is buried in the Sunset Cemetery in Quincy. That cemetery is also called the Illinois Veterans Home Cemetery. George’s military gravestone says that he was born on the Fourth of July. It also calls George a horseshoer.

George Schmidt was born in Missouri, but spent very little time there. When in Missouri, his family went through some difficult times as both his mother and stepmother died there when he was very young. Then, George spent almost all of his life in Illinois, and he is buried there with military recognition.