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Does MPHS have photographs:

Address in Mount Prospect:

Birth Date: 1/08/1902

Death Date: 1999

Marriage
Date:

Spouse: Selma Meyer Moellenkamp (b. 1908 d. 3/18/1989)

Children:

Interesting information on life, career, accomplishments:

Emil Moellenkamp was born in Mount Prospect to Henry and Alvina Gewecke Moellenkamp. Henry, Emil’s father, was six foot two, which for the time was quite unusual, and considered a very attractive man. Alvina, Emil’s mother, was from a very prominent family in Niles. Both of his parents were born in the U.S. to families that had emigrated to the U.S. from Germany. Emil grew up in a very large family, he had 11 brothers and sisters. They lived on a farm and Emil, like all the children had to help out with the chores. The farm raised: cows, chickens, ducks, geese, potatoes, onions, corn, carrots and other vegetables. Henry was a very ambitious farmer, and through hard work he was able to build up his farm. It eventually grew to be 240 acres and was divided up to the children when they got married.

Emil attended Saint John Lutheran School from 1909 to 1916 and in that time he had only one teacher, Paul Meeske. Every morning he would wake up, feed the horses, chickens and cows, eat a breakfast of pancakes and sausages or eggs and bacon and then walk the three miles to school. He remembered going with his parents to buy a car in 1913. They bought a new Buick from Busse Buick and must have been one of the first people in town to have one. He would go with his parents to shop in Mount Prospect for basics, but one or twice a year, he would go with his mother to downtown Chicago to buy things that could not be found in Mount Prospect. On these trips, he would get his annual suit and shoes, both of which could not be bought in Mount Prospect. Most of the time he wore the clothes that his mother made, and generally he would wear the same clothes for three or four days, since he only owned a couple of outfits

When Emil was young, Mount Prospect had a number of big onion sheds near the train tracks. Farmers sold their onions in the fall and they were stored in the onion sheds through the winter. In the spring the onions were all sold off and the sheds were emptied. When the sheds were empty, the community would hold a big dance in the empty onion sheds. Emil met his wife, Selma Meyer, at one of these dances. The next week he ask her out on a date and soon they were married. Emil lived to be 97.

Oral History

Does MPHS have photographs:

Date of Interview: February 5, 1992

Interviewer: Unknown

Text of Oral History Interview:

Q: …Moellenkamp, my father-in-law. Today’s date is February 5, 1992, at 6 p.m., and we’re talking in our kitchen at 918 S. Elm St., Mt. Prospect. Dad, on behalf of the historical society, I’m going to thank you for letting us interview you and for signing the release forms. Okay, Dad, now would you please for the record tell me what your full name is.

EMIL MOELLENKAMP: Emil Moellenkamp.

Q: All right. What was the date when you were born?

MOELLENKAMP: January 8, 1902.

Q: What was your address at that time?

MOELLENKAMP: 928 E. Golf Road.

Q: Who were your parents?

MOELLENKAMP: Henry and Olva Wether Moellenkamp.

Q: And your grandparents?

MOELLENKAMP: Joe and Eleheide Moellenkamp

Q: And your other grandparents?

MOELLENKAMP: Mr. and Mrs. Stevethie.

Q: It’s dumb for me to ask you when you moved to Mt. Prospect. We know you were born here. How old are you at this time? What’s your present age?

MOELLENKAMP: Ninety.

Q: And what is your present address?

MOELLENKAMP: 911 S. Elm.

Q: Have you ever lived at any other addresses in Mt. Prospect?

MOELLENKAMP: No.

Q: When you first came to town –downtown Mt. Prospect, we’re talking about –what was considered the downtown area at that time?

MOELLENKAMP: Elmhurst Road.

Q: Elmhurst Road? That’s not the 83 Elmhurst Road we see here that we call Elmhurst Road?

MOELLENKAMP: Near Haberkamp’s.

Q: Where Haberkamp’s Florist was? Look at me. At Haberkamp’s Florist?

MOELLENKAMP: Yes.

Q: And Elmhurst Road went straight ahead past St. Raymond’s, over the tracks, over by Haberkamp’s and kept right on going.

MOELLENKAMP: Yes.

Q: Why did they ever change? That was Route 83?

MOELLENKAMP: Busse wanted a business through town.

Q: And they changed the downtown and made it Main Street now.

MOELLENKAMP: Yes.

Q: Do you remember what year that was that Busse changed it? Was that when he became commissioner, or when? Do you have any idea?

MOELLENKAMP: No.

Q: Okay, let’s go on to the next question. While we’re talking about the downtown here, what do you remember most about shopping downtown? Do you remember anything about what was downtown –the stores to go to to shop at?

MOELLENKAMP: Meeske’s and Busse’s.

Q: Busse’s what? Grocery store?

MOELLENKAMP: Grocery store.

Q: What about Coal and Willie’s Lumber?

MOELLENKAMP: .

Q: And how about for shoes? There was no shoe store? How about everyday clothing?

MOELLENKAMP: We went to Chicago.

Q: You went to Chicago for everyday clothing or Sunday clothing?

MOELLENKAMP: Sunday clothes.

Q: And your mother made. …

MOELLENKAMP: Mother made the clothes for everyday.

Q: And then for hardware items you went to where?

MOELLENKAMP: Busse-Bierman.

Q: And farm equipment and supplies?

MOELLENKAMP: Busse’s and Willie’s Implement.

Q: Maling: Implement.

MOELLENKAMP: Maling:’s and Busse.

Q: What about cars?

MOELLENKAMP: Albert Busse.

Q: It was all Busse’s, huh? Did you buy a car there?

MOELLENKAMP: In 1913.

Q: A Buick?

MOELLENKAMP: Yes.

Q: Where were the stores located at downtown? What was the local area today?

MOELLENKAMP: Right in the heart of the town.

Q: Did you know any of the owners that owned any of the stores? Who were some of the owners?

MOELLENKAMP: Busse –the grocery store.

Q: Yes. Did you known anybody that worked there?

MOELLENKAMP: Arthur Grimm.

Q: Were there any other stores in town that you knew the owners of?

MOELLENKAMP: Busse’s Creamery.

Q: Do you remember what some of the earliest factories in Mt. Prospect were? What were some of the factories?

MOELLENKAMP: A pickle factory.

Q: Do you know who owned the pickle factory, by chance?

MOELLENKAMP: Gingee.

Q: Where did those pickles come from?

MOELLENKAMP: The local farmers. The farmers raised the pickles and they delivered them.

Q: And then the creamery you were talking about, the milk came from where?

MOELLENKAMP: The farms –from the farmers.

Q: They were all dairy farmers at that time?

MOELLENKAMP: Dairy farms.

Q: Oh, really? I remember when I was a kid there were no dairy farms. It was all garden farming.

MOELLENKAMP: Yes.

Q: Where were these businesses located? The pickle factory, where was that located?

MOELLENKAMP: Northwest Highway and Central.

Q: And the onion warehouse, at the same place?

MOELLENKAMP: Yes.

Q: The creamery factory was on where?

MOELLENKAMP: Northwest Highway.

Q: Do you remember any particular interesting stories about the early factories, like the onion warehouse, per se? Do you remember any interesting stories about that?

MOELLENKAMP: Well, they were stored in there in the winter, and in the spring they were sold and the warehouse was empty. In the fall they had dances.

Q: You had dances there?

MOELLENKAMP: Yes.

Q: Was there anything interesting about those dances?

MOELLENKAMP: No. We went there and had dances. I danced with Selma Meyer, and the following week I made a date to pick her up.

Q: Yes, and then what?

MOELLENKAMP: We went out to barn dances.

Q: You and Selma?

MOELLENKAMP: Yes.

Q: And that’s the woman you married, right?

MOELLENKAMP: Yes.

Q: That’s wonderful. Other than stores and businesses, which were buildings that were downtown, is there anything different downtown that we had?

MOELLENKAMP: Dr. Wolfarth.

Q: Where was he located? Prospect Avenue, if I can remember.

MOELLENKAMP: Prospect Avenue.

Q: Yes, I remember him very well. He put a few stitches in my head. He was a great doctor. He was a volunteer fireman. I can’t say enough about him. Now, back to the days of transportation, Dad. How did the people at first get to go downtown? How did they arrive? What was their transportation?

MOELLENKAMP: Horse and buggy.

Q: Was there a particular night you would go down, or during the day?

MOELLENKAMP: During the day.

Q: To bring milk to the. ..

MOELLENKAMP: Creamery, and to go grocery shopping, right in town.

Q: There were no special events, like dances or anything like that.

MOELLENKAMP: No.

Q: Do you remember the first train station? Do you remember it being built, or anything about the first train station in Mt. Prospect?

MOELLENKAMP: Well, the only thing I know is John Coleman was the .

Q: Do you remember how often trains would come through town a day?

MOELLENKAMP: Well, at certain hours.

Q: Were they steam or diesel?

MOELLENKAMP: Steam.

Q: Do you remember riding on the trains?

MOELLENKAMP: Yes.

Q: Where did you go?

MOELLENKAMP: Chicago, shopping for clothes. Suits, I bought suits.

Q: How often would you do that?

MOELLENKAMP: Once or twice a year.

Q: That was a big event for you. Did the whole family go then?

MOELLENKAMP: No, at certain times, with Mother, if we needed suits.

Q: Whoever needed a suit went with Ma, huh?

MOELLENKAMP: Yes.

Q: So if you wore out your suit more often than anybody else, then you got to ride on the trains more often than anybody else, was that it?

MOELLENKAMP: Yes.

Q: They were shipping freight into Mt. Prospect. What kind of freight were they bringing into here?

MOELLENKAMP: Sugar beets.

Q: They were shipping sugar beets out of Mt. Prospect.

MOELLENKAMP: Out of Mt. Prospect, yes.

Q: What were they shipping into Mt. Prospect?

MOELLENKAMP: Coal, lumber, to Willie’s.

Q: Oh, to Willie’s?

MOELLENKAMP: Yes.

Q: Let me ask you a question, and I’m going to let you think about this for a minute: Is there anything special that you’d like to add about living in Mt. Prospect all these years? Is there anything, like highlights, that you enjoyed the most?

MOELLENKAMP: We went grocery shopping, and Fourth of July picnics in the grove, right in town.

Q: Tell us something about the picnics. What did you do at the picnics?

MOELLENKAMP: Sang –the children sang, and they had programs.

Q: Any sporting events?

MOELLENKAMP: I don’t know what else they did –they had the ice cream.

Q: That was a big treat?

MOELLENKAMP: Yes, all they could eat. It was jump-the-rope.

Q: Jump rope, you mean when a girl would each hold the rope and a guy, or somebody, would jump in the middle?

MOELLENKAMP: Yes, that’s right.

Q: I even remember doing that. Is there anything else you’d like to comment [on since] you’ve lived in Mt. Prospect here ninety years? Let’s see, you just turned ninety, what was it, January what?

MOELLENKAMP: January 8.

Q: Ninety years old. You’re looking in great health, and I’m sure you’re going to be around for a long time, God willing.

MOELLENKAMP: I’ll try.

Q: Well, Emil –or Dad, I should say –thank you very much for participating in this interview. I’m sure future generations will be enlightened to hear what you had to say. Thank you.

Does MPHS have photographs: Yes

Address in Mount Prospect:

Birth Date: December 4, 1875

Death Date: July 26, 1947

Marriage
Date: June 11, 1903

Spouse: Maria Kirchoff

Children: Gertrude, Laura, Theodore, Edwin, John P. Jr., Vivian

Interesting information on life, career, accomplishments:

John Phillip Moehling was the son of John Conrad Moeling, and like his father he spent years of his life working to improve Mount Prospect. In 1917 he was Mount Prospect’s first Police Magistrate and later, in 1929 worked as the village collector. He was a charter member of the Mount Prospect Lions Club. Between 1913 and 1916 he was the secretary of the Board of Education for the short lived Mount Prospect High school. He also served as a democratic election judge for 32 years. Similar to his father, he worked in a number of different fields. He formed a real estate brokerage firm in the 1920s. He built a Standard Oil Service Station on the corner of Northwest highway and Main, the first full service station in Mount Prospect. He also continued his father’s business and expanded it by becoming an agent for the International Harvester Company, Deering Division. He later changed with the times and shifted from selling plows to selling lawn mowers.

Does MPHS have photographs: Yes

Address in Mount Prospect: 518 S. Main

Birth Date: October 15, 1850

Death Date: September 3, 1939

Marriage
Date: January 28, 1875

Spouse: Emelia Augusta (Bahr) Moehling

Children: Dorothea (died in infancy), Heinrich (died in infancy), John Phillip, Clara.

Interesting information on life, career, accomplishments:

John C. Moehling owned the first store in Mount Prospect. It was a small general store located at the corner of Main Street and Northwest Highway. The store was originally started by Cook County Commissioner Christian Geils. However, Geils soon found out that running a general store was not his calling in life. While Geils was discovering that he did not like running a general store, a man named John Conrad Moehling was in Elk Grove discovering that he did not like farming. In 1882 the two came together and Moehling bought the store. He found that he did enjoy being a store keeper and he soon became an institution in the community. He began selling farm tools, coal, seed, feed, groceries, shoes, etc. and built a warehouse along a side track to help bring in and ship out materials.

John C. Moehling was one of Mount Prospect’s biggest promoters. Throughout his career he worked hard to improve Mount Prospect and bring in new services and businesses. He persuaded John Meyn to move to Mount Prospect and start a blacksmith shop. Meyn had been working as an apprentice in Arlington Heights and was ready to move on to his own shop when Moehling approached him and offered to build him a new shop in downtown Mount Prospect. Moehling also convinced the Chicago Northwestern Railroad to build a new Depot in Mount Prospect and was appointed the first depot agent, a position he held from 1887 until 1902. In 1875 he was a charter member of the Mutual County Fire Insurance Company of Mount Prospect, in 1884 he organized the Jefferson Democratic Club, and in 1895 he was one of the founders of the Central School and District 57. Moehling was also appointed the first Postmaster of Mount Prospect on December 31, 1885 and based the local post office in his store. He served as Postmaster for twelve years or until 1897. According to legend, Moehling was also the person who brought dairy cows to Mount Prospect. Seeing that the area was appropriate for milk cows, he went off in search of the best breed and eventually brought them back, kicking off Mount Prospect’s role as a major dairy center.

Does MPHS have photographs: Yes

Address in Mount Prospect: 31 S. Main

Birth Date: January 7, 1863

Death Date: December 3, 1948

Marriage
Date: 1884

Spouse: Christina (Henningsmeyer) Meyn (b. August 11, 1863 d. 1925)

Children: Laura, Herman, Bertha, Elsie, William, John Jr., Christine, and Adele

Interesting information on life, career, accomplishments:

John Meyn was born in Schleswig-Holstein and immigrated to America in 1882 at the age of 19. He worked as an assistant blacksmith in Arlington Heights for a year before he was persuaded by John C. Moehling, Mount Prospect’s first postmaster and owner of the general store, to move to Mount Prospect and open his own shop. He was the first blacksmith in town and ran the business for many years. His shop in Mount Prospect was located on Northwest Highway, just past Main Street. Having a blacksmith shop was an early step towards development. When most transportation required horses, you needed to have someone who could shoe the horses and repair wagons in town if you expected the town to grow. This is why John Moehling went out of his way to persuade John Meyn to move to Mount Prospect.

Does MPHS have photographs: Yes

Address in Mount Prospect: 21 S. Maple

Birth Date: November 28, 1889

Death Date: 1965

Marriage
Date: December 30, 1911

Spouse: Ida Deeke

Children: 2 Daughters, Vanetta Winkelman Pearson (she had two husbands) and Elvira Grotheer

Interesting information on life, career, accomplishments:

Herman Meyn, was Mount Prospect’s second mayor. He was the son of Mount Prospect’s first Blacksmith, John Meyn. Herman Meyn was also trained as a blacksmith and began working as a blacksmith in 1914. He bought his own business in 1924 and still had an active foundry business when he became mayor. Changing with the times, he later expanded his business to include farm implements and eventually lawn movers.

Herman Meyn was one of the first people born in Mount Prospect. When he was born, the town was only what we think of as downtown. There were only three shops in town and with his six brothers and sisters, his family made up a large percentage of the town’s population.

He was involved with many aspects of the community. He was a charter member of the Mount Prospect Volunteer Fire Department and served on the force for many years. He was the fourth Fire Chief in Mount Prospect, holding that position for nine years, or from 1922 until he became Mayor. Even with the added responsibility of being the head of the Village Board, he remained active in the Fire Department throughout his term, putting in a total of 17 years on the force.

Soon after Herman Meyn became Mayor of Mount Prospect, the U.S. economy went into its longest and most severe recession, the Great Depression. Meyn stayed as the Mayor through the entire crisis. In that time Mount Prospect became known as one of the most responsibly run communities in Illinois. It was one of very few communities in the area that remained solvent throughout the 1930s. Meyn was even able to make some civic improvements during these difficult times. In 1935 he oversaw a water reservoir to better serve the community needs.

 

Does MPHS have photographs: No

Address in Mount Prospect: 11 S. State Road, Arlington Heights

Birth Date: Unknown

Death Date: Unknown

Marriage
Date: Unknown

Spouse: Unknown

Children: Frank, Henry C.W., George Albert (possibly others)

Interesting information on life, career, accomplishments:

Henry Meyer was involved in a number of different activities in the Mount Prospect area. In 1883 Christian Geils (the first owner of the Mount Prospect general store), J.A. Kennicott, and Henry Meyer purchased property with the purpose of producing a pond. They built a dam and flooded an area that became Arlington Heights Pond or Meyer’s Pond. The point of the pond was to produce ice in the winter, so that they could from an ice-delivery service, which was quite profitable in years before refrigeration. Meyer later bought out his partners and built a grand house on the property.

Henry Meyer had construction experience as he had built Saint John Evangelical Reformed Church (Saint John United Church of Christ), worked with John Boeger to build Saint Peter Lutheran Church, and was in business with his sons building houses. He also ran a beer distributor business that covered all the space from Des Plaines to Barrington.

 

Does MPHS have Photographs: No

Interviewer:

Date of Interview: February 17, 1994

Oral History Text:

Q: …and I am interviewing Edna Mensching. Today is February 17, 1994, and I am interviewing her in her home at 225 S. Emerson at eleven o’clock in the morning. Thank you very much, Edna, for agreeing to be interviewed and also for signing the consent form. Edna lived and was born on the area that is Route 83, or Elmhurst Road, west of the current St. Raymond’s, north of Weller Creek and east of the country club. There are 115 acres, and it was a dairy farm where she lived with her parents and her two brothers. Her one brother died of diptheria when he was six years old, and the other died when he was a freshman, 15 years old, of leukemia. They raised grain, corn, they had cows, pigs and chickens. In 1925 they sold the property to Lonnquist who then subdivided it, and they moved to 225 Emerson and she has resided here ever since. They bought two lots. There is one lot that is still empty, and they had a small garden on the extra lot.

Her father retired from farming at this time. She went to school at St. Paul’s all her eight years. She started in 1920, and she graduated in 1928. She always walked to school, too. She walked from the house, when she lived on the farm, and also when she moved to Emerson. There was a one-room school at the time, and this was at St. Paul’s connected with St. Paul’s church. She had one teacher –his name was Martin Haas –for the first two years that she was there. Then Miss Tagge came, and also a Mr. Jockish came, and they built on to three rooms so there were three teachers in this school. This school was located at Busse and Elm. The day always started, she said, with a religion class. They had Bible history, they had to memorize catechism and they had to learn hymns. The religious class was every day. They also had English lessons, arithmetic, geography, history. Penmanship was really stressed by Mr. Haas. They never had an art class. She liked most of her subjects, and most of her teachers, she said, were excellent. [They] had their own history books, spelling books and Bible history, also. She walked on a road with her father, or he often would take her with the milk wagon when he brought the milk to the creamery. Even though she lived on a farm she did not have to help with the chores. There was a hired man to do that, also her brothers. School started at nine o’clock. The teacher rang the bell. Breakfast at home, she always had cooked cereal. It was either oatmeal or farina, and homemade bread and a piece of coffee cake. No juice. She brought her lunch, always, to school, and most of all the children ate at school. They brought a sandwich, which was usually homemade white bread, a piece of cake or cookies, and sometimes an apple. When she first started there was a bucket with water that all the children drank from. Later when the school was added on, the three rooms –the third building was added — there was running water there. There was also an outhouse outside for most of her years, she said. Permission was asked by raising her hand. There were fifteen students in her class. Most of the students were the same from grade to grade. There were two to a desk at first, then later when they added on they had single desks. There was an inkwell on each, and also a place to put the books underneath. There was no library in the school; there also was no basement. There was a piano. All three teachers played the piano, and they sang mostly religious songs and some patriotic. She learned German. The teachers talked in English, and they learned German from a book called a fible. Recess was morning and afternoon. They played ball or jump rope. They played in the classroom on the blackboard sometimes, too, when they couldn’t play outside. They went outside always, with weather permitting. There was no gym and there was no basement. She always wore a dress to school, and all of her clothing was homemade. She wore long stockings and the high button shoes first. The teachers were always dressed in suits, and the female teacher always wore a dress, also. The boys wore kneesox and knickers. There was no harsh punishment that she ever remembers –the only punishment she remembers was staying in at recess time. The big high point was the picnic that was held after school was let out, around June, and there was popcorn and they were able to purchase pop and ice cream, and there was a meal in the church basement. They also had a flag drill where they would practice with the flags in each hand, and they would perform this in front of their parents. The Christmas program also was a highlight of the year, and it was on Christmas eve. The children all memorized something and they sang songs, and afterwards bags of candy, nuts, fruit, orange and apples were passed out to them. Her entertainment was friends coming over to the house and just visiting with them. The friends played in the basement. There was really no place to hang out in town, she said. She lived just a couple of doors, really, away from Kruse’s Tavern but, of course, that was a place where she would not go. But she would walk up, once in a while, to Edwin Busse’s, which was next to the village hall, or William Busse’s –this was a grocery and dry goods store –to help her mother with some shopping. After graduation she went to Arlington Heights High School for two years, and she quit because her mother needed surgery and she needed help. She would get the bus at the corner of Main and Busse. Confirmation was another time of her grade school years that was a highlight for the children. They were confirmed on Palm Sunday. They also went to the Des Plaines photographer for their picture, which was a formal picture taken. The girls all wore pretty white dresses. The boys wore suits. There were no gowns at the time. They would take their confirmation lessons from Pastor Mueller from a building that was the village hall at the time, and they would go for an hour in the morning. They would walk over there and walk back again. They would have a party at her house –at the house afterwards. They invited their sponsors. She remembers getting a birthstone ring, a hymn book with her name engraved, and a Bible.

 

Does MPHS have photographs:

Address in Mount Prospect: 705 S. Busse Road

Birth Date: 1892

Death Date: Unknown

Marriage
Date: June 22, 1916

Spouse: Anna (Rohlwing) Meier (b. 1899)

Children: George and Leslie

Interesting information on life, career, accomplishments:

The Meier family were early settlers in Mount Prospect. They, like most of their neighbors, were German Lutherans and Louis Meier was a member of this community. He went to Saint John Lutheran School and was a life long member of the church. He grew up in a community that was still mostly made up of farmers and was somewhat isolated. In such a small community, it was often difficult to find suitable mates. Louis Meier met his wife at his older brother’s wedding and ended up marring the sister of the bride.