One of the highly esteemed residents of Shipman is
Ferdinand R. Kahl, who for many years was successfully identified with the
general farming interests of Macoupin county, but is now engaged in dairy
farming. He was born in the village of Giekau in the province of
Schleswig-Holstein, Germany, where for many generations his paternal
ancestors have resided, on the 7th of September, 1841. His father, Detlef F.
A. Kahl, was born in the same village on the 12th of August, 1806, while the
mother, who prior to her marriage was Margaret Fischer, was a native of the
village of Luetzenburg, in Schleswig-Holstein, her natal day being the 31st
of December, 1811; Luetzenburg has been the ancestral home of the Fischer
family for many generations past. Detlef F. A. Kahl, who was a cabinet maker
by trade, accompanied by his wife and the younger members of the family,
emigrated to the United States in 1864 to join his three sons, who were
located in Macoupin county. They landed at New York, and immediately made
their way inland locating in Shipman, where the parents spent the remainder
of their lives. The father engaged in carpentry work and contracting until
his demise on the 5th of August, 1873. To Mr. and Mrs. Kahl were born nine
children: Fredericka, the deceased wife of Henry Mueller, of Shipman; Henry,
also deceased, a resident of Bunker Hill, Illinois; Charles F., who is
living in Shipman; Ferdinand R., our subject; Wilhelmina, the deceased wife
of William Fahrenkrog, of Bunker Hill; Frederick, who is living in Shipman;
Nicholas, a resident of Shipman; Louisa, the wife of Charles Hintz, of
Bunker Hill; and one, who died in infancy.
Ferdinand R. Kahl
obtained his education in the common schools of his native land, after which
he learned the shoemaker’s trade. He industriously followed this occupation
until he was nineteen years of age, when he and his brother Henry decided to
emigrate to the United States. They took passage on a sailing vessel for New
Orleans and upon arrival in that city came up the river to St. Louis, whence
they came to Macoupin county. They settled in Shipman and there Ferdinand R.
Kahl followed his trade until 1862 when he went prospecting for gold, first
in Colorado and later in New Mexico and Arizona. While in the latter states
he freighted for the government for a time, but later he went to Idaho City,
Idaho, where he worked in the gold mines for two years. In 1865 he returned
to Shipman, remaining two years; he then removed to Minnesota, and worked as
a farm hand in the vicinity of St. Charles until 1867. Again returning to
Shipman he married and purchased two hundred acres of timber land on section
11, Shipman township. Erecting upon this land the necessary buildings he
began clearing and putting it under cultivation. Here he continued to live
until 1907, when he withdrew from active work and moved to Shipman, where he
owns a very pleasant residence surrounded by two acres of beautiful grounds.
Dairy farming now engages the attention of Mr. Kahl, who has led too active
and busy a life to entirely withdraw from all business. He keeps a fine
grade of Holstein cattle, having a herd of fifty milch cows, which are
proving to be a very gratifying source of revenue.
On the 24th of
December, 1868, Mr. Kahl established a home for himself by his marriage to
Miss Sarah A. Deahl, whose natal day was the 11th of June, 1847, her parents
being Andrew and Matilda (Schultz) Deahl, whose history is given in the
sketch of Adam Deahl, which appears elsewhere in this work. To Mr. and Mrs.
Kahl were born eleven children. Edwin A., who is an implement dealer in
Shipman, married Miss Minnie Barnes, and they have three children: Leona,
Florence and Lester Ferdinand. Charles H., the second member of the family,
died in infancy. Mary E. married Arthur Mitchell of Shipman and they have
two children, Sarah M. and Otis Arthur. George F., who is engaged in farming
in Shipman township, married Anna Adams and they have one child, George.
Margaret E. married Almon Scott, an engineer of St. Louis, Missouri, and
they have one child, Walter H. Huldah L. married Auzza Owen, who is a cotton
planter in Aberdeen, Mississippi, and they have four children, George, Earl,
Harold and Arlene. Walter W., who is agent for the Chicago & Alton Railroad
at Plainview, married Eva Burmaster and they have two children, Edith and
Gladys. Clara M., married Henry Brueggeman and has one child, Ralph E.
Henrietta, who is the next in order of birth, has never married and makes
her home with her parents. Edna, married Joseph Travers and has one child
Glenn R. Earl C., who is the youngest member of the family, is unmarried and
lives at home.
Mr. and Mrs. Kahl affiliate with the Evangelical
Lutheran church of Shipman of which he is one of the trustees, they, both,
having taken an earnest and active interest in the work of its various
organizations. Mr. Kahl has always given his political support to the
democratic party, and for fifteen years served as commissioner of highways
of Shipman township. He is one of the substantial citizens of Shipman who
has sought no political power for self-aggrandizement, but has ever exerted
his influence to maintain the moral and intellectual status of the community
on a high plain.
Extracted 17 Nov 2018 by Norma Hass from History of Macoupin County, Illinois: Biographical and Pictorial, by Charles A. Walker, published in 1911, Volume 2, pages 541-543.
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