One Hundred Years Ago

[Rix Gins]

Re;  Brandishes a sword.  Granddad strikes a mean pose.  Fit as a fiddle, too.  I'd like to know what kind of wine he drank.

[K_Dubb]

Re;  Brandishes a sword.  Granddad strikes a mean pose.  Fit as a fiddle, too.  I'd like to know what kind of wine he drank.

Haha I like to think he drank indiscriminately; I have a Parisian friend (a Picard by birth) who seeks out Portuguese reds because the ones available there are cheap and taste good.  The caption called it an épée, but it looks more like a cavalry sabre with the tip broken off -- maybe his own from 1871!

[Walks_At_Night]

Re;  Brandishes a sword.  Granddad strikes a mean pose.  Fit as a fiddle, too.  I'd like to know what kind of wine he drank.

Hamm's I think?


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JP8JgQxXO8U

[Rix Gins]

Ahhh, good old Hamms.  I actually bought some from watching the commercials and liked it enough to drink it for a few years.  But then I met Beck's Dark and never turned back. 

[Rix Gins]

I owe soldier Richard Schinkiuger an apology.  I missed the one hundred year anniversary of his death by a full week.  Oh well...not that it matters to him.  (I hope.)

I had an exceedingly hard time translating this particular German death card.  As far as I could ascertain, Richard was killed at a mobilization/train/soldier platform.  So a bombardment of some type or possibly even a train wreck?  It happened on May 7, 1916.  He was 29 years old.

[K_Dubb]

I owe soldier Richard Schinkiuger an apology.  I missed the one hundred year anniversary of his death by a full week.  Oh well...not that it matters to him.  (I hope.)

I had an exceedingly hard time translating this particular German death card.  As far as I could ascertain, Richard was killed at a mobilization/train/soldier platform.  So a bombardment of some type or possibly even a train wreck?  It happened on May 7, 1916.  He was 29 years old.

As far as I can make out, "Trainsoldat" was used in the sense of a pack train, driving teams of horses or mules, but it might have included railroads as well.  He fell ill ("erkrankte") somewhere in the South Tyrol.  Could he have been in the Austro-Hungarian army?  I assume Hofstätter is the town, but I can't find it anywhere.

[Walks_At_Night]

In 1916, the Maxwell Motor Company was building automobiles.  This post is just going to be a place holder as I
need to dig thru some family records to see what I can come up with to augment the information. 

I'll come back to Maxwell - I promise   

[Rix Gins]

As far as I can make out, "Trainsoldat" was used in the sense of a pack train, driving teams of horses or mules, but it might have included railroads as well.  He fell ill ("erkrankte") somewhere in the South Tyrol.  Could he have been in the Austro-Hungarian army?  I assume Hofstätter is the town, but I can't find it anywhere.

Thanks K.  What would I do without you?  I had a similar problem with the town name.  Also his dad's occupation is listed but I couldn't get a fix on it.  I would love to know the meaning of the word that is just above the number 29.  A reservist unit of some kind?  Kind of unusual that nothing was listed as to his unit.  I would also like to know about those decorations he is wearing.  Definitely some big round medals.  Must of been a heck of a soldier. 

[Rix Gins]

In 1916, the Maxwell Motor Company was building automobiles.  This post is just going to be a place holder as I
need to dig thru some family records to see what I can come up with to augment the information. 

I'll come back to Maxwell - I promise   

Thanks Walks.  We'll be waitin'.

[K_Dubb]

Thanks K.  What would I do without you?  I had a similar problem with the town name.  Also his dad's occupation is listed but I couldn't get a fix on it.  I would love to know the meaning of the word that is just above the number 29.  A reservist unit of some kind?  Kind of unusual that nothing was listed as to his unit.  I would also like to know about those decorations he is wearing.  Definitely some big round medals.  Must of been a heck of a soldier.

"Notreservespital" translates as "Emergency Reserve Hospital", perhaps a portmanteau?  It certainly sounds better than Krankenhaus hahaha.  There are a few postcards from the place showing the castle; here are a couple:

[Rix Gins]

"Notreservespital" translates as "Emergency Reserve Hospital", perhaps a portmanteau?  It certainly sounds better than Krankenhaus hahaha.  There are a few postcards from the place showing the castle; here are a couple:

Wow!  That's great.  Thanks.  So now we know that Richard got very ill and died there in the hospital.  At least that's how I read it now.  Ha, somebody once told me that Walter Cronkite's last name came out of Krankenhaus.  I never did try to verify that claim.

[Walks_At_Night]

Going to make a small exception to our 100 year old limit and expand it by a year to 1915 because then we can pick up
the rarest of the rare.  An automobile manufacturer in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan.

Starting in July of 1915 the Menominee Electric Manufacturing Company of   Menominee, Michigan built automobiles up until
the winter of 1915 when they stopped to concentrate on other products.   They built both commercial and cabriolet personal vehicles.
The cabriolet had a 108-inch wheelbase, with a top speed of 20 mph, with a range of 50â€"60 miles on each charge. A price of $1,250 also included a recharging kit for the battery.  Not too shabby!

Menominee Electric would be reorganized in 1919 and was renamed Signal Electric Manufacturing.   They would build wireless radio
equipment, bells, electric hand tools and the like.  There would be various mergers and acquisitions throughout the decades and the plant
was almost closed in the mid-60's.  It would survive somehow and would continue up until 2005 when Emerson Tool closed shut the doors
forever and moved production to Mexico.


Cabriolet


Truck



Menominee Electric Fan


Menominee Electric Iron




Signal Manufacturing



The closed up plant today

[K_Dubb]

Wow!  That's great.  Thanks.  So now we know that Richard got very ill and died there in the hospital.  At least that's how I read it now.  Ha, somebody once told me that Walter Cronkite's last name came out of Krankenhaus.  I never did try to verify that claim.

Yes, after having been involved in the fight in Russia.

How you get Cronkite out of that is beyond me!

[Rix Gins]

Yes, after having been involved in the fight in Russia.

How you get Cronkite out of that is beyond me!

Yeah, whoever told me that was wrong. The closest to it is 'Krankheyt' from Walter's remote Dutch ancestry.  Wikipedia, ha ha.

[Rix Gins]

Re: The Menominee Electric Manufacturing Company.  I absolutely love that truck and car.  The people of 100 years ago were actually pretty forward thinking when it came to electronics. 

There is a fine looking Menominee electric fan for sale on ebay.  Asking $899.00  for it.  I forgot to check if the postage was free and I actually started to go back...but then I figured, why bother.

[Walks_At_Night]

Re: The Menominee Electric Manufacturing Company.  I absolutely love that truck and car.  The people of 100 years ago were actually pretty forward thinking when it came to electronics. 

There is a fine looking Menominee fan for sale on ebay.  Asking $899.00  for it.  I forgot to check if the postage was free and I actually started to go back...but then I figured, why bother.

9 bills?  Wow!

[Walks_At_Night]

Might have an error in the Menominee post. 

The green car is probably a 1914 Dudly Bug.  The Dudly Tool Company  also built cars in Menominee  during 1913-15

[K_Dubb]

Might have an error in the Menominee post. 

The green car is probably a 1914 Dudly Bug.  The Dudly Tool Company  also built cars in Menominee  during 1913-15

That exposed belt on the side looks like a disaster waiting to happen.

[Rix Gins]

Everett True, May 15, 1916.

[Rix Gins]

The Chicago Day Book, May 15, 1916.

[Rix Gins]

The Tonopah Daily Bonanza, May 15, 1916.

[Rix Gins]

"Notreservespital" translates as "Emergency Reserve Hospital", perhaps a portmanteau?  It certainly sounds better than Krankenhaus hahaha.  There are a few postcards from the place showing the castle; here are a couple:

Did you know that Art is a time traveler?  (Second from the right.)

[K_Dubb]

Did you know that Art is a time traveler?  (Second from the right.)

Ha!  Good eye!  No wonder he hit the deck under fire like a pro.

[K_Dubb]

The Chicago Day Book, May 15, 1916.

Good to see the hand organ mentioned!  There's something you never see any more.  I wonder why it was illegal.

Also, regarding the anti-British sentiment, I don't think it was confined to Irish and Germans.  It will be interesting to read coverage once the US enters the war -- if memory serves, there was some legitimate fear that the British were looking to use the US as just another source of colonial troops to feed into the slaughter.

[GravitySucks]

Unidentified Vine

Watercolor sketch from a botanist painted 5/15/1916 in what is now Guyana.
https://www.charlestonmuseum.org/research/collection/unidentified-vine/D531A8BE-F1D2-451A-BC13-560626689596

K_Dubb, your mission, should you decide to accept it is to identify this vine.


https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anna_Heyward_Taylor

[K_Dubb]

Unidentified Vine

Watercolor sketch from a botanist painted 5/15/1916 in what is now Guyana.
https://www.charlestonmuseum.org/research/collection/unidentified-vine/D531A8BE-F1D2-451A-BC13-560626689596

K_Dubb, your mission, should you decide to accept it is to identify this vine.


https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anna_Heyward_Taylor

Haha I'm not too good at plants, but it looks like something in the nightshade family.

[K_Dubb]

The Tonopah Daily Bonanza, May 15, 1916.

Wow, is that a Wild West story or what!  I wonder if the words "bad hombre" accompanied the sideways squints when he darkened the door of the Miners' Home.

The editor of the Bonanza is truly fearless -- first the fire chief, now women drivers!  Fun editorial to read.

[Walks_At_Night]

On May 15th, 1916 the Austrian-Hungarian Empire launched the Strafexpedition or Punitive Expedition against the Italians
in the Trentino region.   The Austrian 11th Army under  Count Viktor Dankl and the 3rd under Hermann Kövess would go up against
the defending Italian 1st Army under General Brusati.  Things would initially go well for the Austrians and they would even almost
reach the edge of the Venetian plain.  However on June 4th the Russians would attack in  Galicia and the Austrians would be forced
to withdraw.   In the end both sides combined would suffer almost 240,000 casualties. 

This particular battle would just be one of a long string that two sides would fight in the Alps. 

Count Viktor Dankl

Hermann Kövess

Roberto Brusati



A few random pictures from the Austria-Hungary | Italian campaign in the Alpine region.

[albrecht]

On May 15th, 1916 the Austrian-Hungarian Empire launched the Strafexpedition or Punitive Expedition against the Italians
in the Trentino region.   The Austrian 11th Army under  Count Viktor Dankl and the 3rd under Hermann Kövess would go up against
the defending Italian 1st Army under General Brusati.  Things would initially go well for the Austrians and they would even almost
reach the edge of the Venetian plain.  However on June 4th the Russians would attack in  Galicia and the Austrians would be forced
to withdraw.   In the end both sides combined would suffer almost 240,000 casualties. 

This particular battle would just be one of a long string that two sides would fight in the Alps. 

Count Viktor Dankl

Hermann Kövess

Roberto Brusati



A few random pictures from the Austria-Hungary | Italian campaign in the Alpine region.

Crazy. So sad. Can you imagine the causalities and death? Btw wasn't Tirol/Tyrol essentially eliminated as a state due to the aftermath of WWI? (though lots of history before hand?) Such a beautiful area by the way!

[Walks_At_Night]

Crazy. So sad. Can you imagine the causalities and death? Btw wasn't Tirol/Tyrol essentially eliminated as a state due to the aftermath of WWI? (though lots of history before hand?) Such a beautiful area by the way!

I'd have to read up on Tyrol but something along those lines sounds vaguely familiar.

It is a beautiful area.  Definitely would love to spend about a month touring around the Alps.

I read a book once - the author lived on a beach in Spain.  He had four neighbors - all WWII veterans and all from
different countries.  He eventually got their stories.  It was essentially something like this. The British guy was a
paratrooper that was involved in Market Garden and had hellish experiences.   The American served on a bomber and
was shot down over Germany and became a POW, which lead to hellish experiences.   The German was driver on a
tank and his life was one long living hell.

Then there was the Italian.  He was an Alpini which was the Italian Armies elite mountain troops.   When the Germans
invaded Russia he and his outfit were sent to help up near Leningrad.  The German commander wanted nothing to do with
them - he pointed to a couple of little hills off in the distance.  "It was like well, you are mountain troops - go hang out
in those hills".   So this guy goes up into the hills and they find a Russian village devoid of men - so they spent their
time partying with the Russian ladies.  When things started to look bleak for the Germans they simply left - it is a long
walk from Leningrad back to Italy but they eventually make it.   Once they got home they find Italy in turmoil with the
Germans and Allies slugging it out in a death match.   So they simply hike back up over the Alps into Switzerland and
rode the rest of the war out in comfort.    He had style that Italian.  Even if the tale probably was B.S.   Plus the
Alpini had bitchin' hats: