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Author Archives: SCblogger
Oh, I wish I were an Oscar Mayer wiener…
This Saturday, July 16th, is National Hot Dog Day, so it seems like a good time to profile one of Davenport’s largest employers, and its predecessor. Henry Kohrs was born in Holstein, Germany on November 15, 1830. He immigrated to … Continue reading
Posted in Local History
Tagged Davenport (Iowa), Henry Kohrs, hot dogs, Kohrs Packing Company, Meat packing industry, Oscar Mayer
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Have You Seen: Mrs. Millie Berger?
Every so often, we’re going to post the image (and available information) of a person, place, or thing about which we would like to know more. We would like to invite you to take a good look, and if you … Continue reading
Introducing America’s GenealogyBank
We are pleased to announce that we’ve subscribed to another terrific online genealogy resource: America’s GenealogyBank. This resource is user friendly—our staff enjoying experimenting with it!—and offers some keyword searching. Its five databases can help researchers find family members, verify … Continue reading
Posted in Genealogy, Library, Local History
Tagged America's GenealogyBank, Genealogy, library, Local History, new resources, Online Indexes
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One hundred years ago: Davenport High School, Class of 1911
In June of this year, around 970 students graduated from our three Davenport high schools. In contrast, ninety-two students received their diplomas from Davenport High School in June of 1911. This marked the first time that graduates from both semesters were … Continue reading
Summer is here!
And about time, too. Summer river outing, ca. 1890s This image shows nineteen people and one brave little boat sitting pretty low in the water, on a “Summer River Outing”, 1890’s style. This 4 x 6 inch postcard is part of our … Continue reading
Posted in Local History
Tagged Canoes, Franciscan Sisters, Photographs, Postcards, Rivers, Summer
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Summit Cemetery: Memories of a Rural Past
It catches the eye. Nestled amongst more elaborate headstones in Summit Cemetery is a small wooden grave marker. It is simply engraved “Lena Smith 1915 – 1932.” One cannot walk by, but feels the need to stop and ponder about … Continue reading
New Feature: Have You Seen . . . ?
One of our ongoing projects is to scan and research each image in our photograph collections. Most of the time, this is relatively (no pun intended) easy. The majority of our Hostetler glass negatives, for example, came with an original … Continue reading
“One of the grandest soldiers the North had . . . “
While we take the time to remember and honor the men and women of our armed forces who have fought to keep our country and people safe, it seems fitting that we also remember those civilians who have fought to … Continue reading
The Davenport Glucose Works
Corn, as everyone knows, isn’t just for eating on the cob. The possibilities for corn products appear to be endless: ethanol, plastics, liquors, starches, packing material, fabrics—and of course, corn syrups. It seems like corn syrup has been part of … Continue reading
Remembering Police Officer James W. Means
James Wilson Means was born in Pennsylvania around 1824, reared and married in Ohio, and then settled in Davenport around 1855 with his young family. By the spring of 1883, Mr. Means was a respected officer with the Davenport Police Department. … Continue reading
