Biography - Frederick Reese
Frederick W. REESE, deceased, was born in Hanover, Germany, on August 1, 1824; his home was in the country, and, at the age of five years he was an orphan; he learned the trade of cabinet-making in his native town, and afterward traveled as journeyman cabinet-maker, working but a few years in any one place; he occupied his time in this manner until he was twenty-eight years old. In 1854, he came to the United States; his boat freezing in the Mississippi River necessitated his walking to St. Louis, where he found employment, but, when the summer came on, he left the city on account of the cholera epidemic, and located at Redbud, Randolph Co., Ill., where he married, in January of the following year, Miss Christiana GEYER, a native of Saxony, Germany, who proved a helpmeet by working industriously, shoulder to shoulder, with him, almost day and night, at first, in order to help him get a good start in life, her part of the work being the varnishing and sand-papering of the furniture he made. After his marriage, he worked at carpentering, and in the winter at cabinet-making. He came to Litchfield in 1860, and worked for a while for Mr. WHITAKER at cabinet-making, managing his business while that gentleman was absent. In about 1862, he opened a shop of his own for the manufacture of furniture, engaging in the sale of it and in the undertaking business; he at first started on Ryder street, but the rapid and steady increase of his business caused him to move to State street, where he built a large brick store, occupying it until his death, on July 24, 1880; he had no capital when he came, and, in twenty years, made, by his own labor and careful management, a handsome competency. He was a Master Mason; in politics, he was a Republican; he had six children, who are living. When he died, Litchfield lost a worthy citizen.
Extracted 19 Nov 2016 by Norma Hass from 1882 History of Bond and Montgomery Counties, Illinois, Part 2 Biographical Department, page 166.
