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Last week we learned about Gertrud and Hubert Rauen who homesteaded here in 1861. They had 12 children but only seven lived to adulthood – six boys and one girl. In 1870 they lost four children - 8-year-old Margaretha, on July 22, 7-year-old Anna on July 29, 2-month-old Leonard on September 22, and his twin, 6-month-old Johann on December 25. In 1870 diphtheria was rampant around here and most likely the cause.
The family carried on and four more children were born, including another daughter which was also named Margaretha.
In 1896 the now grown “Rauen Bros.” opened a saloon in the old mill house, the exact location of which is unknown. Eight years later in 1901, the Rauen Bros. purchased the downtown northwest corner lot from John Freund and erected a large new building for “saloon purposes” which still stands today at 2008 Main Street.
Son Mathias “Math”, who was born in 1873, ran the saloon and put his name was on the awning. In the first photo above, Math stands in the doorway and some signage can be read on the windows: “Wine…Liquors…Cigars & Billiard Tables”. A Schlitz Beer sign hangs over the door. Schlitz was the biggest producer of beer in 1902. The interior photo of the saloon shows Math raising a glass, but unfortunately, the other fellows’ names have been lost to history.
The last photo was from 1921 or later. 1921 was the year the Illinois Prohibition Act went into effect. The name of the establishment was changed to Math Rauen’s Buffet. The beer sign and other window signs advertising wine and liquor are now gone.
In 1905, Math was elected as one of two Highway Commissioners for Burton Township. His saloon business must have been doing well because in 1915 he purchased a new Kimball piano and the next year a Jackson car, most likely from his brother, Joseph, the Jackson agent in town. Mathias married Catharina Freund the year the saloon opened in 1901. They were married for 65 years when he died at age 93.
Son John, who was born in 1877, worked as a laborer for JJ Freund. He was serving as mayor of Spring Grove when he died in 1954 at age 87, after a short illness. He spent his lifetime in Spring Grove, where his cheerful manner won him “a host of friends who will miss him deeply” according to his obituary. He served as mayor for five years.
The youngest of the bunch, William, was born in 1879. William was elected as one of two Constables in 1905 and Burton Township Treasurer in 1910. In 1910 he also ran an ice cream parlor in town and owned a home here before moving to Kenosha around 1920.
Son Michael was born in 1868. He was a resident of Spring Grove his whole life and worked as a painter. In 1902, he was a witness for the prosecution in a case against Earl Waterman of Spring Grove. Waterman was carrying a concealed weapon for which he was fined $25. Michael had seven children with his wife Catharina and died in 1941.
Story by Laura Frumet
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