|
William and Emma Oeffling Kattner lived at 1816 Main Street from about 1923 – 1946, after they retired from farming. (William’s father was August Kattner. He died in a tragic farming accident in 1878. August was living on the Overton farm on South Solon Road and one day was helping a neighbor butcher hogs. While standing on a sled pulling the hog in and out of a scalding barrel, he slipped, lost his hold, fell over backwards and struck his head, killing him almost instantly. One report said his neck was broken, while another said, “his head was all mashed in”. He was only 48 and left behind a wife and eight kids, including William who was 16.)
William and Emma had six children who were all grown by 1923. Daughter Matilda "Tillie", her husband, Frank May, and their children lived around the corner on East Street. In 1932 Emma had “an illness” which left her “an invalid” and caused her death 14 years later in 1946 at age 83. William's son, Arthur, and his family moved in with William after her death and he died three years later. They are buried in St. Peter Cemetery.
The house was located next to Paul Weber’s Garage, and you can see his tow truck in one of the pictures, which is a screenshot of a home movie Paul made in 1941. The house was probably built around 1902 and originally had an open front porch with railings and pretty fretwork along the top of the porch roof. The porch was closed-in at some point, but still had windows until the house was rehabbed around 2010. The double hung windows and small attic vent at the front peak were replaced at that time also.
Other families that lived here were the Engles family in the 1940s, the Shaefer family in the 1950s and Pat & Jean Kagan in the 1960s – 70s.
Story by Laura Frumet
| 
