(By Arthur Bohnen, August 19, 1974)
It all started when Nichlos Bohnen (born
in Bernkastel on the Mosel) met Maria Jochim at a teachers
convention in Alsace Lorraine (Alsace Lorraine belonged to
France then, this location for a teachers convention in the late
1860s. ). Both were, by the then standards, well educated,
refined and artistic persons. Nichlos's father and grandfather
were teachers, Organists and conductors. The mass which Nichlos
composed at the age of 26 was still (1937) being sung in the
Rhine country. He left Germany before the Franco-Prussian war
(1870-71 in which France lost Alsace-Lorraine to Prussia) to
avoid military service.
Marie Jochim was a teacher in the Hocheren
Toechter School in Trier on the Mosel (she was born in Leiwen
on the Mosel). Her mother was said to be Italian. An
uncle of her father was a Lieutenant general in the army of
Napoleon III of France. Her last position was as governess
to the lord of Bernkaselle on the Mosell.
Marie followed Nichlos to America (about
1870) where they were married in Buffalo N.Y.(Erie, Penn.
per her obit.) in 1870. Nichlos received a position in
school and church institution for the Deaf and dumb in Erie
Penn. It was here that the first three children were born,
Elizabeth, Carl and Nicholas.
For some matter of health the family left
Erie (about 1876. They were living in Nicollet Co., about 70
mi SW of St. Paul in the 1880 Mn census) for Meyers Grove
Minnesota. As a parting gift, and for his excellent work with
the children of the school, Nichlos was presented with a
gold headed stick or cane. The head of which was inscribed in
German. (I now have this in my possession). It was always said
in the family that the wood of the stick cane from some remnant
of admiral Perrys flagship in the Battle of lake Eire.
As children we heard many tales of Meyers
Grove. While what follows is hearsay yet there must be a large
element of truth in the content. Nichlos's job was many fold. He
taught in the school, the only teacher. He was the sexton of the
church next to where the family lived. He was the organist for
the church services and the boys pumped the organ. This
was a German community so the spoken words were German. within
the family German was also the language so all of the children
became bilingual. Stories of Meyers Grove were part of my
heritage but the episodes are now gone. One remains clear.
Grandfather made a band out of the boys in the school. He sent
away for the various instruments. When they arrived he had to
learn how to play each and everyone so as to teach the boys how
to play their allocated instrument. This is how
Carl became a
snare drummer. Years later the alto and tenor horns were still
in our attic. Brother Roman taught himself how to play them and
so became a neighborhood character as he went about tooting on
the horns. This early training with instruments carried over
into adult life. John later became a clarinetist with both the
St. Paul and Los Angeles Symphony orchestra. John and Aloys were
born in Meyers Grove. Somewhere along the line Carl learned the
violin and piano as did some of the other children. Nichlos was
a good musician. while in Buffalo or Eire he played with a
a string quartet for the the Prince of Wales, Edward 7th, at the
Crystal Palace at Montreall on the occasion of his visit there.
So music has always been a part of Bohnen life.
I think a quotation from a letter to me from
brother
Roman just after the death of his wife Hildur tells the
story of Meyers Grove in our lives..."We've talked a lot
of the earlier days. All to the good. I happen to love that
Meyers Grove tradition- the madcap family, the whole historical
situation,- the native love that went coursing through the veins
of those ego centric Bohnens, at each others throats quite
unselfconsciously like a healthy little wolf pack... One could
say "with birth control there wouldn't have been quite such a
big family ", - but I prefer that ignorance in a way - I mean I
think I envy the blind daring that launches such a brood into
the world,- otherwise you are 'saving yourself' like an over
trained athlete on the premise that your creative function in
society is so god damm important that it mustn't get bogged down
by too much domestic responsibility. I guess I'm not really
prepared to defend my contribution to society on this basis. I
think my blood and marrow is comparatively superior, and, in the
long run it would probably have been most creative to
launch a dozen 'ambassadors without portfolio' down into the
corridors of time ".
Somewhere along this corridor Carl went to
nearby St. Johns University at Collegeville in
Minnesota in 1892. Here he won a diploma for booking and
Penmanship. We had this Diploma framed in an elaborate frame,
size about 24 x 36 inches, in our attic. Here Carl made many
friend of years long standing both with his fellow classmates
and with the Benedictine order. One class mate later became
rector or superior. There is a print of Dad's latter date
portrait of him. It was at St. Johns in 1912 that we had the
only family vacation I can recall.
About 1930 Gladys and I made a trip to
northern Minnesota and stopped to see what Meyers Grove looked
like at that time. It was still a small, sleepy spot on
the map. Dad made one trip back there and proved the old saw
that it is a mistake to go back as it only spoils the fantasies
which you had created. But he left his mark on the bar room
mirror in the form of a soap drawings of the dog who would have
caught the rabbit if he had not stopped to answer a call of
nature.
I will guess that in about the mid 1890's
that what was left of the family moved to St. Paul (a
letter written to Carl from Elizabeth, March 17, 1993 was sent
from St. Cloud, 30 miles from Meyer's Grove, also she wrote a
letter to Carl, Oct 31, 1892 from St. Martin, Minn. about 20
miles south-east of Meyer's Grove. She lived in these locations
while apprenticing and working) where Nichlos became
the organist of the pro-cathredal (I don't know what a pro-cathredal
is!) and a teacher of music. I think there was an
intermediate stop at St. Peters (St. Peter is about 60 miles
S-W of St. Paul in Nicollet Co., where they lived in the 1880
census).
From here on in I have some recollections.
Carl was the only one married at the turn of the century. The
others were still at home. Their house was in a part of town
known as Frog Town. This was the center of German and Polish
ethnic groups. In front Grandmother had two Oleander trees
in tubs that had to be kept in the cellar during the winter. The
cellar also contained a barrel in which sauerkraut was made,
weighted down with a big stone. There was a garden in the rear
for both vegetables and flowers. There is a story that I picked
flowers here, only I picked only the flower and not the stems.
In the house there were geraniums on the window sills, also
dishes with black flypaper in water. In the living room was a
square piano from which Grandpa gave lessons. There were also
violins and cellos about. I have a distinct picture of grandpa
up on a ladder hanging storm sash above his head. Suddenly it
lost balance and came crashing down on his head. Then a torrent
of German from both him and grandma of which all I remember is
"du alte lump". For winter protection the exposed cellar
foundation was covered with horse manure which in turn was
covered with tarpaper held in place with lath nailed with tin
washers the size of half dollars. To me this was play money.
Then came the tragedy. The story was that
Grandpa had pared a corn (must be on his foot) with a
razor. It became infected, gangrene set in and his leg had be to
amputated above the knee. From this point on, this man of grate
energy, vitality and aggressiveness began a slump from which he
never recovered. A family conclave led to the grandparents
moving in with us on Ramsey Hill.
One last recollection of Frog Town. On the
corner across the street from the Bohnen house was a saloon with
a hall over it. I have a dim recollection of a Polish wedding
taking place there which went on for several days with great
feasting and drinking taking place, all with attendant music and
dancing.
After the amputation there was a period when
an effort was made to continue the old household, But things
went from bad to worse. Nichalos grew heavy, found it hard to
move about even with his crutches, he became intolerant of his
students and lost them, so moving in with us was the old fashion
way of taking care of one's elders. Also I suppose that the
money contribution from the rest of the family was a help to the
Carl Bohnen budget. There was a back stair from kitchen to
bedroom and bath at Ramsey Hill. Nicholas made this trip as
infrequent as possible and sat for the most part in a captains
chair at the foot of the stair. It was not too long after coming
to us that he died (his DC states that he died of gangrene
of the leg 3/29/1911). Grandmother continued to live with us until
we left for Europe (in 1914).
I believe I can best portray the rest of that
family by taking them up one by one. Elizabeth, Lizzie to the
family and friends, had a millenary shop. I recall it as a
couple of glass showcases either side of the aisle as you
entered. Herein were feathers, ribbons, bird wings etc. all of
the items which went into the making of hats for the ladies of
that era. In the back was the workshop where she employed some
people. She was a talented person and had a good clientele.
There was a cash drawer under the counter which rang a bell when
it was opened. The money change lay in a wooden shelf into which
round concave depressions had been made to hold the coins. In
the store front windows were samples of the current offerings.
Lizzie was a highly emotional person given to crying at the
slightest provocation. It was the hope of the boys to have her
get married. This she finally did to an Arthur Teuchert. He was
a German of recent immigration and worked as a bookkeeper for
George Sommer Company a wholesale distributor. Somehow I recall
that he made the magnificent salary of $125 a
month..regularly. The wedding party is shown in a picture in the
album. All I remember..and in those days kids were taken to all
social events as there were no baby sitters in those days.. was
that a couple of Teucherts friends, from his office, also
recently arrived Germans, left their red Windsor ties soaking in
drinking glasses. Teuchert was a military man and fastidious in
his dress etc. Lizzie was sloppy, a poor housekeeper and weepy. We never liked to go to her house for we
always left with disgust at the menage. Grandma who went to her
to help from time to time always came home with a great sense of
relief to be back in our well ordered household. There were
three children, Fritz, who looked like his father, Marian, who
had a Bohnen nose, and last Harriet. All three used the crib
which had been Nichlos's contribution to my birth and which when
last seen could have been used indefinitely. Arthur got
connected with the national Guard and rose to a high command.
When we went to Germany he gave Bud and me the metal eagles
which were from officers caps. These we wore in Munich on our
felt mountain hats. Later on Teuchert got into trouble with
another woman and peculation (embezzlement) for which he
was sentenced. John (Hans) having gone to California in
the mean time had Lizzie and her children come out there. I
think the last time I saw the family was when Grandmother who
had gone to live with them, when we left Holly ave., was sick.
This was while we were at the university. I have recently had
some correspondence with Dennis, Marian's son and John, Harriets
son called to see me one day this year on his way to Europe.
Alyos who was also in California was close to the family. How
they managed to get along I have no idea.
Carl was the second born and since he was my
father I have a special story (story is missing) to cover
his career. He was the runt in a family of taIl men but also the
leader in the early days. He gave jobs to Al and Nic in his
studio. (In a letter to Justice Butler in 1937 Carl wrote
about his artistic accomplishments. He studied art at the Royal
Academy in Munich during WW1. In 1928 he went to Paris and
painted for five years. He also studied in Italy and England,
making his total stay in Europe twelve years. He had two
paintings at the University of Chicago and painted five full
size portraits of different governors which were hanging in the
Minnesota State capitol.)
Uncle Nic, as we always addressed him was a
quite type of person. very steady and at hand when needed. He
was a candy salesman in the area and carried a sample case which
always intrigued us when we saw him. It had expandable trays
like a tackle box in which the samples were glued down. We could
look at the case with desire but - no touch-. He had the first
automobile in the family. I don't know the make but I recall the
brass lamps, brass bound windshield and the brass rods
supporting it. There was the carbide tank on the running board
to serve the lamps. When Nic married Edna it was a
family bash. She was a fat woman with a hairy lip. She was loud
and domineering. We never could see what Nic saw in her. The
boys resented her for she would nibble a chocolate to see if the
filling satisfied her and we were given the damaged pieces. She
was sort of jovial and bossed Nic about. Nic became the partner
of the Funke Candy Company of La Crosse Wis. and set up the
Funke-Bohnen Candy Company. It was he who gave me the job of
making special deliveries while I was still in Grammar school.
The store was on 3rd street behind which the bluff fell to the
railroad tracks on the river bank. Under the store were a whole
series of caves cut out of the white sandstone cliffs. Some were
used as additional store rooms. This is all gone now with the
redeslgn of downtown St. Paul. Other wholesale houses were
neighbors.. Booth Fisheries.. and a Legal Publishing house,
among others. Further north was the police station with stairs
alongside it going down to the red light district. Coming from
school with my newspaper boy classmates we used this stair as a
short cut to downtown..also to 'rush the can' for some of the
inmates of the houses there..an easy nickel or dime tip. Nina
Richards was the best known of the madames with the best house.
She drove about town behind a pair of tawny and white horses
pulling a beautiful equipage. The ostrich feathers in her hat
blowing in the breeze.
All the above is an aside from Uncle Nic but
I was reminded of it by the reference to 3rd street. Also George
Lamb used to tell the story of being in St. Paul and seeing a
news item of Nina's death. So he claims that he called up some
of the most prominent names in town posing as her attorney and
saying that Nina had left the request that he be a pall bearer
at her funeral. As George told the story, the reaction he got
from the men he called was hilarious.
Back to Uncle Nic... When we got back from
Europe he gave Bud a job as a salesman and he was so good at it
that Nic wanted him to keep on. So this was the after school Job
Bud had his first year at the University. It bogged down with
the distances involved and the short time after late classes.
Edna died and Nic remarried (1935-6) a demure widow
(Susie, who had been Nic's mistress while he was married to
Edna. She was a lovely and charming and loved Nic very
much--Harriet) who after Nic's death (in 1950-1)
remarried someone in Iowa.
Aloys was the baby of the family. He worked
for Carl in his old Broadway studio but wanted to get better
training. He went to New York to study. He was a Henri student.
His close friend was Cristodora (a sculptor) and Van
Sloan of San Francisco (an actor). The two shared a
studio. I have a few of his paintings. He would return to St.
Paul from time to time and these were occasion for his spigitti
dinners for a group of St. Paul artists etc. Mother would
say afterwards that he soiled more pots etc. than anyone else
ever did for a similar event. When we lived on Dayton and
Uncle Hans lived with us circa 1907 Al also stayed with us. He
and Hans gave Bud and I the admission. to see Buffalo Bills'
circus out at Lexinton Ave. We were only 8 or 9 years old at the
time. But we went. The jam at the ticket wagon was so great, we
were so small and the window so high in the wagon that we were
being trampled underfoot. We would never have made it if a cop
and a fireman had not put us on their shoulders to get through
the crowd and up to the window. It was a great experience and I
can still picture the events in the rings..whooping indians,
shooting cowboys, Anny Oakie shooting glass balls, the
pioneer prairie train surrounded by indians only to be rescued
by the Cavalry at the last minute. We had spent our car fare for
Cracker Jack or some such and had to walk home after dark to a
concerned family..that is all but Hans and Al. I believe we were
spanked as mother had not been at home when we were sent off.
When we went to Europe we saw Al in New York
and again when we returned. As we were several weeks in New York
at that time, Al took us and some friends to bathe at the then
far away Rock-Away beach. All of us got a real dose of
sunburn. Al was a friend of the founder of the Theosophists
Society and she gave him a studio on Point Loma near San Diego
California (It was Mrs. Lyman Gage, not Madame Tingley--Harriet).
So he sort of dropped out of sight. But he did come to Chicago
about 1933 and stayed with me..it must have been fall for Mother
was there also. We had a nice time renewing acquaintances. He
was always my favorite uncle. I suppose because we were suppose
to look something alike. I next saw him when I was in San Diego
doing the shopping center there for War Housing. I did not get
to see his studio for some reason. I never saw him again but the
news was bad. A fire gutted his studio destroying most of his
lives work. He was very friendly with the Teuchert children and
Bud saw him from time to time. He retired to some place in Santa
Anna where he died. I forgot to mention that he sent me while we
were in University, costumes he had designed for some party in
New York. I used his drawings for a Garrick Club party and me
and my date wore the costumes. I saved them for years but don't
know what happened to them.
I am suddenly aware that I skipped Uncle
John (Hans). He played with the St. Paul Symphony
( Minneapolis Symphony--Harriet) and so was a member of
some of the after show performances which took place at our
house. I recall one such jam session that took place at our
Fuller St. house. A keg of beer was a necessary part of such
meetings. One of the people was baby Bliss, a 300 lb. violinist.
Bud and I slept in an alcove off of the living room while the
party took place in the kitchen, we could sneak out a bit and
see what was going on. Baby Bliss sat on a chair on the kitchen
table playing the Irish Washerwoman while the rest did an
accompaniment with mothers pots and pans..so Jam sessions are
not a current phenomena. He also played in theaters, cafes
etc. When he lived with us on Dayton Ave. he would pace the
floor by the hour practicing. His mirror always had reeds stuck
to the glass to make them straight. He played at the Nankin Inn
in Minneapolis where the pianist was a most attractive girl,
Lena. A smiling, quite person. They were married. As she was an
only child her family did not want to let go of her so they
lived together. The father-in-law was a carpenter and had
built a nice house but this arrangement gave out tensions. A
child, Edna, was born.. So when Rothwell the conductor of the
St. Paul Sympathy went to Los Angeles, Hans went with him and
was latter divorced (and remarried Betty) He did very
well in California becoming Assistant Director of the Fox
Movietone orchestra. I never did see him after he went to
California nor his wife Lena. Little Edna called on me in the
mid 1930s after she had been divorced from her husband (Edna
now lives in Sequim, Washington).
That about winds up the Bohnens. There may be
other associations come to mind as I write up other stories so
they will have to take their place at that time.
Here are a few comments about Al from
Bud (Roman) who would see him in LA: " Uncle Al,
who commands quite a lot of respect from me, because he seems to
still keep his philosophical 'bin' in high personal good order,
like an excellent cat. Al mentioned so often the good time he
had with you (Dad) when he was in the middle west last. You must
have given him the works. He certainly is a very attractive
fellow. His bland fatalism and mild detachment from this
vigorous dynamic world (that we are supposed to be living in)
gives him a very enviable relaxation. And there is an equivalent
easiness and looseness about his work. Very commendable on its
own level. But there you have it. You can't beat the game!
If you lead a purposeless life you'll do purposeless work. I
feel he indulges in the luxury of being unharrassed, and by the
same token cuts the balls off of his cumulative creativity as an
artist. But I am not giving him the needle. Far from it. To pass
Judgment on a man you must first examine his fundamental
intention. Al's intention is by no means to be the finest
artist he can possibly be. If that were his intention he would
be a pretty dismal failure, for he hasn't begun to use his
talents in any hard-hitting, penetrating way toward that
end. But that's his business. His basic intention seem to
be to avoid the cloying vicissitudes of life, to amuse himself
with his work. Well, if he succeeds or doesn't succeed at it,
the world will never be the wiser. That's really too bad in a
way, (since he has a gift) but it is not serious. There are
already plenty of art treasures in the world... so you
can't exactly call it a duty for a man to strain his guts
and make himself unhappy trying to be immortal. Do you know what
I feel ? - it is this- if a man can cash in his chips and feel
that his life has made sense to him, that's about all one should
ask; except perhaps that he should also want the life around
him to make sense,- and that he should therefore do a wee bit in
that direction too. So that, -when all is said and done,
his personal comfort lies in the first point and his
contribution lies in the second" (Alloys lived for 86 years,
longer than any of his four married siblings (he was married in
New York for a short time to Eloie). So perhaps there is
merit in living an "unharrassed" life).
Added note... Hans was one of the first to
play saxophone with an orchestra. I can see him as he practiced
the clarinette..it pulled his nose down and his chin
up....Mother summed the family up when she said that the Bohnens
were all night hawks.
Arthur Bohnen-Evanston, Ill, 1974
