The next meeting of the Tazewell County Genealogical and Historical Society will be Tuesday, May 14th at 7 PM when Hayden Fay will be our guest speaker. The public is invited.

The TCGHS Annual “Carolyn’s Closet” Rummage Sale will be June 7th and 8th this year. Donations may be dropped off at 719 N. 11th Street during regular hours. (No clothing, TV’s or Electronics) Phone 309-477-3044 or email [email protected]  with any questions.

We are excited to be celebrating Pekin’s Bicentennial this year and we are participating on the Bicentennial planning committee. The next event is Pekin Bicentennial Trivia Night on May 22nd at the Miller Center. See you there at 6:00 pm.

All history is local until it is woven together with other stories to become part of the National fabric and there is no aspect of National history that doesn’t touch Tazewell county, including immigration.

German migrants certainly had a huge impact on Pekin’s history. Beginning as a trickle in the 1840’s followed by a wave from 1850-1900, millions of German speakers arrived in the USA and many of them settled in Pekin. 

Teis Smith (1827–1870) was known to have made several trips back to his homeland to encourage former neighbors, family, and friends to join him in Pekin where men could find plenty of work in the Wagon factory and Plow Works or perhaps, a grain elevator.

“German spoken here” signs were on many storefronts and at least six churches held their services and recorded events in German. Pekin even had a German-language newspaper.

One business that was owned by a succession of German men was the Union House and adjacent beer garden that was located at the SW corner of Second and Court.

Leonard Dietrich (1838–1919) was born in Neustadt, Germany, immigrated in 1867 with his bride Katherine Hoffman, and was the original proprietor of the Union House. He loved music and was a member of Gehrig’s band as well as other musical organizations. He left two sons, George and August as well as two daughters, Anna Winkel and Emma Apfel.

In 1893 ownership transferred to Henry Eberhard (1865–1932) who had been born in Hesse-Darmstadt. He married Mary Lautenschlager in Pekin in 1888. He only had the Union House a short time before moving to Peoria and then on to Los Angeles.

John H. Eidenmueller (1846–1927) was the next owner taking over about 1898. He was also born in Hesse-Darmstadt and had fought in the Prussian Army during the Franco-Prussian War. He married Julia Becker in Pekin in 1872. He had originally been a cobbler.

Finally, Henry Louis Taubert (1870–1934) took ownership of the Union House and its beer garden by 1908 and held it until 1930. He was a lifelong Pekin resident, having been born here to German immigrants, August and Mary Zuckweiller Taubert. He married Mary Wagler in Bloomington in 1902. He was a gifted musician and had been a member of both Bauer’s and Gehrig’s bands. He left a daughter, Dorothy Radeos and two sons—Henry who farmed in Spring Lake township and Russell K. who was better known to us old-timers as Dr.

Dr. Taubert was part of a medical group with Dr. Weimer, Dr. Rhoades, and Dr. Mitzelfelt. They were first located in an office at 30 S. 4th St., right across from Herget Bank. They later moved to 610 Park Avenue where the practice flourished for decades.

Mary Zuckweiller, mentioned above, was also a daughter of German immigrants.

Johannes Zuckweiler (1808–1871) was born in Bavaria and arrived in St. Clair County, Illinois before the 1840 census. His first wife, Barbara Lippert, died there after the birth of their 3rd child. He then married Elizabeth Reuth in 1841 before relocating to Pekin by 1850. Johannes operated a grocery store in Pekin. His children were Henry, Mary E Taubert, Caroline Reichel, Elizabeth Gebhardt, John H., and George.

Johannes and Elizabeth were buried in Old City Cemetery at the SW corner of Second and Koch. The cemetery was abandoned about 1925 and the stones were moved to Lakeview cemetery.

Henry Zuckweiler (1837–-1909) was a jeweler, watchmaker, and engraver who held a patent on a trolling-hook. It was a bass fly with a tiny silver spoon to prevent tangles with underwater weeds. He later brought his sons into the business located at 228 Court St. in 1908. After Henry’s passing, the sons only kept the business for about nine years. Zuckweiler Jewelry was last listed in the 1918 city directory.

We have many photos that are unidentified so we feature them on our website in hopes of finding someone that can recognize the subjects. One of those photos is included in this article. Please let us know if you recognize even one person in the image.

The Tazewell County Genealogical & Historical Society is an award-winning 501c3, all volunteer organization that has been in continuous service to our members and the public for over 45 years. TCGHS operates an archive, library and research facility at 719 N. 11th St., Pekin. Visit our website at www.tcghs.org to learn more about us.

If you have any point of interest that you would like to know more about, stop in at TCGHS or drop us a line at [email protected].