My Genealogy Hound

RENIHOLD C. SUPPE, a self-made man, whose diligence and enterprise have been the salient features in bringing to him success, now follows farming in North township, Woodson County. He was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, August 12, 1859, and is the son of Frederick and Johanna (Frolich) Suppe. The father was a native of Prussia, and the mother of Saxony, Germany, and in their native land they were married, coming thence to the New World in 1854. Crossing the Atlantic they landed at New York and there Mr. Suppe was greeted with the news that the ship on which he had sent his household goods had been wrecked in a storm and had sunk in the sea. He and his wife were therefore left without anything losing all of their household effects and fifty dollars in money. In 1858 Mr. Suppe removed to Cincinnati, and in that year worked at the carpenters trade, which he followed continuously until after the inauguration of the Civil war in 1861. His patriotic spirit prompted his enlistment and he became a member of the Seventh Ohio infantry, with which he remained for three years, participating in many hotly contested battles including the engagements at Antietam, the Wilderness, Missionary Ridge and the Vicksburg campaign. When the war was ended he returned to Cincinnati and worked in railroad shops until 1868, when he removed to Saline County Missouri where he is still residing at the age of seventy-five years. His wife passed away in 1898 at the age of seventy-two years. They were the parents of seven children, of whom four are now living, namely: Mary; Renihold C.; William and Bertha.

Mr. Suppe, whose name forms the caption of this review, learned the carpenters trade under the direction of his father in his boyhood days becoming a good workman. He was married on the 5th of September, 1883, to Miss Elizabeth Kaul who has been to him a faithful companion and helpmate on the journey of life. They were schoolmates in childhood and there formed a friendship which ripened into love as the years passed by. The lady is a daughter of Peter Kaul, a native of Germany, who wedded Mary Reidenback who was also born in the fatherland. They came to America in 1855 when young people and were married in this country. They then took up their abode in Wisconsin, and later moved to Missouri where they farmed about 30 years and in the spring of 1884 they settled in Woodson County, Kansas, where he bought 420 acres of land cultivating it with success, where they are still living, Mr. Kaul being sixty-nine years of age while his wife is seventy-one. They had seven children; Jacob; Carl; Charles; Lizzie and Mary, twins; John, Lena and Peter.

After the marriage of Mr. and Mrs. Suppe, they began their domestic life upon a farm in Missouri, which he operated for two years and in 1885, he located in Jackson County, Kansas, where he rented a tract of land and, in connection with its cultivation, worked at the carpenter’s trade. In 1894 he came to Woodson County and purchased a farm of one hundred and sixty acres, partially improved, and situated twelve miles northwest of Yates Center. He handles what cattle and horses his farm will support and is engaged in the production of such cereals as are best adapted to this climate. He has good crops and his labors are crowned with a gratifying degree of success. He made his start in life by working by the month for twelve and one-half dollars; today he is the owner of a valuable farm property, and is numbered among the successful agriculturists of the community.

Unto Mr. and Mrs. Suppe have been born six children, namely: Gertie, Fred, Carl, Ida, Raymond and Esther, all of whom are yet under the parental roof. The household is noted for its hospitality and good cheer and the members of the family have many friends in the community. In his political views Mr. Suppe is a Republican and has always taken an active interest in politics. In the fall of 1900 he was elected township trustee for a term of two years and has served on the school board for a number of years, dispatching his official duties with promptness and fidelity. His life has been a busy and upright one, and throughout his active and honorable career, he has enjoyed the esteem and confidence of his fellow men.