JOHN DITTMAR, an ex-merchant of Schapville, and one of the most prosperous farmers of Thompson Township, owns and operates 240 acres of prime land, one-half lying on section 22, and the balance on section 23. He ranks among the solid men of his community, being a thorough and skillful farmer, an upright business man, and one worthy of the highest consideration. He is fortunate in the possession of an estimable and amiable wife, a daughter of one of the leading German families of Thompson Township, and the cousin of Sergeant Conrad Winter, whose biography appears elsewhere in this work.

Our subject is a true son of the Fatherland, having been born in the little village of Mosbach, Germany, July 28, 1844. His parents were Erhart and Margaretta (Derleder) Dittmar, both, also, natives of Germany, born in the same province but in different villages. The father was a farmer by occupation, and the household circle was completed by the birth of seven children, six of whom grew to mature years, and came to America with their parents in 1854. They settled in Woodbine Township, this county, where the parents spent the remainder of their lives; the mother passing away in February of 1880 at the age of sixty-four years. The father died in January, 1886, when seventy-three years old. Their two eldest sons, George and Erhart, during the Civil War enlisted in Company F, 96th Illinois Infantry, and are now living; George in Kansas, and Erhart in Jo Daviess County. John, our subject, was the third son, and he also served in the Union Army. Casper did good service as a soldier in Company D, 153d Illinois Infantry, and is now a resident of Kansas; Nicholas is farming in Thompson Township; Margaretta died when about twenty years old.

The subject of this sketch was ten years old on the day his parents left their old home in Germany for the New World. They embarked on a sailing-vessel at Hamburg, and arrived in New York City on the 26th of September, 1854. After coming to this county our subject attended the German and English schools, and remembers the time when religious services were held in the house of his future father-in-law. He was trained in the doctrines of the German Presbyterian Church, and at the age of thirteen years was confirmed; the services being held in a school-house. He was made acquainted with hard work at an early age, mostly employed by the farmers of his neighborhood. When between nineteen and twenty years of age, ambitious to have a home of his own, he was united in marriage with Miss Mary, daughter of Conrad Winter, Sr., whose wife in her girlhood was Miss Margaret Glucket. Mr. Conrad Winter was of German birth and ancestry, and followed farming all his life. His family consisted of four children who grew to mature years, namely: Anna Regina, Michael, Mary, and Henry.

Mrs. Dittmar was born in the village of Zell, Germany, and was a child of six years when she crossed the Atlantic with her parents. She remembers the journey quite distinctly, and that they embarked at Hamburg on a sailing-vessel, “San Francisco,” being on the ocean six weeks. Mr. Winter was a man of much force of character and piously inclined, doing everything in his power to advance the cause of religion among his countrymen in this county, frequently having meetings at his house. He died March 10, 1879, aged seventy-one years. The mother is still living aged eighty-one, and lives with her son Henry.

After his marriage Mr. Dittmar rented the farm of his father-in-law which he conducted one year. The Civil War being then in progress, and there seeming no prospect of its immediate close, he, in February, 1865, enlisted in Company D., 153d Illinois Infantry, under command of Capt. Samuel Tompkins, and went with his regiment to Chicago, thence to Tennessee, where they were at the time of Lee’s surrender. He received his honorable discharge Sept. 21, following, and his pay later at Springfield, Ill. Upon returning home he purchased a farm of eighty-eight acres in Thompson Township, which he sold in 1870, intending to remove to Clay Centre, Kan. Upon going there, however, he was not satisfied with the outlook, and coming back purchased 120 acres in Guilford Township, this county. This he sold in 1877, and purchased a stock of general merchandise from his brother Casper, who was the first merchant of Schapville. He operated the store until 1883, then purchased his present farm.

Nine children came to bless the union of Mr. and Mrs. Dittmar, whom we record as follows: George (see note below)is carrying on farming near Clay Centre, Kan.; Amelia is the wife of Charles Trudgian of Guilford Township; Annie, Henry, Benjamin, Margaretta, Joseph, Matilda, and Daniel are at home with their parents. Mr. Dittmar, politically, is a strong Republican. He has never been ambitious for office, although serving as School Trustee five years and Assessor two years. While in the Army he contracted rheumatism, from which he suffered considerably after his return, and on account of which he became engaged in mercantile business. For the sake of his large family of boys, however, he was anxious to live upon a farm, and he has been quite successful as an agriculturist. He is popular among his neighbors, and considered one of the best men of the community.

Contributed by Carol Parrish - Portrait and Biographical Album of Jo Daviess and Carroll Counties, Illinois (1889), p. 415-419

* * Note from Joanne Temperly ( jetemperly@comcast.net ).
The George Dittmar who moved to Clay Center Kansas was a brother of John Dittmar, not a son. The son, and first child, of John and Mary Dittmar was John George, known as George, who is my grandfather. He was born on Dec. 20, 1864 in Guilford Township - died on Jan 4, 1943 in Apple River , IL