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FUNERAL SERVICES OF GEORGE KURTZ HELD WEDNESDAYAttended by Members of the, Elks, G. . A. R. and W. R.| C. and Large Number of Jamestown Citizens.Funeral of the late George W. Kurtz was held Wednesday afternoon at the Elks hall, and was attended by the members of the B. P. O. Elks, who sat In a body, by the^ members of the local post, G. A. R., and the Woman's Relief Corps. The • hall was well filled with citizens both from the city and the county. The casket was covered with floral clusters and emblems and on either side of the platform of the Grand Exalted Ruler, were floral tributes sent by | individuals. The Elks ritual of bur-I ial was given by the officers of the i lodge, Wallace Ruud rendered solos. The pall bearers were Morris Beck, L. B. Nlemeyer, G. W. Thorp, D. Brockman. H. W. Kelley and C. A. Klaus. At the conclusion of the Elks service each member of the lodge, present arose, passed in front of the casket, and dropped a flower on the flag-draped, flower-deeked bier, a touching and significant act of remembrance and regard.Rev: C. H. Phillips delivered brief biographical sketch of the life nnd civic activities of Mr. Kurtz. He referred In fitting terms to the kindly disposition of the deceased, to ljls interest in the lodge, and to- his worthiness as a-member of the ord-He mentioned the diminishing number of the G. A. R. members of the local post, nine of whom wore present, eleven In all being left among the living.Among Mr. Kurtz's prominent characteristics were his devotion to his home life, his affection as a husband, and father. No eltlzen of the community, said the speaker, ever took a greater pride in the local activities of the city, nor a more active part In the affairs of his community. Mr. Kurtz always felt blmBelf closely identified with Jamestown and has seen it grow from a mere village. He felt a fatherly pride in the growth in popu-lt; lation, the installing of publte Im-J provementa, and the increase of pro-1 , perty Interests. He will be mlssod I In the civic affairs of Jamestown. He I was the first marshal of the day at the first Fourth of July celebration t, in 1880, and has officiated in that | capacity, at every similar event i since the first. 'His , last appear-| anco heading the line of march, was ; on Flag day. In June last. He serv-t ed the city as alderman, and for I several years was park commlsslon-i1 er. The laying out and development of the three city parks of Jamestown were the work of Mr. Kurtz, and to some extent will be his monument In the remembrance of the citizens. Under his personal direction the Klaus park, Nlckeus park and the Fair Gounds park have become at-| tractive beauty spots, popular with - young and old. and useful adjuncts i to the city’s advantages.| Enlisted When a BoyThe early life of the deceased was i spent in Wisconsin to which state I he was brought by his parents when r 8 years of age having been born in t , Coblenz,- Germany.. He enlisted, as i ’a drummer boy, at the age of 15, in . ! a Wisconsin regiment, and re-en-r , listed at the age of 17, remaining 1 1 in service unyi the close of the Civil war. When still in the service he marched from Kansas City to Fort Rice, Dakota Territory, and to Bismarck. During his war service he was In the hospital for a few months and it is believed that the illness which required his presence at the hospital lingered to some ex-, tent thruout life. He was planning . ! on attending the coming G. A. R en-i 1 campment at Indianapolis, and has attended many of the national en-, ! campments during the later years of ! . his life. He realized that his health was precarious and during the last , | few weeks has made business ar-I rangements, looking to the welfare | of his wife and putting his affairs in , 1 ship-shape. He has spent the last six winters in Florida, at St. Peters-i burg. In which city he built an attractive little home, which he soldand last year replaced it with an I other even larger,-and more con-. venient and this winter residence he 1 expected to occupy beginning in Oct-, ober.I | Mr. Kurtz was married in 1868 to i Anna Buhl, children of which mar-. rlago were John Kurtz of Buchanan I and Mrs. Dehne of Pingree.. I In 1875 he married Dora Rohlfss * of New Holstein, Wls. Of the last t marriage there were five children, I George, of Weyburn, Sask.. Albert, , ' who died in 1918, Edward of Shafer. , N. D. Mns. Caroline/ Anderson,, Jamestown and Leonard of Milufau-; kee. Mr. Kurtz was grandfather of .1 twenty eight children fifteen by the children of his first' marriage and . j thirteen from the second marriage.I His business life Jn Jamestown be-f gan in 1879. He was engaged in the , implement business and for a num-j her of years followed farming on the 1 ■ well known Kurtz farm north of the city. He served as alderman for . ] several years. Mr. Kurtz will be | missed by the citizens of Jamestown 1 with whom he has long been a fam-l iliar figure He was a frugal, industrious and gifted with an abundant stock of comlmon sense. He was thoughtful of others and took pride in doing what came to his hands, thoroly and well. He was a genial companion and, in the memories of his old friends, this comradeship will linger long.'There was a large representation of family membership at the funeral, the children present being Edward, Leonard, George, John. Mrs. Dehne and Mrs. Anderson, besides the widow Mrs. G. W. Kurtz.The funeral service at the grave was conducted by the G. A. R. members, Christian Schmitt, leader. aBd Comrade Kneeland acted as a chaplain. Interment was In the Kurti lot where lie the remains of a eon, the plot being marked by * handsome family monument.
Newspaper Details
Jamestown Weekly Alert
Jamestown, North Dakota, US
Thu, Aug 26, 1920
Page 8
Full Page
Clipped by
Anonymous
CA 18 Mar 2024
Other Publications Near Jamestown, North Dakota
The Jamestown Alert
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