Gerhard Henry Brockhaus

Like a flash of lightning from the clear sky came the news of the death of Gerhard H. Brockhaus at the home of his son Joseph, who resides south of town, at an early hour Thursday morning. Mr. Brockhaus had been ailing for the past few years, but he never had any illness of a serious nature. He retired early as usual Wednesday evening without the slightest complaint of feeling ill. Thursday morning his son went into his room and found him lying in bed dead. The old gentleman had passed quietly away sometime in the early hours. His hands were folded reverently across his breast and he appeared to be in a profound sleep, but it was the sleep from which there is no awakening until "Judgment Day." His death was presumably caused by a weak heart and a general breaking down of his whole system.

Gerhard H. Brockhaus was born February 10, 1828 at Osnabruck, Germany, and he would have been eighty-five years of age had he lived until February 10, 1913.

At the age of twenty years, he game to the United States and settled on a farm in the State of Maryland. After a few years' residence there, he moved to Chicago, Illinois, where on April 16, 1856 he was wedded to Miss Anna Sommers at St. Peters Church. Immediately after his marriage, he and his wife moved to Hollandtown, Wisconsin, where they resided until 1876, when they moved to Nebraska and Platte County and settled on what is now known as the Anna Kleve Farm, south of Humphrey.

From there they moved onto the farm where his son Joseph now resides.

His estimable wife died after only three years' residence in this state, and since that time Mr. Brockhaus made his home with his son Joseph.

Mr. Brockhaus was the father of eleven children, only four of whom are living. Those living are his two sons, Frank and Joseph, and two daughters, Mrs. Ferdinand Fuchs and Mrs. Vincent Weiser.

The funeral will take place at St. Mary's church Saturday morning at ten o'clock, and the deceased will be laid in his last resting place beside his wife in the cemetery near the church.

There is no language at our command by which we can fittingly portray the sincerity of this man's Christian character, and in the experience of a lifetime, the writer hereof can safely say, he never met one who seemed to more nearly walk hand in hand with God. Conscience guided every act. In short, he was not only a model Christian, but he was an honorable gentleman, in the highest sense that term implies.

To man, woman or child, saint or sinner, he always extended a cordial greeting, that lent a ray of light to brighten their pathway in the journey of life.

He commanded the respect of all sects and classes of people. It was so perfectly natural for him to do right.
We did not fully appreciate his true worth until after the thread of life was severed. But as we caught a glimpse of the snow white sail that bore him away to the distant shore we awakened to the realization that a good and righteous man had been taken from our midst. We extend our heartfelt sympatny.