Brown County MN Archives Biographies.....Eibner, Willibald 1863 - 
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Joy Fisher http://www.genrecords.net/emailregistry/vols/00001.html#0000031 November 23, 2014, 12:53 pm

Source: See Below
Author: L. A. Fritsche

WILLIBALD EIBNER.

    The name of Willibald Eibner, who maintains a wholesale and retail bakery,
ice cream and confectionery establishment at New Ulm, is well known in Brown and
adjoining counties, for his business was launched here over three decades ago
and has been gradually growing ever since.

    Mr. Eibner was born on January 21, 1863, in Bavaria, Germany, and is a son
of Max and Anna (Steigleder) Eibner. His father engaged in the milling business,
owning a large flour-mill which he operated until his death. He never came to
the United States. He died when Willibald was seven years old, and two years
later the mother passed away, a brother and sister, both younger than our
subject, dying about the same time. Willibald was then adopted by a relative
with whom he lived until he was eighteen years of age, having in the meantime
attended the public schools and an industrial school, similar to the gymnasium.
After leaving school he was employed as an assistant forester by the government
of Bavaria, and continued in this line of work for two years, without pay, for
the purpose of learning the business. He then came to the United States,
arriving in New York in August, 1882, where he remained three years, being
forced to stay there for lack of money to bring him on to the West. He worked in
grocery stores, restaurants, kitchens, etc., starting in at three dollars per
week, finally receiving as much as fifteen dollars per week. However, he saved
some money, and in 1885 came to New Ulm, Minnesota, where he remained a few
months, then went on to St. Peter, this stats, where he was manager of the old
Commercial hotel for two years, then returned to New Ulm, and bought out a small
confectionery store, the total investment being about six hundred dollars. He
met with much discouragement for awhile, but by perseverance, economy and good
management forged ahead until he built up one of the largest businesses of its
kind in southern Minnesota. He rented his buildings at first, but in 1890 bought
the property. He gradually worked into the restaurant business, in connection
with which he kept a boarding house, finally establishing a bakery business in a
small way, in 1893. He has since discontinued the restaurant and boarding house
and now devotes his attention to his large wholesale and retail bakery and ice
cream factory, along with his confectionery, shipping large quantities of his
various products over a territory contiguous to New Ulm within a radius of one
hundred and fifty miles. He also conducts a high-class retail store. The
substantial brick building which he now occupies was the first of its kind to he
built in New Ulm, and during the Indian massacre it was used as a shelter by the
women and children. It was a government station and in the basement were stored
the supplies of powder. The men defending the town intended to blow the building
up rather than surrender the women and children to the savages. The building has
since been remodeled and enlarged.

     Willibald Eibner was married in New Ulm on April 17, 1887, to Mary
Rosskopf, who was born in Waupun, Wisconsin, and is a daughter of Xavier and
Magdaline (Roesch) Rosskopf, natives of Germany. They were among the early
pioneers in Brown county, locating here shortly after the Indian outbreak. Ten
children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Eibner, nine of whom are living, namely:
Cecelia, born on February 5, 1888; Caroline, July 7, 1889, married Joseph
Bianchi, and they have two children, Josephine and Willibald; Veronica, June 16,
1891; Thecla, May 2, 1893; Alois, May 6, 1895; Willibalda, April 11, 1899;
Patrick, March 17, 1901; Mildred, November 9, 1902: Marie, March 26, 1905;
Lauretta, January 11, 1897, died on October 4, 1907.

     Politically, Mr. Eibner is a Democrat. He was councilman of New Ulm for
eight years, seven years of which he was president of the council. He was mayor
for six months, filling out an unexpired term. He is still a councilman. He has
done much for the general development of New Ulm, whose interests he has at
heart. He and his family are members of the Catholic church, in which he has
been a trustee for the past twenty years. He is president of the St. Joseph
Society, which has a membership of about five hundred. This office he has also
held for twenty years. He is secretary of the Staats-Verband, having held this
office since its foundation in 1896. He is also a member of the grand council of
the German Catholic Aid Association of Minnesota, which has a membership of over
seven thousand. He has been very faithful in the discharge of his duties in all
positions of trust and responsibility. He is also a member of the Knights of
Columbus.


Additional Comments:
Extracted from:
HISTORY OF BROWN COUNTY MINNESOTA
ITS PEOPLE, INDUSTRIES AND INSTITUTIONS

L. A. FRITSCHE. M. D.
Editor

With Biographical Sketches of Representative Citizens and Genealogical Records
of Many of the Old Families

VOLUME II
B. F. BOWEN & COMPANY, Inc. Indianapolis, Indiana


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