Brown County MN Archives Biographies.....Fritsche, Louis Albert 1862 - 
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Source: See Below
Author: L. A. Fritsche

LOUIS ALBERT FRITSCHE. M. D.

    Louis Albert Fritsche was born on May 28, 1862, on his father's homestead in
Lafayette, Nicollet county, within two miles of the city of New Ulm.

    His paternal grandfather, John Karl Fritsche, with a family of eight
children, emigrated to this country from Saxony, Germany, in the year 1854, and
landed at New York on May 22. On account of the unsettled political conditions
in Germany following the revolution of 1848 and, in order to have his sons
escape the military service, he decided to seek his fortune in the New World.
The voyage was made in a three-masted sailing vessel, named the "Leibnitz," and
took fifty-two days to cross the ocean. The voyage was a very tedious and
boisterous one. His destination was Chicago and reached that city in due time.
He resided there for one year. Having been a small farmer in Saxony, he longed
once more to engage in agriculture. About this time the German Land Association
of Chicago was being organized for the purpose of establishing a colony in some
territory, which was being opened up for settlement in the Northwest. He became
a member of this association.

    The choice of location for this settlement fell upon the present site of
this city and country surrounding it. The association acquired three hundred and
twenty acres from the government, which was platted in city lots. John Karl
Fritsche pre-empted a homestead of one hundred and sixty acres joining the city
site in the summer of 1855. In the following year a colony from Cincinnati
bought up the charter of the German Land Association and in addition acquired
John Karl Fritsche's homestead, together with thirteen other homestead quarters,
and had the same platted into lots. This merger made the city site exceptionally
large.

     Frederick Fritsche, the second son of John Karl Fritsche, and the father of
the subject of this biography, upon reaching his majority, pre-empted a
homestead of one hundred and sixty acres in the year 1860 on the north side of
the Minnesota river, in Nicollet county, two miles from New Ulm. This homestead
later became the nucleus of a large stock farm.

     The maternal grandfather, Christian Lillie, emigrated with a family of four
children from Hanover, Germany, to this country in the year of 1852 and first
settled in Allegany county, New York. There he resided until the year of 1858.
when he removed to the state of Minnesota and pre-empted a claim in Nicollet
county, four miles distant from New Ulm.

     Frederick Fritsche was married to Louise Lillie, youngest daughter of
Christian Lillie, on April 20, 1861. Eight children were born to this union,
namely: Louis Albert, Bertha, Emil H., Fred W., Otto A., Rudolph E., Carl J. and
Henry W. Bertha was married to William H. Mueller, of St. Peter, who is a member
of the manufacturing firm of Johnson & Company. Emil H. and Otto A. have
remained on the divided homestead and are prosperous farmers. Fred W. practiced
dental surgery until his death, three years ago. Rudolph E. was a member of the
hardware firm of Arnold & Fritsche and died five years ago. Carl J. and Henry W.
died during childhood.

     Louis Albert was raised as all junior pioneers and shared all the
pleasures, as well as all of the privations and tribulations, which are incident
to pioneer and order life. At the time of the Sioux uprising he was three months
months old, and was the cause of much anxiety for his mother. Before the
outbreak the Indians would camp in the Fritsche ravine every winter, near the
Fritsche log cabin, and when the pale-face baby was born the squaws would often
come in to fondle the same.

     At the age of six years, Louis Eritsche was sent to the district school,
which was a small log building, and two miles distant. At that time there were
no graded public roads, only beaten tracks winding over the hill, through timber
and prairie, lined on both sides with high buffalo grass. At the age of ten
years his fortune changed, so far as his education was concerned. His father,
Frederick Fritsche, was elected treasurer of Nicollet county in 1872, and
re-elected four times thereafter. The family removed to the county seat at St.
Peter and, thereby, the children were given a better opportunity for an
education, as St. Peter at that time had good graded schools and a high school.
This was a stepping stone to his future career.

     In the year of 1878 the family moved back to the farm, as his father was
wanting to retire from office and actively re-engage in the raising of blooded
stock. The management of the farm was placed in Louis Albert's management until
1882, when his father retired from office to reassume the management.

     The follow ng year, Louis Albert, after attaining his majority, procured a
second-grade teacher's certificate and taught district school for one year.
Having met with the requirement of the law at that time, necessitating one year
of experience as a teacher, before a first grade certificate could be granted,
he procured a first grade teacher's certificate from both Nicollet and Brown
counties.

     However, he did not follow teaching any more, as he wanted another means of
making a livelihood. With the above mentioned credentials he entered the medical
department of the University of Michigan on September 24, 1884. While a student
at Ann Arbor he was an honorary member of the Adelphia Literary Society.

     After completing the full course of three years he graduated from that
institution on June 30, 1887. The day after his graduation, on July 1, 1887, the
new medical law of the state of Minnesota went into effect, which required all
practitioners to pass a state examination. The first examination of the newly
created medical board was held at the state capitol in St. Paul on July 5 and 6,
1887, and only three applicants were present. Doctor Fritsche passed this
examination without any difficulty and was awarded license No. 1, and,
therefore, has the distinction of having received the first license issued by
the state board of medical examiners of this state.

     On August 1, 1887, he opened an office in New Ulm and practiced there until
the latter part of April, 1889. Then he went to Berlin, Germany, to do
post-graduate work and specialize in surgery at that famous university. At the
same time he intended to take his second doctor's degree. At the end of two
semesters he passed the "examen rigorosum, tentamen medicum" and presented a
thesis for graduation. On March 31, 1890, he had the degree of Doctor of
Medicine and Surgery conferred upon him with the standing of cum laude, from
that university. During the third semester, from April 1 to August 1, he was
second assistant to the famous surgeon, Prof. Dr. Julius Wolff.

     He was a member of the Tenth International Medical Congress which convened
in Berlin from the 6th to the 13th of August, 1890, and had the honor to present
two cases in the English language to the Gynaecological Section for Prof. Dr.
Alfred Duhrssen. This congress was attended by seven thousand professors and
doctors from all over the world.

     Doctor Fritsche returned home October 15, the same fall and re-opened his
office, and has been in active practice up to the present time. The Doctor is a
member of the Brown County Medical Society, the Southern Minnesota Medical
Association, the State Medical Association and the American Medical Association.
When the Minnesota Medical Society was united with the Southern Minnesota
Medical Association, four years ago, he was elected the first president of the
new organization.

     Medical career: He has served as health officer of the city of New Ulm from
1891 to 1894. He served as a member of the pension medical examining board under
President Cleveland's second administration for this district. He was elected as
coroner of Brown county for four terms, serving from 1896 to 1904. In the year
1900 he was appointed as a member of the state board of medical examiners by
Gov. John Lind for three years, and the last of which he was the president of
the board. He is surgeon to the Loretto and Union hospitals of New Ulm.

     Civil career: He was elected a member of the board of education for three
years and served from 1893 to 1896. He was appointed as a member of the board of
public works by Mayor Weschke in 1904 and served as such until 1912. In 1912 he
was elected mayor of the city and has been twice re-elected without opposition,
and still serves in this capacity.

     Military career: In the year of 1907, Gov. John A. Johnson commissioned him
as a member of Brig.-Gen. Joseph Bobleter's staff as brigade surgeon with the
rank of major. This commission was renewed by Gov. A. O. Eberhart, and, after
General Bobleter's death, was continued on the staff of General Reeves and again
by his successor, Gen. A. W. Wright.

     Business career: In the year 1900 he was elected as president of the Brown
County Bank and has served as such only in an honorary capacity up to the
present time. He is vice-president of the New Ulm Roller Milling Company and a
director in several other industrial enterprises. He is also director and
medical director of the Minnesota Commercial Men's Association, of Minneapolis,
which is a mutual health and accident insurance company for business and
traveling salesmen.

     Political affiliation: He has always been a Democrat in politics and
attended many Democratic state conventions as a delegate. In the year of 1908 he
was elected as a delegate from the second congressional district to the
Democratic National Convention at Denver. He was interested in the candidacy of
Gov. John A. Johnson for the presidential nomination, as the governor had been a
schoolmate and life-long friend of his.

     In July, 1914, the Doctor received an invitation to join a commission of
mayors and civic leaders, headed by United States Senator Duncan Fletcher, from
Florida, to attend an International Congress of Municipal Executives held at
London, to attend the International Urban Exposition at Lyons, France, and to
visit a number of European cities for study purposes. The commission sailed from
New York on July 9 and met with some thrilling experiences before they returned
home. Each member of the commission was provided with a personal letter of
introduction from former secretary of state William Jennings Bryan, to all of
our ambassadors and consular agents abroad, who were apprised of the coming of
this commission by Mr. Bryan. A hearty welcome awaited them at Liverpool and
London and the lord mayors of these cities entertained this party at tea in
their respective mansion houses.

     The International Municipal Congress was opened on Monday noon, July 20, by
Viscount Peel, chairman, in the presence of our ambassador, Mr. Page. Other
speakers were the Earl of Kintore, Lord Rotherham, Sir John A. Cockburn and
Senator Fletcher.

     The afternoon session was called at three o'clock, under the chairmanship
of Senator Fletcher, and this session was devoted to public health
administration and sanitation. The first address was courteously left to the
Americans and was delivered by Dr. L. A. Fritsche, from Minnesota.

     The commission left London on Saturday morning, July 25, and reached Paris
the same evening, At the Paris station they were met by Mr. Sulzdorf, the
secretary to our ambassador, Mr. Herrick, and escorted to the hotel.

     Monday afternoon this commission was tendered a reception by the governor
and city officials of Paris, our ambassador, Mr. Herrick, being present. Tuesday
afternoon Mr. Herrick tendered the party a reception, to which the city
officials of Paris were invited in return. During this reception, about 5:30
o'clock, a telegram came in announcing that Austria had declared war against
Serbia. The countenances of the Paris officials dropped at once and one could
notice that this telegram was an evil foreboding for them. That same evening an
immense demonstration of tens of thousands of people took place, crying "Down
with the war, we want no war," but this demonstration was gradually controlled
by the police.

     On Wednesday evening, July 29, the commission left for Lyons, reaching that
city late in the night. A most cordial reception awaited them there. The first
thing they saw the next morning were the runs on the large banks. Thousands of
people had lined up in front of the banks to draw out their deposits. The next
day the banks refused to pay out any more money, and it went hard with the
.Americans, as their traveling checks were not accepted any more. The war clouds
were getting darker and the esprit de corps of the party was being gradually
dampened. On Friday evening, July 31, Mayor Herriott, of Lyons, tendered the
commission a reception on the exposition grounds and this was the last official
function. After returning to the hotel that evening, a hasty war council was
held by the party and it was decided to discontinue the journey. On Saturday
morning train service was already interrupted on account of the heavy movement
of troops to the Alsatian border, and the balance of the commission had
considerable difficulty in making their way back to Paris.

     Doctor Fritsche, with two members of the commission, decided to go to
Switzerland and left Lyons on the last train out to Geneva. Upon reaching Geneva
on Saturday evening they learned that Germany had declared war against Russia.
On Sunday morning all train service to the border countries had been suspended,
and the Doctor, with thousands of American tourists, was bottled up in
Switzerland for three weeks. After all of the armies of the belligerent
countries had been moved to the various war fronts, railroad transportation was
restored in a measure, and the Doctor was enabled to cross the Swiss border into
Germany. While on the way to Frankfurt on the Main he passed two train loads of
wounded soldiers, one was carrying wounded Frenchmen and the other wounded
Germans—a sight that will never be forgotten. After making short visits in
Frankfurt on the Main, Berlin. Frankfurt on the Oder, Leipzig and Jena, visiting
the hospitals where the wounded soldiers were cared for, he was fortunate enough
to engage his return passage on a Holland liner from Rotterdam. When in sight of
the statue of the "Goddess of Liberty" in New York harbor, sixteen hundred
passengers breathed a sigh of relief and thanked heaven that they had escaped
from that European turmoil.

     Doctor Fritsche was married in Berlin, Germany, June 14, 1890, to Amalie
Pfaender, daughter of Col. William Pfaender, deceased, who served in the Union
Army during the Civil War, and who later had charge of Ft. Ridgely from the year
of 1862 to 1866. Seven children have been born to Doctor and Mrs. Fritsche,
namely: Elsa, who graduated from the University of Minnesota in June, 1915, and
is now engaged in teaching at Dover, of this state; Albert, who is a medical
student in the University of Minnesota; William, who is a medical student at
Marquette University of Milwaukee; Louise, who is a pupil of the New Ulm high
school; Carl and Theodore, who are pupils in the graded schools, and Alexander
Frederick, who died at the age of seven months.

     As a junior pioneer, Doctor Fritsche has beheld the transformation that
followed the advent of the white man in this part of the country—the reclamation
from a wilderness in the life-time of hundreds of those who assisted in the
onerous tasks of wresting from the idle and indolent savage, as fair a land as
the sun ever shone on, moulded now into the magnificent commonwealth of
Minnesota, with its cities and towns, its schools and churches, its network of
railroads, its thousands of rural homes, many of them modern in all respects and
connected with one another by the telephones, its vast herds that have displaced
the buffalo and the antelope, and its golden fields—a great state subdued,
beautified and made rich from the fertility of its own matchless soil. What a
privilege to have witnessed such a transformation, inconceivable in any but this
wonderful country, for such a transition one could not witness on the continent
of Europe were he permitted to live a thousand years.

     Blessed is the memory when the early settlers ranged with a free hand in
the work of reclamation, amid scenes forever vanished, or now obscured by the
stage-settings of civilization. Sixty-two years ago, so far as the works of man
were concerned, all was desolation, Buffalo and antelope scurried over the
great, wild pastures in herds and bands innumerable, while the Indian, in all
his pride and glory, roamed as the undisputed master of the region that to man
was merely a solitude of limitless possibilities.


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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