Bio for STERN, Herman Charles Richard (b.1880 d.1953), Mower Co., MN ========================================================================= USGENWEB NOTICE: In keeping with our policy of providing free information on the Internet, material may be freely used by non-commercial entities, as long as this message remains on all copied material, AND permission is obtained from the contributor of the file. These electronic pages may NOT be reproduced in any format for profit or presentation by other organizations. Persons or organizations desiring to use this material for non-commercial purposes, MUST obtain the written consent of the contributor, OR the legal representative of the submitter, and contact the listed USGenWeb archivist with proof of this consent. If you have found this file through a source other than the MNArchives Table Of Contents you can find other Minnesota related Archives at: http://www.usgwarchives.net/mn/mnfiles.htm Please note the county and type of file at the top of this page to find the submitter information or other files for this county. FileFormat by Terri--MNArchives Made available to The USGenWeb Archives by: Diane Rollins Submitted: February 2007 ========================================================================= Child of Ferdinand and Albertina Sukow Stern Herman Stern Herman Charles Richard Stern was born on September 11, 1880 in Wurow, Regenwald, Koslin, Pommern, Prussia. He was the second child, and oldest son of Ferdinand and Albertina Sukow Stern. He immigrated with his parents and three siblings to the United States in 1885 at the age of four. He grew up on the family farm in rural Mower County, Minnesota. He was confirmed at Trinity Lutheran Church in 1895. He assisted his father with farming before becoming a merchant, owning the Renova General Store. Lucille Tolstead remembers Herman being handicapped, wearing one shoe that was significantly built up. She said he also walked with a noticeable limp, making his occupation of a merchant more suitable than farming. On June 26th, 1912 he married Lottie Cross, the daughter of John and Emma Cross. (see news story on their wedding). Herman was 31 years of age and Lottie was 19. Lottie was born in 1893 in Minnesota. Herman purchased the General Store in Renova from Lottie's father. Lydia Stern and Harold Tolstead met when Harold worked as the station agent in Renova. Herman and Lottie lived their adult years in Renova and raised their adopted son, Maynard. Maynard was born on August 19, 1916. (See article below about the closing of the general store) Herman died on March 1, 1953 at the age of 72. Lottie died 22 years later in 1975. Lottie and Herman are buried in the 5th row of the Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Cemetery. Stern-Cross Wedding A pretty wedding took place at the home of Mr. and Mrs. J.C. Cross at Renova on Wednesday evening, June 26th, when their daughter, Lottie May, was united in marriage to Herman C. Stern, Rev. John Guse performing the ceremony. The couple was attended by Elsie Stern, Otto Sukow, Arthur Stern and Rose Rausch of McIntyre. Following the ceremony a bountiful supper was served to immediate relatives of the contracting parties. The bride is the eldest daughter of Mr. and Mrs. J.C. Cross of this village and has hosts of friends who wish her happiness on her journey through life. The groom has been for the past seven years the popular and prosperous merchant of Renova. He is a young man of sterling character and is held in high esteem by all who know him.. The happy couple left Tuesday for an extended trip to Spokane Washington. They will be at home to Friends after July 20th. Mower County Transcript July 3, 1912 From the Austin Daily Herald Saturday June 3, 1972 LOTTIE STERN CLOSED HER GENERAL STORE WEDNESDAY...SO NOW RENOVA'S JUST A MEMORY By ERNEST DANER Herald Staff Writer RENOVA MINN. Wednesday a death occurred in northeast Mower County, the town of Renova died. That was the day that Mrs. Lottie Stern closed her general store which she ran for 60 years. Lottie was Renova's only resident. She will leave the small town unoccupied when she moves to Two Harbors, Minn. to live next door to her granddaughter. She was born in the 14-room house attached to the general store 79 years ago-back in 1893. She lived there with her parents Mr. and Mrs. John Cross, who bought the store in 1892. In 1911 Lottie went away to school attending Southern Minnesota College, Austin for three quarters. In 1912 she married Herman Stern who had purchased her father's store in 1905. The couple settled down to the life of country merchants. Herman and Lottie ran the store together until Herman's death in 1953. Since then Lottie carried on alone. She recalled the days about 1910 when Renova had a population of 37. At that time her father ran the grain elevator which now stands as a rusting monument to the days of the prairie farmers and the early railroad. School children attended a country school, District 129, located 13/4 miles from Renova, through the 8th grade. Those who attended high school journeyed to Austin. People in the town included the railroad agent, night man, the section foreman, and his crew. In 1910 there was a lumber yard in Renova, along with a few houses which have since been torn down. Herman operated a livery stable along with the store. He provided transportation for salesman between the area towns which were formerly served by the stage line originating in Rochester. The Stern family boarded four men and fed up to 22 at mealtime during that era. Upon entering the 72 year old general store, the visitor encounters a sense of timelessness, history reaching out from the past century without regard to moon rockets and the problems of our age. An old but sturdy floor safe stands to the right of the front door, near the end of a long hand-hewn counter polished and marked by decades of commerce. The counter has roomy bins with glass fronts for displaying the contents and their assorted labels. Atop the counter perches a glass display case, chest high, against which were pressed tiny noses belonging to children who have since grown old. Shelves and smaller counters line the walls where bolts of cloth, canned goods, animal traps and farm tools once were presented to customers. The old horse collar and tack are gone from the wall. Only dust and memories which linger in the minds of a few old timers recall the days when the Renova general store was in its prime. The store carried the necessities of early rural life. Lottie recalled, "In those days we had a little of everything". Sixty years ago eggs sold for eight cents a dozen and chickens brought four or five cents a pound. Journals dating to 1906 will be donated to the Mower County Historical Museum. The house was built in 1880 by Fred Mulford, who used part of his home for trade. The present store was added to the house in 1900. When Lottie decided to leave, the building and ancient store furnishings were purchased by Herbert Unverzagt, Austin. Unverzagt plans to make a showplace of the old store. When asked why she is leaving now, Lottie replied "People keep asking me how long I'm going to stay at it-until they carry you out in a box?" She said the time had come to leave. caption: Examing journals dating back over 60 years is Mrs. Herman (Lottie ) Stern 79, who has run the Renova general store for the past 60 years. Her husband died in 1953. Lottie ran the general store which she closed Wednesday by herself for the past 19 years. Behind her is the glass display case and a counter containing bins with glass fronts. Atop a counter is a water pitcher, kerosene lantern and flour can. Beside her is a small barrel of assorted farm hardware. Caption to picture on right: Almost ready to leave the general store of Renova Minnesota which she ran for 60 years is Mrs. Herman Lottie Stern,70 with her son, Maynard, of Brimson, Minnesota. ========================================================================= Copyright Diane Rollins 2007. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm =========================================================================