Clarence fought in Germany in World War I, ironically in the homeland of his German grandparents Nicholas and Magdalena Mueller Wilhelm, who were still alive to see that war. What did he say to them when he returned home? Old Nick was probably overjoyed at the entire event, as the young immigrant men of his era had fled Germany to avoid conscription into the notoriously brutal Prussian Army. Clarence had been a quiet fellow before the war -- by all accounts, he returned home even quieter, never communicating much, if at all, with his siblings in their adult years.
Clarence's World War I draft registration card described him as being of medium height, with a stout build, brown hair, and hazel eyes. In signing his name, his handwriting was nearly identical to his sister Clara's signature, indicating that brother and sister had been taught by the same country school teacher. Their mother Mary Anne Thome, who had been a motherless child abandoned by her father, had grown up illiterate until the age of 14, when she was adopted by another German family and taught to read. She likely never had any formal schooling at all, since she was used as a live-in servant by the family who adopted her. As an adult she was literate, but her general knowledge base was undoubtedly very poor.
After the war, in the census of 1920, 25 year old Clarence is living on his own in a boarding house in Peoria. His older brother Alfred, two older half brothers Frank and Ed, and two sisters Frances and Clara had all married by 1920, and were having their first children.
By 1920 Clarence's older brother Alfred and his wife Anna were in the process of taking over father Anton's farm that he had inherited from his own father Nicholas. Clarence decided to move to Peoria, where, according to his sister Clara in her older years, he worked in a brewery, but she may have confused water and beer since Clarence appears to have worked for the city water department. What is clear is that Clarence was a full grown man who had been to war, and likely did not want to put up with his father Anton's and brother Alfred's domination back on the farm any longer.
Clarence was dashingly handsome, but with his quiet nature he probably didn't know it. He married Florence M. Trunz. They had one son and five daughters, which must have made for an entertaining household over the years. One of his grandsons would attend Johns Hopkins medical school, becoming a surgeon.
In the 1930 census, Clarence owned a Peoria home valued at $4000. He and Florence had three daughters Shirley F., Phyllis J., and Evelyn M. ages 5 years, 4 years/3months, and 3 years/6months. They also had a son Clarence R., age 3. Daughters Virginia and Genevieve would come along later. By this time Clarence's sister Clara also had five children ages 12 and under, but two of her three girls, Marjorie and Mary, had been taken from her in 1925 at the ages of 3 and 5 by her father Anton and older brother Alfred, and were thereafter never returned. The two girls were raised by Alfred and his wife Anna Carroll (descended through the Mooney family), who were a childless couple, on the farm that their mother Clara had grown up on.
In 1942, Clarence, at the age of 47, filled out a World War II draft registration card. He had fought the Germans once on their own soil, and obviously had very strong feelings about fighting them again. On the draft card, he put down his brother-in-law John S. Holmes, the farmer husband of his sister Frances, as the person who would always know how to reach him. In these simpler times, John Holme's address was simply R.R.#2, Chillicothe, Ill. Clarence and his family lived at 124 W. Lake Ave. in Peoria, and he was working for the Peoria Water Works Co. at 109 S. Monroe St.
Clarence's nickname for his sister Clara, who was two years younger, was "Clarie". Clara recounted in the 1970's before she died, that she and Clarence very much enjoyed playing together as little ones. Clarence, two years older, was sweet and gentle, she said. Clara recalled their great excitement at the special treat of making rice pudding that they called "Rice Time". They also enjoyed taffy-making parties as teenagers.
A favorite story that Clara often repeated in her older years recalled the occasion when she and Clarence, at about ages 6 and 8 in 1909, managed on their own to figure out how to order toys by mail from a Sears catalogue. From the windows of their large two story Victorian farmhouse they watched for the postman carefully for days. When the toys finally arrived, she said, their plot was discovered, and their strict father Anton was angry. Whether Anton relented and allowed his tiny children to keep the toys is a part of the story that Clara's descendants have forgotten - however, Anton was characteristically brutally unkind, and likely the toys were either returned or the children were punished. Clara may not have finished the story, as she was too sweet of a person to ever express any overt hatred for her father. She tried to remember the happy moments, rather than the ugly ones. Her brother Clarence was no doubt of a very similar sweet temperament.
In about 1970, Clara and Clarence saw each other for the first time in many years, at Clarence's home in Peoria. Clara had traveled from Los Angeles where she had lived from 1943 on. Clarence was so shy, that initially he was almost mute, and hid behind a corner. Finally he said "Hi Clarie...", and came out from around the corner. It was to be their last meeting. Like two twins, Clarence and Clara both died at exactly the same age of 84 and a few months.
Clarence's World War I draft registration card described him as being of medium height, with a stout build, brown hair, and hazel eyes. In signing his name, his handwriting was nearly identical to his sister Clara's signature, indicating that brother and sister had been taught by the same country school teacher. Their mother Mary Anne Thome, who had been a motherless child abandoned by her father, had grown up illiterate until the age of 14, when she was adopted by another German family and taught to read. She likely never had any formal schooling at all, since she was used as a live-in servant by the family who adopted her. As an adult she was literate, but her general knowledge base was undoubtedly very poor.
After the war, in the census of 1920, 25 year old Clarence is living on his own in a boarding house in Peoria. His older brother Alfred, two older half brothers Frank and Ed, and two sisters Frances and Clara had all married by 1920, and were having their first children.
By 1920 Clarence's older brother Alfred and his wife Anna were in the process of taking over father Anton's farm that he had inherited from his own father Nicholas. Clarence decided to move to Peoria, where, according to his sister Clara in her older years, he worked in a brewery, but she may have confused water and beer since Clarence appears to have worked for the city water department. What is clear is that Clarence was a full grown man who had been to war, and likely did not want to put up with his father Anton's and brother Alfred's domination back on the farm any longer.
Clarence was dashingly handsome, but with his quiet nature he probably didn't know it. He married Florence M. Trunz. They had one son and five daughters, which must have made for an entertaining household over the years. One of his grandsons would attend Johns Hopkins medical school, becoming a surgeon.
In the 1930 census, Clarence owned a Peoria home valued at $4000. He and Florence had three daughters Shirley F., Phyllis J., and Evelyn M. ages 5 years, 4 years/3months, and 3 years/6months. They also had a son Clarence R., age 3. Daughters Virginia and Genevieve would come along later. By this time Clarence's sister Clara also had five children ages 12 and under, but two of her three girls, Marjorie and Mary, had been taken from her in 1925 at the ages of 3 and 5 by her father Anton and older brother Alfred, and were thereafter never returned. The two girls were raised by Alfred and his wife Anna Carroll (descended through the Mooney family), who were a childless couple, on the farm that their mother Clara had grown up on.
In 1942, Clarence, at the age of 47, filled out a World War II draft registration card. He had fought the Germans once on their own soil, and obviously had very strong feelings about fighting them again. On the draft card, he put down his brother-in-law John S. Holmes, the farmer husband of his sister Frances, as the person who would always know how to reach him. In these simpler times, John Holme's address was simply R.R.#2, Chillicothe, Ill. Clarence and his family lived at 124 W. Lake Ave. in Peoria, and he was working for the Peoria Water Works Co. at 109 S. Monroe St.
Clarence's nickname for his sister Clara, who was two years younger, was "Clarie". Clara recounted in the 1970's before she died, that she and Clarence very much enjoyed playing together as little ones. Clarence, two years older, was sweet and gentle, she said. Clara recalled their great excitement at the special treat of making rice pudding that they called "Rice Time". They also enjoyed taffy-making parties as teenagers.
A favorite story that Clara often repeated in her older years recalled the occasion when she and Clarence, at about ages 6 and 8 in 1909, managed on their own to figure out how to order toys by mail from a Sears catalogue. From the windows of their large two story Victorian farmhouse they watched for the postman carefully for days. When the toys finally arrived, she said, their plot was discovered, and their strict father Anton was angry. Whether Anton relented and allowed his tiny children to keep the toys is a part of the story that Clara's descendants have forgotten - however, Anton was characteristically brutally unkind, and likely the toys were either returned or the children were punished. Clara may not have finished the story, as she was too sweet of a person to ever express any overt hatred for her father. She tried to remember the happy moments, rather than the ugly ones. Her brother Clarence was no doubt of a very similar sweet temperament.
In about 1970, Clara and Clarence saw each other for the first time in many years, at Clarence's home in Peoria. Clara had traveled from Los Angeles where she had lived from 1943 on. Clarence was so shy, that initially he was almost mute, and hid behind a corner. Finally he said "Hi Clarie...", and came out from around the corner. It was to be their last meeting. Like two twins, Clarence and Clara both died at exactly the same age of 84 and a few months.
Clarence fought in Germany in World War I, ironically in the homeland of his German grandparents Nicholas and Magdalena Mueller Wilhelm, who were still alive to see that war. What did he say to them when he returned home? Old Nick was probably overjoyed at the entire event, as the young immigrant men of his era had fled Germany to avoid conscription into the notoriously brutal Prussian Army. Clarence had been a quiet fellow before the war -- by all accounts, he returned home even quieter, never communicating much, if at all, with his siblings in their adult years.
Clarence's World War I draft registration card described him as being of medium height, with a stout build, brown hair, and hazel eyes. In signing his name, his handwriting was nearly identical to his sister Clara's signature, indicating that brother and sister had been taught by the same country school teacher. Their mother Mary Anne Thome, who had been a motherless child abandoned by her father, had grown up illiterate until the age of 14, when she was adopted by another German family and taught to read. She likely never had any formal schooling at all, since she was used as a live-in servant by the family who adopted her. As an adult she was literate, but her general knowledge base was undoubtedly very poor.
After the war, in the census of 1920, 25 year old Clarence is living on his own in a boarding house in Peoria. His older brother Alfred, two older half brothers Frank and Ed, and two sisters Frances and Clara had all married by 1920, and were having their first children.
By 1920 Clarence's older brother Alfred and his wife Anna were in the process of taking over father Anton's farm that he had inherited from his own father Nicholas. Clarence decided to move to Peoria, where, according to his sister Clara in her older years, he worked in a brewery, but she may have confused water and beer since Clarence appears to have worked for the city water department. What is clear is that Clarence was a full grown man who had been to war, and likely did not want to put up with his father Anton's and brother Alfred's domination back on the farm any longer.
Clarence was dashingly handsome, but with his quiet nature he probably didn't know it. He married Florence M. Trunz. They had one son and five daughters, which must have made for an entertaining household over the years. One of his grandsons would attend Johns Hopkins medical school, becoming a surgeon.
In the 1930 census, Clarence owned a Peoria home valued at $4000. He and Florence had three daughters Shirley F., Phyllis J., and Evelyn M. ages 5 years, 4 years/3months, and 3 years/6months. They also had a son Clarence R., age 3. Daughters Virginia and Genevieve would come along later. By this time Clarence's sister Clara also had five children ages 12 and under, but two of her three girls, Marjorie and Mary, had been taken from her in 1925 at the ages of 3 and 5 by her father Anton and older brother Alfred, and were thereafter never returned. The two girls were raised by Alfred and his wife Anna Carroll (descended through the Mooney family), who were a childless couple, on the farm that their mother Clara had grown up on.
In 1942, Clarence, at the age of 47, filled out a World War II draft registration card. He had fought the Germans once on their own soil, and obviously had very strong feelings about fighting them again. On the draft card, he put down his brother-in-law John S. Holmes, the farmer husband of his sister Frances, as the person who would always know how to reach him. In these simpler times, John Holme's address was simply R.R.#2, Chillicothe, Ill. Clarence and his family lived at 124 W. Lake Ave. in Peoria, and he was working for the Peoria Water Works Co. at 109 S. Monroe St.
Clarence's nickname for his sister Clara, who was two years younger, was "Clarie". Clara recounted in the 1970's before she died, that she and Clarence very much enjoyed playing together as little ones. Clarence, two years older, was sweet and gentle, she said. Clara recalled their great excitement at the special treat of making rice pudding that they called "Rice Time". They also enjoyed taffy-making parties as teenagers.
A favorite story that Clara often repeated in her older years recalled the occasion when she and Clarence, at about ages 6 and 8 in 1909, managed on their own to figure out how to order toys by mail from a Sears catalogue. From the windows of their large two story Victorian farmhouse they watched for the postman carefully for days. When the toys finally arrived, she said, their plot was discovered, and their strict father Anton was angry. Whether Anton relented and allowed his tiny children to keep the toys is a part of the story that Clara's descendants have forgotten - however, Anton was characteristically brutally unkind, and likely the toys were either returned or the children were punished. Clara may not have finished the story, as she was too sweet of a person to ever express any overt hatred for her father. She tried to remember the happy moments, rather than the ugly ones. Her brother Clarence was no doubt of a very similar sweet temperament.
In about 1970, Clara and Clarence saw each other for the first time in many years, at Clarence's home in Peoria. Clara had traveled from Los Angeles where she had lived from 1943 on. Clarence was so shy, that initially he was almost mute, and hid behind a corner. Finally he said "Hi Clarie...", and came out from around the corner. It was to be their last meeting. Like two twins, Clarence and Clara both died at exactly the same age of 84 and a few months.
Clarence's World War I draft registration card described him as being of medium height, with a stout build, brown hair, and hazel eyes. In signing his name, his handwriting was nearly identical to his sister Clara's signature, indicating that brother and sister had been taught by the same country school teacher. Their mother Mary Anne Thome, who had been a motherless child abandoned by her father, had grown up illiterate until the age of 14, when she was adopted by another German family and taught to read. She likely never had any formal schooling at all, since she was used as a live-in servant by the family who adopted her. As an adult she was literate, but her general knowledge base was undoubtedly very poor.
After the war, in the census of 1920, 25 year old Clarence is living on his own in a boarding house in Peoria. His older brother Alfred, two older half brothers Frank and Ed, and two sisters Frances and Clara had all married by 1920, and were having their first children.
By 1920 Clarence's older brother Alfred and his wife Anna were in the process of taking over father Anton's farm that he had inherited from his own father Nicholas. Clarence decided to move to Peoria, where, according to his sister Clara in her older years, he worked in a brewery, but she may have confused water and beer since Clarence appears to have worked for the city water department. What is clear is that Clarence was a full grown man who had been to war, and likely did not want to put up with his father Anton's and brother Alfred's domination back on the farm any longer.
Clarence was dashingly handsome, but with his quiet nature he probably didn't know it. He married Florence M. Trunz. They had one son and five daughters, which must have made for an entertaining household over the years. One of his grandsons would attend Johns Hopkins medical school, becoming a surgeon.
In the 1930 census, Clarence owned a Peoria home valued at $4000. He and Florence had three daughters Shirley F., Phyllis J., and Evelyn M. ages 5 years, 4 years/3months, and 3 years/6months. They also had a son Clarence R., age 3. Daughters Virginia and Genevieve would come along later. By this time Clarence's sister Clara also had five children ages 12 and under, but two of her three girls, Marjorie and Mary, had been taken from her in 1925 at the ages of 3 and 5 by her father Anton and older brother Alfred, and were thereafter never returned. The two girls were raised by Alfred and his wife Anna Carroll (descended through the Mooney family), who were a childless couple, on the farm that their mother Clara had grown up on.
In 1942, Clarence, at the age of 47, filled out a World War II draft registration card. He had fought the Germans once on their own soil, and obviously had very strong feelings about fighting them again. On the draft card, he put down his brother-in-law John S. Holmes, the farmer husband of his sister Frances, as the person who would always know how to reach him. In these simpler times, John Holme's address was simply R.R.#2, Chillicothe, Ill. Clarence and his family lived at 124 W. Lake Ave. in Peoria, and he was working for the Peoria Water Works Co. at 109 S. Monroe St.
Clarence's nickname for his sister Clara, who was two years younger, was "Clarie". Clara recounted in the 1970's before she died, that she and Clarence very much enjoyed playing together as little ones. Clarence, two years older, was sweet and gentle, she said. Clara recalled their great excitement at the special treat of making rice pudding that they called "Rice Time". They also enjoyed taffy-making parties as teenagers.
A favorite story that Clara often repeated in her older years recalled the occasion when she and Clarence, at about ages 6 and 8 in 1909, managed on their own to figure out how to order toys by mail from a Sears catalogue. From the windows of their large two story Victorian farmhouse they watched for the postman carefully for days. When the toys finally arrived, she said, their plot was discovered, and their strict father Anton was angry. Whether Anton relented and allowed his tiny children to keep the toys is a part of the story that Clara's descendants have forgotten - however, Anton was characteristically brutally unkind, and likely the toys were either returned or the children were punished. Clara may not have finished the story, as she was too sweet of a person to ever express any overt hatred for her father. She tried to remember the happy moments, rather than the ugly ones. Her brother Clarence was no doubt of a very similar sweet temperament.
In about 1970, Clara and Clarence saw each other for the first time in many years, at Clarence's home in Peoria. Clara had traveled from Los Angeles where she had lived from 1943 on. Clarence was so shy, that initially he was almost mute, and hid behind a corner. Finally he said "Hi Clarie...", and came out from around the corner. It was to be their last meeting. Like two twins, Clarence and Clara both died at exactly the same age of 84 and a few months.
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