Person:Jacob Hoffman (21)

CENSUS YR: 1850 STATE or TERRITORY: IN COUNTY: Lake DIVISION: St Johns Township REEL NO: M432-157 PAGE NO: 151A REFERENCE: 28 Sep 1850; B. McCarty Ass't Marshal; MF#301

38  HOFFMAN        Jacob          34    M    .    Farmer         300       Germany           .     .     .    .    .
39  38   38  HOFFMAN        Malinda        32    F    .    .              .         Germany           .     .     .    .    .
40  38   38  HOFFMAN        John           9     M    .    .              .         Germany           .     X     .    .    .
41  38   38  HOFFMAN        Jacob          7     M    .    .              .         Germany           .     X     .    .    .
42  38   38  HOFFMAN        Nicholas       5     M    .    .              .         Germany           .     X     .    .    .

1 38 HOFFMAN Joseph 2 M Indiana . . . . . 2 38 38 HOFFMAN Peter 1/12 M . . . Indiana

Sources: Title: Hoffman Family Black Book Author: Miss Marie G. Will Repository: Call Number: Media: Book

JACOB HOFFMAN (1816-1893)

Frustrated by a lack of opportunity and a government that ruled with an iron hand, he immigrated to the US in 1845. With his wife and three sons (Nicholas was six months old) they crossed the Atlantic on a sailing ship, which on several occasions lost more miles than it gained in a single day. After landing on the East Coast of the U.S., they took a primitive railroad train to Chicago, just 12 years after it was incorporated.

It was a town of one square mile, some 30 years after the Fort Dearborn Massacre. He searched the area for a farm site, and was offered land at what is now State and Madison streets at about $1.00 per acre. He was also offered land where the Dearborn Train Station now stands. He found these too swampy for tillage and decided to go elsewhere.

They were aware that good friends of theirs from Besseringer - the Beiringers - had located south of Dyer, IN. So they journeyed the 50 miles and moved into a log cabin across the road from their friends.

DYER, IN

Located in the northwestern corner of the State, on the Illinois line. Population in the 1930's was 672. In 1970 it was 4,906, and in the late 1900's is in excess of 8,000. Melting glaciers from the Ice Age left the fertile, black soil (called loam) deep and rich in minerals, making Indiana a leading agricultural state. Congress established the Indian Territory in 1800, and in 1816 it became Indiana - the 19th state.

Dyer was established in 1837. It is named after the wife of A.N. Hart (one of the earliest settlers) whose maiden name was Martha Dyer. Before white settlers came to the area, it was occupied by the Pottawatomie Indians who reportedly were friendly and moved westward to make room for the settlers.

Jacob Hoffman and his family occupied a rustic log cabin in 1845 until a larger farmhouse was built. The home was transferred to son Peter, and then his son Michael until it was sold sometime in the 1940's. It still stands at the 81st Street location.

Nicholas Hoffman's family settled in a small house just south of the EJ&E railroad, west of Hart Street. The home of his second wife, Louise Kloss, is located on what is now Torrance Avenue in nearby Straussburg, IL, just across the state line. It was occupied almost completely by German immigrants who chose the name from their native hometown. The last occupant was George Kloss and his family. Straussburg has been renamed Salk Village, IL.

In 1884, Nicholas bought a farm north of Dyer (now 215th Street). In addition to working the farm with the help of his children, he also operated a small shoe repair shop in the home. The farm remained in the family until 1925. The house still stands, but the fields of corn and other crops are now occupied by scores of homes built after WWII.

Nicholas and the two Louises left the farm in 1908 and moved to 1919 Hart Street in Dyer where he continued his shoe repair business. They added a kitchen, downstairs bedroom, and two upstairs bedrooms. Meanwhile his son, Johnny, and wife, Nora, rented the farm and operated it until 1925, when they bought and occupied the home on Hart Street. Nicholas retained one bedroom and store room until his death in 1931. Alice still retains the original 1816 Certificate of Title to the home. The house was sold in 1952 by Alice and Lorraine.

Due to poor health, great-grandmother Louise and Nicholas gave up the Dyer home in 1925 and lived alternately with various children until their deaths. Both were buried in St. Joseph Cemetery in Dyer, where many other members of the Hoffman family are laid to rest.

The Catholic religion was predominant, and St. Joseph's was erected prior to the 1890's, destroyed by fire in 1902, and rebuilt in 1903 at a cost of $18,000 - an amazing outlay for those early years. Our cousin, Father Sylvester "Vest" Hoffman, a native of Dyer, celebrated his first Mass there on May 30, 1948. St. Joseph's School was in operation during our parent's school years, but they did not have a full faculty of nuns as later generations did. The nuns were Franciscans from Joliet, IL.

Early family names in Dyer include Hoffman, Keilman, Gettler, Fagen, Schulte, Schaller, Peschel, Miller, Austgen, and Berens.

The old 18-room family home on Hart Street was purchased in 1945 by Mr. Litwa; then moved to 409 Joliet Street (Lincoln Highway) where it was converted into seven apartments. The former home site - corner of Hart and Matteson - was purchased by L. Kielman Company for new offices.

(by Mel (Hartmann) & Charles Byrnes, 8/84)

History Dyer, Indiana

Today, the Town of Dyer, Indiana is located along the Illinois State line, fifteen miles south of Lake Michigan. The City of Chicago, Illinois is located thirty miles to the northwest. Today, the Town covers approximately 6 square miles.

In approximately 1830, the first permanent white settlers came to northwest Indiana, which was then occupied by Pottawatoomie Indians under Chief Pokagan. By 1838, when the original State Line House was built facing Sauk Trail, the trail named after the Sauk Indians, records begin to record the early beginnings of what is now know as Dyer, Indiana. The State Line House was used to house travelers going to Chicago, and became the overnight stopping place for Union soldiers during the Civil War.

The early settlers identified themselves as farmers from Prussia with a few carpenters, millers, saloon keepers, shoemakers, masons and a doctor also being identified. In 1857, the Michigan Central Railroad established a station at Dyer, and built a grain elevator nearby. A few years later the Monon Railroad ran a north-south line through the Town, and the Elgin, Joliet and Eastern Railway, and east-west route, was built.

The original plat for the Town is dated June 1, 1855, and has a notation which reads "No doubt an error in date of record", but does not give a corrected date. The original plat shows Illinois, Indiana, Matteson, Calumet, Ross, Lake, East and West streets; the Joliet and Northern Indiana Railroads, and the State Line. A plat dated March 28, 1858 shows Hart and Joliet Streets.

John Streets built the first business in the area in 1856. Mr. Wolcott built the second store, with the third business being built by F.L. Keilman and Leonard Keilman, in 1858.

Aaron Norton Hart, a Philadelphia publisher helped shape the early history of the Town. In 1857, he and his wife, Martha, whose maiden name was "Dyer", moved to the area and invested their money and their futures in the region. They had four children, three boys named West, Win, and Malcolm, and one daughter named Flora. Mr. Hart purchased fifteen thousand acres of what was then described as "despised swamp lands" from the government for $0.75 to $1.25 per acre. Many German Catholic immigrants followed the Hart's and helped settle the land, including the Peschels, Scheidts, Nondorfs, Hoffmans, Schultes, Bernens, Millers and Hilbrichs.

In 1853, it is reported that the Town was platted. District School No. 2 was established as part of the St. John Township School System. The first school was a log cabin, with it being replaced in 1862 with a school house being erected on Hart Street by John Sommer. The building cost $150 with an additional $15 being paid for the making of school benches. By 1875, they had outgrown the building and a one-story two-room building was built. Each room was heated by a large stove which burned wood or coal. From 1876 until 1898, two teachers taught in the Dyer School. The lower grades were taught by Catholic nuns and the upper grades by men. Both German and English were spoken and written.

Around 1860, the Hart's built a fifteen room colonial style home which stood until a few years ago at 135 Joliet Street. He later built another home at Hartsdale on the Hart farm. At one point in time, Mr. Hart owned fourteen yoke of oxen, two teams of horses, and three teams of mules. The road and ditch digging business for which he used these animals grew to such proportions that he had as many as forty men on his payroll at one time. Mr. Hart oversaw the extensive ditch system to properly control the immense Cady Marsh and the large pond called Lake George. With the completion of the Hart Ditch, 20,000 acres of fertile land were made available for settlement and productivity in contrast to its former boggy condition.

In 1867, Reverend Jacob Schmitz moved to Dyer and became the first resident pastor. He purchased four aces where the first frame church building, St. Joseph's, at the cost of $4,000 to $5,000, was erected. After the Christmas service held in 1902, the original church was destroyed by fire. Father Joseph Flach, who came to the area in 1878, along with the parishioners, began rebuilding the church. The present edifice was dedicated in 1903 and has a tower of over 100 feet. Father Flach retired in 1923.

A furniture store was established in 1867, and in 1870 a hardware store was established by Joseph Peschel. Medical doctors included Dr. Hoffman, A. Seidler and J. W. Johns. The population was listed at 400. By this date, five different railroads crossed Aaron Hart's land with each one being required to maintain adequate drainage along their right-of-ways. On January 12, 1883, Mr. Hart was killed while supervising the construction of a ditch when the left bank of a twelve foot high bank caved in without warning off a large bend in the Plum Creek.

In 1880, Mrs. F.N. Biggs and Mr. George Davis organized the Union Sunday School of Dyer. By 1891, the Dyer Union Protestant Church was established. It was the first Union Church in the country.

In 1887, the Franciscan Sister of the Order of the Sacred Heart of Joliet, Illinois, began one of their first missions in the area now know as Dyer. The first convent was built in 1901 simultaneously with the building of the first school. By 1905, they were instructing 87 pupils. Records reveal that St. Joseph's has been a dominant factor in the development of Dyer, and "it's imposing steeple reflected that dominance over the surround scene".

By the early 1900's, Jacob Schaeffer established a blacksmith shop, and there was a creamery on Fagen Street, a pickle and sauerkraut factory on Matteson Street, and a flour mill on Hart Street. The sauerkraut factory had eight tanks or vats, each holding 125 barrels of kraut. The brand name was "Hartman, Kallenberger and Gettler" and was sold throughout the middle west. The First National Bank was established in 1903 by John L. Keilman, William N. Gettler, John L. Kimmett, Henery L. Keilman and August Stommel. There were also seven saloons and two grocery stores. With each saloon paying the Town, after its incorporation, a fee of $150.00 for a Town liquor license in addition to a state license for each. Each saloon had a watering trough for horses in the front. A nickel bought a schooner of beer, with a free lunch.

On January 24, 1910, citizens of Dyer decided by a vote of 57 to 35 to incorporate as a Town under the laws of the State of Indiana. The Town of Dyer was formally incorporated on February 8, 1910. It helped address the housing needs in Lake County for its growing industrial region. The Town was divided into three districts or wards so that a trustee might be elected from each of the wards. The original wards were drawn as follows

First Ward: All land within the Town of Dyer lying west of Hart Street

Second Ward: All land within the Town of Dyer lying east of Hart Street and south of U.S. 30

Third Ward: All land within the Town of Dyer north of the Lincoln Highway and east of Hart Street.

The first Board of Trustees for the Town of Dyer consisted of Michael Fagen from the First Ward, Henry L. Keilman from the Second Ward and Henry J. Schulte from the Third Ward. Their salaries, as established by ordinance, were $30.00 annually, payable each quarter. William N. Gettler was the Clerk-Treasurer of the Town of Dyer and was paid $60.00 annually. He held this position until 1939. Eugene Stech was appointed Dyer's first Town Marshal and received a monthly salary of $25.00.

In 1915, the Municipal Water Utility was established, and the Fire Department was established shortly thereafter. The original Volunteer Fire Department consisted of Fire Chief John Burge, Assistant Chief Andrew Peschel, Ladder Captain Frank Beiriger, Hose Captain Leo Hoffman, and Secretary-Treasurer Nicholas Austgen. Since there was no place to house the fire hose carts, Town Marshal Eugene Stech donated the use of his barn, and Joseph Schaller donated the use of his horse shed behind the Dyer Hotel for storage of the ladder wagon. The first fire station was built in 1916 for $125.00.

The first Town Meeting was held on March 10, 1919 in a store building owned by Henry Schulte at 229 Joliet Street. The owner was paid $2.00 rent for each meeting held at his store.

National attention was focused on Dyer in the early 1920's when an experimental model highway was constructed stretching three miles from Dyer to Schererville. It was call the "Ideal Section of the Lincoln Highway". This experiment, financed by the federal, state and county governments and United States Rubber Company, set the standards for highway construction throughout the United States.

Population of the Town has steadily increased. In 1893, it is reported that the Town had a population of 250 people. In 1910, it had 500; and by 1950 it reached 1,556. With the development of the Plum Creek Addition and the Plum Creek Annexation, growth of the Town by 1960 reached 3,993. The Schilling's Subdivision brought the count to 4,496 in a special census in 1968, and by 1970 there were 4,778 residents. By 1975, there were 7,396; the 1980 census listed the Town as 9,555 and as of the 1990 census, there were 10,923 Dyer residents. Currently, the population in Town is estimated at just over 12,000. The Town Council also changed from a three member Board of Trustees to a five member Town Council.

Mail was delivered to homes in the Town of Dyer for the first time in October of 1954.

In 1971, the Dyer Park and Recreation Board was established. It oversees the Elmer Miller Park and the Northgate Park, with the latter being dedicated in 1974. The Dyer Park District is comprised of twelve parks totaling 76.5 acres.

The Town of Dyer is governed by a five member Town Council, with each member serving four-year terms. A full time Clerk, elected each four years, is in charge of the fiscal division of the Town. Additionally, there is a Metropolitan Police Commission, an Economic Development Commission, the Park and Recreation Board, a Stormwater Management Board, a waterworks Board, a Board of Sanitary Commissioners, and a Redevelopment Commission. A 30 member volunteer Fire Department operates from two stations in the Town. Nine of the volunteers are certified Emergency Medical Technicians. The Dyer Police Department employs 17 full time officers and has radio dispatch operators and clerks.

St. Margaret Mercy Hospital employs 975 people for its 265-bed facility, to learn more about the hospital visit their website at www.smmhc.com . School aged children attend the Lake Central Schools for public education, kindergarten through 12th grade. It employs 157 individuals. The third largest employer is Meridian Nursing Center with 152 employees.., and Regency Place and Hadady Corporation each employ 150 individuals. The Dyer/Schererville Public Library is a branch of the Lake County Library system.

Because of the hard-working civic and public officials, the Town of Dyer, Indiana continues to be a Town in step with the future which remembers its "echoes of the past".

Contents of this page © 1997,1998 Town of Dyer For questions or comments regarding this page, contact webmaster@@dyeronline.com

Last Modified 12/29/98

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Lake County Land Owners 1830s-1850s Submitted by Jack Childers injack1@@aol.com

ORIGINAL LAND OWNERS OF LAKE COUNTY

Hoffman, Jacob Lake IN 1850/06/17