Individual Details
William LEMBCKE
(Abt 1860 - 17 Feb 1923)
William and Catherine (also called Katie) farmed in Oconto County, Wisconsin, Ness County, Kansas, and Outagamie County, Wisconsin. In about 1916 to 1917, they sold the family farm in Osborn (near Seymour, in Outagamie County) and retired to Dolton, Illinois, where they lived next door to their oldest son, John. Their youngest three children were still living at home with them in Dolton at the time of the 1920 Census.
On February 17, 1923, William and Catherine Lembcke and their youngest daughter, Agnes, all died in their beds as the result of a gas leak under their home. The following is a transcription of a story from the local newspaper (accessed from NewspaperArchive.com) :
The Pointer [Riverdale, Ill. (P.O. Dolton, Ill.) Friday, February 23, 1923 -- Vol. XVI, no. 40]
Lembcke Family Dies While Asleep inBed -- Broken Gas Pipe Under House, Cause
Father, Mother and 15-year Old Daughter Succumb to Poisonous Fumes -- Inquest Today -- Dolton Mourns
The breaking of a gas pipe under the kitchen floor, probably from the frost, caused the death of William Lembcke, 63, his wife, Catherine, 60, and daughter, Agnes, 15, early last Saturday morning, Feb. 17. They lived at 939 Grant Street, Dolton. The Lembcke family have lived in Dolton for the past six years.
John Lembcke, a son, engineer on the C. & E. I. railroad, was returning home from work last Saturday morning about 4:30, when he noticed alight burning at the home of his parents, who lived next door to him on Grant Street. He thought one of the family might be sick and went to the kitchen door. It was locked and no response came to his knocking on the door. He went to his parents' bedroom and knocked on the window, but received no response, then to his sister's window and still no response. Becoming alarmed he went back to the kitchen door and thought he detected gas; he smelled the key-hole and then was convinced that something was wrong. He had a key to fit the front door and soon had it open. The smell of gas was stifling and he opened the doors and windows at once and went to his parents'bedroom. They were cold and dead. He went to his sister's bedroom. She was dead. He telephoned for Dr. Weidner and notified the gas company. It was evident from the position of the bodies of his parents that his mother was awakened and turned on the light, but was overcome and fell across the foot of the bed.
His sister's body was laying just as she went to sleep, on her back,with a rosary in her hands. The room was cold and it was her custom to say her prayers kneeling until she got cold and then get into bed and finish. Agnes was a high school girl and was attending Chicago Street School near her home. Her death is a great shock to school mates.
When Dr. Weidner arrived he found all were beyond medical aid. They looked around to find where the gas came from. There seemed to be no leak whatever in the house, but a further investigation developed that a gas pipe must be broken under the kitchen and the deadly gas made its way into the house around the openings in the floor. The gas company men were soon there, but the shut off at the house still left an odor and the main had to be shut off in the street.
The bodies were removed to Good's morgue and taken home again Sunday evening. The inquest was postponed until Friday afternoon (today) at 2 o'clock.
Edith, who lived home with her parents, works nights at the Haney offices. It has been the custom for her father to take her to the office at night, but it was slippery Friday night and she induced her father to stay home and she would telephone as soon as she got to the office, which she did at 11 p.m. Agnes answered the phone and all was well at that time.
Funeral services were held Tuesday morning at St. Mary's Church,Riverdale, conducted by Father Liebreich. Interment was at Mt. Olivet.
The Lembcke family have lived in Dolton for the past six years and are highly respected. The death of father,mother and sister at one time is the saddest thing that could come to a family and those who remain have the sincere sympathy of the entire community.
Mr. Lembcke was a retired farmer and recently sold the homestead farm to his son, George, and planned to live the remainder of his life with his children in Dolton. The father and mother were a very devoted couple and were very proud of their children.
They leave five sons and one daughter to mourn their untimely death,namely: John, Arthur and Edith, of Dolton; George, of Seymour, Wis., and Louis of Ryder, North Dakota.
Louis had to ride nearly fifty miles on horseback in the cold weather,to reach a train home. He used two horses. One gave out after 25 miles and died. He got another one and came on.
Others of the family from a distance were:
Henry Lembcke, brother, from Milwaukee, Wis.
James Duister (sic), brother of Mrs. Lembcke, Green Bay, Wis.
Miss Mary Duister, sister, and Mrs. Frances Lurquim (sic) and husband,Joseph, son Fred and wife and daughter, Agnes.
Arthur Duister, a cousin of Green Bay and Mrs. May DeGrooth (sic) ofGreen Bay.
The following article appeared in the AppletonPost-Crescent (Appleton, Wisconsin; Monday, February 19, 1923 -- accessed from Ancestry.com):
Leaking Gas Kills Former OsbornTrio
Seymour -- Three former residents of this locality, Mr. and Mrs. William Lembcke and 16-year-old daughter Agnes, are dead from asphyxiation at Dalton, Ill., according to a telegram received Saturday by their sons, George and Arthur Lembcke of this city.
George Lembcke, Mr. and Mrs. Arthur Lembcke and Anton Winneger left Saturday for Dalton, where they arranged for the burial.
No details of the tragedy were contained in the telegram. It is believed that coal gas escaping from a furnace was the cause.
William Lembcke and family were pioneers of the town of Osborn. He sold his farm about six years ago to his son George and moved to Dalton.
On February 17, 1923, William and Catherine Lembcke and their youngest daughter, Agnes, all died in their beds as the result of a gas leak under their home. The following is a transcription of a story from the local newspaper (accessed from NewspaperArchive.com) :
The Pointer [Riverdale, Ill. (P.O. Dolton, Ill.) Friday, February 23, 1923 -- Vol. XVI, no. 40]
Lembcke Family Dies While Asleep inBed -- Broken Gas Pipe Under House, Cause
Father, Mother and 15-year Old Daughter Succumb to Poisonous Fumes -- Inquest Today -- Dolton Mourns
The breaking of a gas pipe under the kitchen floor, probably from the frost, caused the death of William Lembcke, 63, his wife, Catherine, 60, and daughter, Agnes, 15, early last Saturday morning, Feb. 17. They lived at 939 Grant Street, Dolton. The Lembcke family have lived in Dolton for the past six years.
John Lembcke, a son, engineer on the C. & E. I. railroad, was returning home from work last Saturday morning about 4:30, when he noticed alight burning at the home of his parents, who lived next door to him on Grant Street. He thought one of the family might be sick and went to the kitchen door. It was locked and no response came to his knocking on the door. He went to his parents' bedroom and knocked on the window, but received no response, then to his sister's window and still no response. Becoming alarmed he went back to the kitchen door and thought he detected gas; he smelled the key-hole and then was convinced that something was wrong. He had a key to fit the front door and soon had it open. The smell of gas was stifling and he opened the doors and windows at once and went to his parents'bedroom. They were cold and dead. He went to his sister's bedroom. She was dead. He telephoned for Dr. Weidner and notified the gas company. It was evident from the position of the bodies of his parents that his mother was awakened and turned on the light, but was overcome and fell across the foot of the bed.
His sister's body was laying just as she went to sleep, on her back,with a rosary in her hands. The room was cold and it was her custom to say her prayers kneeling until she got cold and then get into bed and finish. Agnes was a high school girl and was attending Chicago Street School near her home. Her death is a great shock to school mates.
When Dr. Weidner arrived he found all were beyond medical aid. They looked around to find where the gas came from. There seemed to be no leak whatever in the house, but a further investigation developed that a gas pipe must be broken under the kitchen and the deadly gas made its way into the house around the openings in the floor. The gas company men were soon there, but the shut off at the house still left an odor and the main had to be shut off in the street.
The bodies were removed to Good's morgue and taken home again Sunday evening. The inquest was postponed until Friday afternoon (today) at 2 o'clock.
Edith, who lived home with her parents, works nights at the Haney offices. It has been the custom for her father to take her to the office at night, but it was slippery Friday night and she induced her father to stay home and she would telephone as soon as she got to the office, which she did at 11 p.m. Agnes answered the phone and all was well at that time.
Funeral services were held Tuesday morning at St. Mary's Church,Riverdale, conducted by Father Liebreich. Interment was at Mt. Olivet.
The Lembcke family have lived in Dolton for the past six years and are highly respected. The death of father,mother and sister at one time is the saddest thing that could come to a family and those who remain have the sincere sympathy of the entire community.
Mr. Lembcke was a retired farmer and recently sold the homestead farm to his son, George, and planned to live the remainder of his life with his children in Dolton. The father and mother were a very devoted couple and were very proud of their children.
They leave five sons and one daughter to mourn their untimely death,namely: John, Arthur and Edith, of Dolton; George, of Seymour, Wis., and Louis of Ryder, North Dakota.
Louis had to ride nearly fifty miles on horseback in the cold weather,to reach a train home. He used two horses. One gave out after 25 miles and died. He got another one and came on.
Others of the family from a distance were:
Henry Lembcke, brother, from Milwaukee, Wis.
James Duister (sic), brother of Mrs. Lembcke, Green Bay, Wis.
Miss Mary Duister, sister, and Mrs. Frances Lurquim (sic) and husband,Joseph, son Fred and wife and daughter, Agnes.
Arthur Duister, a cousin of Green Bay and Mrs. May DeGrooth (sic) ofGreen Bay.
The following article appeared in the AppletonPost-Crescent (Appleton, Wisconsin; Monday, February 19, 1923 -- accessed from Ancestry.com):
Leaking Gas Kills Former OsbornTrio
Seymour -- Three former residents of this locality, Mr. and Mrs. William Lembcke and 16-year-old daughter Agnes, are dead from asphyxiation at Dalton, Ill., according to a telegram received Saturday by their sons, George and Arthur Lembcke of this city.
George Lembcke, Mr. and Mrs. Arthur Lembcke and Anton Winneger left Saturday for Dalton, where they arranged for the burial.
No details of the tragedy were contained in the telegram. It is believed that coal gas escaping from a furnace was the cause.
William Lembcke and family were pioneers of the town of Osborn. He sold his farm about six years ago to his son George and moved to Dalton.
Events
| Birth | Abt 1860 | Wisconsin, United States |  | ||
| Residence | 1 Jun 1880 | Centre, Outagamie, Wisconsin, United States | |  | |
| Marriage | 9 Nov 1885 | Brown County, Wisconsin, United States - Catherine L. "Katie" DEUSTER | | ||
| Census (family) | 1 Mar 1895 | Franklin, Ness, Kansas, United States - Catherine L. "Katie" DEUSTER | | | |
| Census (family) | 1 Jun 1900 | Brazeau, Oconto, Wisconsin, United States - Catherine L. "Katie" DEUSTER | | | |
| Census (family) | 1 Jun 1905 | Osborn, Outagamie, Wisconsin, United States - Catherine L. "Katie" DEUSTER | | | |
| Census (family) | 15 Apr 1910 | Osborn, Outagamie, Wisconsin, United States - Catherine L. "Katie" DEUSTER | | | |
| Census (family) | 1 Jan 1920 | 939 Grant Street, Dolton, Cook, Illinois, United States - Catherine L. "Katie" DEUSTER | | | |
| Death | 17 Feb 1923 | Dolton, Cook, Illinois, United States | | ||
| Burial | 20 Feb 1923 | Mount Olivet Cemetery, Chicago, Cook, Illinois, United States | | |
Families
| Spouse | Catherine L. "Katie" DEUSTER (1863 - 1923) |
| Child | John Joseph LEMBCKE (1886 - ) |
| Child | Lewis Edward LEMBCKE (1888 - ) |
| Child | Edgar C. LEMBCKE (1890 - 1902) |
| Child | George W. LEMBCKE (1892 - 1976) |
| Child | Arthur Henry LEMBCKE (1895 - 1983) |
| Child | Albert Richard LEMBCKE (1899 - 1965) |
| Child | Edith E. LEMBCKE (1901 - 1954) |
| Child | Agnes F. LEMBCKE (1907 - 1923) |
| Father | Christian LEMBCKE (1830 - ) |
| Mother | Johanna ZACHON (1829 - ) |
Notes
Birth
Age 20 in 1880. Age 45 in 1905.Residence
Resided in the home of his parents, Christian and Johanna Lembcke.Census (family)
Enumerated with this family were M. Lembcke, age 35, a farmer from Wisconsin; his wife, Katie Lembcke, age 32; and children, John Lembcke, age 9 (b. Minn); Lewis, age 7 (b. Wisc); Edgar, age 5 (b. Kansas); and Geo., age 2 (b. Kansas).http://interactive.ancestry.com/1088/ksv115_107-0423?backurl=http%3a%2f%2fsearch.ancestry.com%2fsearch%2fdb.aspx%3fdbid%3d1088%26path%3d&ssrc=&backlabel=ReturnBrowsing#?imageId=ksv115_107-0431
Census (family)
Enumerated with this family were:-- William Lembek (sic), a farmer, age 40, born Feb 1860 in Wisconsin
-- Katie Lembek, his wife, age 37, born Feb 1863 in Wisconsin
And their sons:
-- Johnnie J. Lembek, age 14, born Jan 1886 in Minnesota
-- Lewis E. Lembek, age 12, born Jan 1988 in Wisconsin
-- Edgar C. Lembek, age 10, born June 1890 in Kansas
-- George W. Lembek, age 7, born Dec 1892 in Kansas
-- Henry A. Lembek, age 4, born July 1895 in Kansas
-- Albert Lembek, age 1, born Jan 1899 in Wisconsin
Neighboring families of interest:
-- Frederick J. and Dora Zachow (relatives of William's mother?)
-- John and Lena Lembcke
http://interactive.ancestry.com/7602/004120633_00772?backurl=http%3a%2f%2fsearch.ancestry.com%2fsearch%2fdb.aspx%3fdbid%3d7602%26path%3d&ssrc=&backlabel=ReturnBrowsing#?imageId=004120633_00773
Census (family)
Enumerated with this family were William Lembcke, a farmer, age 45; his wife, Katherine, age 42; and children: John, age 19; Louis, age 17; George, age 12; Arthur H., age 9; Albert, age 6; and Edith, age 4.http://interactive.ancestry.com/1055/CSUSAWI1905_21-0390?backurl=http%3a%2f%2fsearch.ancestry.com%2fsearch%2fdb.aspx%3fdbid%3d1055%26path%3d&ssrc=&backlabel=ReturnBrowsing#?imageId=CSUSAWI1905_21-0394
Census (family)
Enumerated with this family were William Lembcke, a dairy farmer, age 50; his wife, Katherine, age 47; and children: George, age 17; Arthur, age 15; Albert, age 11; Edith, age 8; and Agnes F., age 2.http://interactive.ancestry.com/7884/4455057_00446?backurl=http%3a%2f%2fsearch.ancestry.com%2fsearch%2fdb.aspx%3fdbid%3d7884%26path%3d&ssrc=&backlabel=ReturnBrowsing
Census (family)
Enumerated with this family were William Lembcke, a tool caretaker in a railroad shop, age 59; his wife, Catherine, age 56; and children: Albert R., age 20; Edith E., age 18; and Agnes F., age 12.Next door was the household of their son, John J. Lembcke and his wife, Viola H., and daughter, Lois L.
http://interactive.ancestry.com/6061/4300527_00419?backurl=http%3a%2f%2fsearch.ancestry.com%2fsearch%2fdb.aspx%3fdbid%3d6061%26path%3d&ssrc=&backlabel=ReturnBrowsing#?imageId=4300527_00443
Burial
Mount Olivet Cemetery: 2755 West 111th Street, Chicago 60655. Office at Saint Casimir Cemetery, 4401 West 111th St. Phone 773-239-4422.William, Catherine, and Agnes are buried together in Section 55, Lot 22. There should be a map by the washrooms. Otherwise, stop by the office at St. Casimir's and pick one up.
Endnotes
1. 1880 U.S. Federal Census, Wisconsin, Outagamie, Centre, E.D. 119, p. 21, dw. 298, fam. 299, lines 1-7: Christian Lembcke and family.
2. , "Wisconsin Marriages, 1836-1930," database online, FamilySearch, (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/XRJH-X8T : accessed 11 August 2013), William Lempke and Catharine Deuster; GS Film #1275775, Ref ID 863.
3. "1895 Kansas State Census," digital images, Ancestry.com ( : accessed 11 August 2013), W. Lembcke and family; Kansas State Census Collection, 1855-1925; Ness County, Franklin, page 6, dw. 52, fam. 52, lines 19-24: W. Lembcke and family.
4. 1900 U.S. Federal Census, Wisconsin, Oconto, Brazeau Twp., e.d. 146, sheet 6B, dw. 100, fam. 103, lines 52-29: William Lembek and family.
5. William Lembcke and family, 1905 State Census, Wisconsin, population, , Outagamie, Town of Osborn, sheet 5, stamp 899, family 83, lines 10-17: William Lembcke and family; on Ancestry.com, Wisconsin Historical Society, Madison, Wisconsin, USA.
6. 1910 U.S. Federal Census, Wisconsin, Outagamie, Osborn, E.D. 145, sheet 1A, dw. 9, fam. 9, lines 44-50: William Lembcke and family.
7. 1920 U.S. Federal Census, Illinois, Cook, Dolton (Thornton Twp), e.d. 213, sheet 13A, dw. 255, fam. 276, lines 14-18: William Lembcke and family.
8. Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., "Illinois, U.S., Deaths and Stillbirths Index, 1916-1947," database online, Ancestry.com ( : accessed 11 August 2013), William Lembeke (sic); FamilySearch; Salt Lake City, Utah; FHL Film 1557109.
9. "Gas Kills Three," news story/obituary, The Pointer, 23 February 1923, deaths of William, Catherine and Agnes Lembcke from gas leak; online images, Newspaper Archive (newspaperarchive.com : accessed 11 August 2013).
10. Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., "Illinois, U.S., Deaths and Stillbirths Index, 1916-1947," database online, Ancestry.com ( : accessed 11 August 2013), William Lembeke (sic); FamilySearch; Salt Lake City, Utah; FHL Film 1557109.
11. "Gas Kills Three," news story/obituary, The Pointer, 23 February 1923, deaths of William, Catherine and Agnes Lembcke from gas leak; online images, Newspaper Archive (newspaperarchive.com : accessed 11 August 2013).