Kautsch and Linhardt - From Lohman's founding in 1882 to the future 1882 Market House

A.N. Linhardt, third from left, poses with family members and employees in front of his thriving Lohman mercantile about 1915. Located along Main Street near the Missouri Pacific Railroad depot, the store served as a commercial hub for area residents and farmers. The building reflected the prosperity of a business that helped shape Lohman's economy during the early twentieth century. Courtesy of Gert Strobel.

Many rural communities can trace their once-bustling mercantile operations to certain individuals who used their knowledge and drive to build businesses that survived the decades. The late Adam Nicholas (A.N.) Linhardt was one such visionary, whose early desire to seek an alternative to farming resulted in a respected mercantile in Lohman that built upon the foundations of a previous business and later expanded to Jefferson City.
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Born near Lohman in 1883, Linhardt was only 13 years old when his father was murdered in town, leaving many members of the community reeling in shock. Although the culprit was caught and hanged for the crime, young Linhardt and his family could not revel in grief since they needed to make a living in the small railroad community.

Natalie Young, granddaughter of A.N. Linhardt, explained, “My Grandfather Linhardt was a man of smaller stature and said, ‘I was the runt of the family,’” recalled Young. “He believed that he was not ‘cut out’ to be a farmer and had to decide what type of work suited him. He started with clerk jobs in general stores.”

For six years, he was employed as a clerk at Kautsch and Linhardt, a mercantile established in 1887, which was initially housed in a brick building formerly used by Farmers Bank of Lohman. The business was co-owned by his first cousin, John Adam Linhardt, who operated in partnership with John Henry Kautsch, a former business associate of the town’s namesake, Charles W. Lohman.

The success of Kautsch and Linhardt was closely tied to the growth of Lohman itself. The community traces its beginnings to 1882, when businessman Charles W. Lohman established a store and post office along the newly completed railroad. As settlers, farmers and railroad workers passed through the area, additional businesses emerged around what became known as Lohman Station, transforming the small settlement into a thriving commercial center for western Cole County.

Like many residents of the Lohman area, the Linhardt and Kautsch families were descendants of German immigrants who had settled throughout Cole County during the nineteenth century. Their cultural traditions, work ethic and entrepreneurial spirit helped shape the community’s commercial and agricultural development for generations.

The store sold all sorts of general merchandise, in addition to farm equipment such as binders and mowers, to residents of the community and surrounding areas. Sales were also boosted by foot traffic since the store was located only a short walk from the Missouri Pacific Railroad depot, a hotel and saloon.

The railroad was the lifeblood of rural Missouri communities during this period. Before widespread automobile ownership and improved highways, merchants depended upon rail service to receive merchandise and farm machinery while local farmers relied upon it to ship livestock, grain and other agricultural products to larger markets. The presence of the Missouri Pacific depot gave Lohman an economic advantage over many neighboring crossroads communities.

“Around 1908-1909, they moved across the street and constructed the fine building on the west side of Main Street,” noted A Bicentennial View—a historical booklet about Lohman printed in 1976. “Mr. Ed Baumann was a partner in this firm after the turn of the century,” the booklet added.

The Sunday News and Tribune reported in its Dec. 8, 1935 edition that Linhardt left his clerk position at Kautsch and Linhardt and, for two years, operated a lumber yard in Lohman. His future plans continued to unfold in 1910, when he married the former Anna Schoch of Russellville. Soon, an important decision needed to be made regarding where the couple would reside.

“My grandfather asked his wife if she preferred to live in Lohman or Jefferson City, as they would surely make their home near his work,” said Natalie Young. “My grandmother Anna told me that she said she liked Lohman but felt the final decision had to be his.”

A.N. Linhardt chose Lohman, where he set down roots by building a home. In 1911, the year following his marriage, he had made enough of a profit from his work in the lumber business to purchase the firm of Kautsch and Linhardt. He later shared that after purchasing the business, he went on the roof of the store building and painted over the name “Kautsch” on the sign.

Linhardt was joined in partnership by Walter Fischer in 1912, but in 1917, he became the sole proprietor of the store.

“Along with the general store, there was a farm implement area on the south side of the store,” said Natalie Young. “As motorized farm equipment was developing at that time, Grandpa Nick both sold and repaired the equipment. He reminisced that when he ordered merchandise by the train car load, it was good for the Lohman economy.”

The Linhardts became parents to five sons and a daughter; one daughter died in infancy. Three of his sons later assisted in his business endeavors, including the opening of A.N. Linhardt and Sons in Jefferson City in 1936. The store, located on Mulberry Street, sold the complete line of McCormick and Deering farm machines and implements.

Linhardt, his son Harley and a store employee suffered serious injury in October 1936 when a barrel of tar they were heating with a blow torch exploded in the back of their store in Jefferson City. Boiling tar scalded the faces of all three men, who were transported to St. Mary’s Hospital by the fire department.

Natalie Young recalled, “Uncle Harley was treated by one doctor and the tar and debris were removed so he could heal. Grandpa got a different doctor and he just bandaged him. Uncle Harley started healing but grandpa did not.”

She added, “A nurse privately spoke with grandma and said if they didn’t change doctors, grandpa would surely die. Grandma made the decision to change doctors and grandpa’s wounds were cleaned and he survived to old age.”

The store in Lohman remained in operation until 1942, but Linhardt continued his farm implement dealership in Jefferson City for several years. He would also go on to serve as president of the Farmers Bank of Lohman from 1955-1961.

His wife, Anna, lived to be 86 years old and passed away in 1976. Ten years later, at the impressive age of 103, Linhardt died and was laid to rest next to his wife in the cemetery of St. Paul’s Lutheran Church in Lohman.

Businesses have come and gone in many a small town, but occasionally the storefronts erected have survived the unyielding passage of time, boldly standing in silent tribute to the entrepreneurs who once developed grand plans and clung to lofty dreams.

In the small community of Lohman, the names of Kautsch and Linhardt are still present in descendants living throughout the community. And although A.N. Linhardt may not be widely remembered among current residents, evidence of the booming local economy he and his predecessors once helped create continues through stalwart buildings proudly flanking Main Street.

More than a century after A.N. Linhardt transformed the business into one of Lohman’s most successful mercantile enterprises, the historic storefronts that once anchored Main Street continue to find new purpose. The second Linhardt store building has recently been purchased by the Ziegelbein family and is slated to become the 1882 Market House, an antique store, coffee shop and kitchen.

The name pays tribute to 1882, the year Charles W. Lohman established his business and post office along the railroad, setting in motion the growth of the community that bears his name today. In many ways, the project represents a continuation of the entrepreneurial spirit that first gave rise to the town more than 140 years ago.

Jeremy P. Ämick is author of historical compilations "Hidden History of Cole County," "Moments on the Moreau," and "Beyond the Moreau." He is currently finishing up the book "Echoes of the Moreau," containing scores of local stories from throughout Mid-Missouri. 

ohn Adam Linhardt and John Henry Kautsch established their mercantile business in this brick building in 1887, building upon the commercial foundations laid by Charles W. Lohman just a few years earlier. Located near the railroad depot, the store supplied general merchandise and farm equipment to residents of Lohman and the surrounding countryside. Courtesy of Gert Strobel.