John Baptist Adolph Kern (Adolph Kern) was born in Bavaria in 1829. His family came
to the United States in 1832. Adolph came to Milwaukee and started a milling
business with a small mill on Poplar Street in 1859. In 1861, he entered into
partnership with Fred Bertschy, the father of his wife Helen, whom he married in
1856. Bertschy and Kern started the Eagle Mill. Eagle Mill flour proved very
successful for Kern and he grew the company beyond the capacity of his original
mill. In 1866, Kern sold the first mill and built a new, larger mill. That mill was
added onto over the years and would eventually become one of the largest mills in
the country. He had six children, one of whom was Margaret.
Adolph Meinecke was born in Oldenburg, Germany. He came to the United States in 1848
at the age of 17. He moved to Milwaukee in 1855 and started a small toy store on
Market Square. In 1864, he started manufacturing willow baskets in the same building
as his toy store. His willow–working business was so successful that in 1870, the
business was divided and the toy business became a line that was produced under the
name "Meinecke & Co." and the willow work enterprise was carried on under the
name "A. Meinecke." By 1879, the company had grown so much that it was moved to then
East, now North, Water Street. The company also expanded beyond the manufacture of
toys and willow products to include the importing of fancy goods. By this time,
Adolph’s eldest son Ferdinand was a partner in the willow manufacturer and that area
of the business became known as A. Meinecke & Son. Adolph Meinecke’s son
Ferdinand married Adolph Kern’s daughter Margaret in 1879.
