The following is the story of the Madison Hamachers.  

The patriarch of the clan was Peter Hamacher, born in the town of Kerpen, Germany (then Prussia) near Cologne.  He was born October 21, 1824.  Most sources have his birth date as the same date in 1823 (even his headstone) and it is unclear what the man believed himself.  His was the son of Bartholomew and Margaretha (fmr. Kessenich) Hamacher.  It is not known how many brothers and sisters Peter grew up with but there is a possibility that he had a half-brother Johann, who founded the Hamacher clan in Milwaukee.  The Hamachers were Catholic, a faith Peter would take to Madison and raise his family under.  In adulthood, Peter was described as being 5' 6” feet tall, blue-eyed with black hair and a fair complexion.  He also reportedly had a large nose which would eventually receive a prominent scar over the left side.

The life of Peter Hamacher before he arrived in Madison is sketchy with just a few details.  It is known that he was a soldier in his homeland from 1844 to 1850 and participated in the war of 1847-8.  It is not known why he decided to leave Europe in 1852.  Nevertheless, he arrived in New York City on the ship Elizabeth Denison in April of that year and by May was in the Madison area.  On the ship with Peter was Lucia Sophia Ruland and her family, also from Kerpen.  Some brothers of the Statz family (also from Kerpen) were on board including Frank Statz, Peter's eventual brother-in-law.  These brothers also emigrated to Dane County and established (along with another brother who came later) the large present day Statz family in southern Wisconsin.

Upon arriving in Dane County, Peter wasted little time establishing himself.  He bought a 130 acre farm in the town of Fitchburg where the present day Nicolet company now resides.  On July 14, 1852, he declared his intent to become a United States citizen in Dane County Circuit Court.  At the time, Madison was only 14 years old with a population of a few hundred people.  On November 27, he married Lucia at Saint Martin's church in Martinsville, a hamlet a few miles northwest of Middleton.  Their first child, Agnes, came on May 17, 1853.  Unfortuneately, nothing more is known about Agnes and a strong possibility exists she never survived early childhood.  

The legacy of Peter Hamacher as a business owner and builder began in 1854 when he purchased land at the corner of W. Mifflin and N. Henry in Madison.  On that site, Peter built the “Stadt Coeln” (Cologne City), a small boarding house and saloon.  The establishment was popular with farmers as they travelled to Madison to sell their farm goods.  The location was just two blocks from the capitol building.  

During this time, the Hamacher family continued to grow.  On June 24, 1855 came the twins John and Matthew.  Frank Hamacher was born in September 1857.  Margaret came on August 1, 1859.  A fourth son, Peter, was born in May 1861.  Finally, Mary was born in August 1863. 

Peter interested himself in many hobbies.  He was active in local politics and was very dedicated to the church.  In 1857, he became a founding member of Holy Redeemer.  At the time, the German speaking members of St. Raphaels, the only Catholic parish in Madison wanted a separate church in which the mass would be conducted in the German tougue.  The Germans broke off and built Holy Redeemer.  Peter was very generous with donations to the new church.  Peter also maintained a garden and his farm.  Peter was very active in real estate in the young city of Madison.  On November 26, 1858 he became a citizen in Dane County Circuit Court.

In 1866, Peter rebuilt his boarding house into the famous yellow-bricked structure he which stood until [195#].  The new three-story structure tripled as a saloon, hotel and grocery and was known as the Madison House.  The stable was located in back until razed in 1905 at the present site of the Federal courthouse.  The bar was a polished mahogany and fresh oiled sawdust covered the floor.  
 
Peter operated the Madison House for 16 years until his death on January 26, 1882.  He died from complications of a prolonged cold.  Ownership of the hotel transferred to Lucia who herself had been confined to her bed for a few years.  In 1884, Lucia sold the hotel to John and Matthew.  Shortly after John bought out Matthew.

Around this time, John and Matthew fell in love with two young women from the town of Westport.  They grew up on neighboring farms there and had come to work in the hotel.  John married Anna Franey, who together would later run the hotel.  Matthew married Mary Murphy.

Matthew went on operate a confectionery and restaurant at 514 E Wilson in Madison where he also resided.  Later Matthew became a teamster.  Among his known occupations were janitor, laborer, and iron moulder.  Eventually, he and Mary relocated to Chippewa Falls and raised one daughter, Lucy Sophia, who I will mention later.

Meanwhile, Frank Hamacher married Clara Schoen on January 14, 1878.  She was the daughter of Phillip Schoen, a Holy Redeemer member and successful businessman.  At the time of their marriage, Frank worked for Phillip Schoen as a baker in Madison's first bakery.  Eventually, Frank would operate a string of saloons in Madison.  These included the Madison House under his mother, the Quiet House on 117 E Main, and saloons at both 122 E Washington and 121 W. Main.  During that time Frank and family maintained a number of residences.  Frank and Clara had seven children, one of whom was Anna, who went on to marry Samuel Gallagher.  He helped his father John operate the famous Gallagher tent and awning business founded in 1880.  Sam was an alderman in Madison from 1929 to 1933.  They were members of St Raphael’s.  Frank died on May 21, 1917 at St. Mary's hospital. 

Peter's two daughters Margaret and Mary both married and lost their first husbands and then eventually remarried.  Margaret first married Ernest Glawe, a German immigrant who operated the William Tell  at 321-3 State St. and worked as a landlord.  They had one son.  After Ernest died, Margaret married William Franey (brother of Anna Franey) and had two children.  Franey was the superintendent of the bus line.  Margaret died October 25, 1916. in Madison.  Mary first married Leopold Roesch, a butcher who died in 1891.  They had one son, Leopold, Jr.  Mary then married Martin Hackett, a Madison laborer.  They had four children. She died July 15, 1942 in Madison.  Sadly, in 1945, Leopold Jr. after having gone missing for a few days, was discovered dead in Lake Monona, a victim of an apparent drowning.

John and Anna Hamacher ran the Madison House during arguably its most memorable days.  John was a very colorful character to say the least.  He was one of the strictest tavern owners in the city.  John was absolutely intolerant of drunkeness in his establishment.  The bar closed promptly at 10 pm every night, no excuses.  If a patron refused to leave at 10 pm, John was well-known for physically removing them from the premises.  A famous story has John picking up and throwing out a well-known political figure during which the man protested, “Do you know who I am?”.  John didn't care either way.  John had among his patrons university professors, professionals and businessmen of the city. They enjoyed the Madison House because he conducted a quiet place. He stood for-no noise making.

The Madison House was also popular with students who enjoyed the first floor restaurant.  The restaurant was operated by Anna, nicknamed “Aunt Annie” by the students.  They came for her famous steak dinners.  The restaurant was “family-style” dining and patrons were treated to unlimited size helpings.  The bar sold Fauerbach Centennial in two sizes, the nickel and dime glasses.  The dime glasses were known as “whoopensockers” (apparently translated as “tall glass”).

Friends described John as a very fit man.  Every morning, regardless of weather conditions, he walked to the Fauerbach brewery and back (located in Machinery Row).  After retiring from the hotel and saloon business, he reportedly constructed a gymnasium in his basement.

John also built the famous Odd Fellows building next door to the hotel on Mifflin St.  John originally intended to operate a pool hall and bowling alley there.  But after completion he decided to sell it to the Odd Fellows.

During this time, Peter's mother Lucia had passed away on May 18, 1895.  She was very ill for many years and finally succumbed to dropsy, the old fashioned name for the condition now known as pulmonary edema.

In 1904, John sold his interest in the Madison House, now known as the Hamacher Hotel, to his younger brother Peter (“Pete”).  Pete followed his father and brothers in the family business.  He owned the Quiet House with Frank, then ran the Central Sample Room at 101 King St.  After that
he built a saloon, billiard parlor and grocery at 318 State St.  The business on State survived a fatal fire in 1894 in which his wife, the former Mary Doris (married May 10, 1887), lost her mother. The fire started in the neighboring building, the site of Mary's family's grocery store and residence.  

After Pete took over the Hamacher Hotel, he extended saloon hours to 11pm.  At that time, the hotel had 21 rooms on the second and third floors.

Pete sold the hotel to Adolph and Fred Milverstadt in 1911.  The brothers retained the hotel's name.  After Fred passed away Adolph operated the hotel on his own.  During Prohibition, the saloon was a popular place for card players.  After Prohibition ended, the saloon started again with nickel beers.  In December 1939, Adolph sold the hotel to Hermann Hammerli.

On February 16, 1947, the hotel suffered a fire.  Luckily, all of the rooms were unoccupied and no one lost their lives.  The fire did severe damage to the building.  The damage would have less had not some pranksters bound the fire station doors with rope.  It took a few minutes for the firemen to cut off the ropes, losing precious time.  Despite the fire, the hotel remained in operation until 1955 when the it was finally razed.

Pete went on to build several houses on Madison's south side.  He had lost Mary on September 20, 1901 to endocarditis.  This may or may not been the result of a stillborn delivery a month earlier.  This left the children, Henry, Francis and Florence without a mother.  However, Peter remarried to Theresa Vosen on April 19, 1904.  They proceeded to add three more children to the family, Peter, John and Leo.  Pete passed away on January 5, 1940.  His sister's Mary's death two years later closed out the first-generation American Hamachers.

Two interesting stories surfaced during my family research.  The first regards the mysterious death of Frank Statz, Peter's brother-in-law (he was married to Lucia's sister Catherine).  The second recalls the union of Lucy Sophia Hamacher (Matthew's daughter) and A. G. Findlay and exemplifies the idea of good journalism not too long ago.


During the evening of October 25, 1887, Frank Statz was overtaken while walking down the highway from Waunakee to his home by a neighbor,  The neighbor asked why Frank was not taking the shortcut along the railroad tracks.  Frank remarked that he was to old to navigate the railroad bridges.  After he arrived at home that evening he set off again for a five-mile walk to Dane where two of his sons lived.  Early the next morning, Frank's mangled remains where found on the railroad tracks a mile and a half from home.  

Relatives were justifiably suspicious and demanded further investigation after two different inquests concluded an accidental death.  Besides knowing Frank avoided railroads, they noted that he had been carrying between 20 and 30 dollars that night.  No money was found on the body.  Further suspicions arose around the appearance of a mysterious man at a fair Frank attended on the fatal night in Waunakee.  The man had the appearance of a pick-pocket and had not been seen since.

On October 29, the coroner reached a verdict.  Frank had gotten caught in a cattle guard, run over by a train and dragged.  A ten dollar bill was found a half mile down the tracks from the body.  A gruesome death no doubt.  It is not known if the conclusion satisfied the relatives.  No one could explain why Frank set out down the tracks that night.

Lucy met and fell in love with A. G. Findlay, at the time the principal of West Salem high school.  A. G. starred as a football player at the University of Wisconsin from 1902 to 1905.  In 1905, he earned All-American honors while playing halfback.  He later played professionally for the Massillon, Ohio Tigers.  According to newspapers, the two lovers secretly eloped in Rockford, IL on September 18, 1908 despite the fact she lived in Chippewa Falls.  Apparently, Matthew and Mary did not approve of the relationship on account of A. G. not being Catholic.  Nevertheless, all was eventually forgiven.  This was acceptable journalism just one hundred years ago when even a visit to a friend's house would make the papers!