Elsa Henrietta Horstmann

F 1885 - 1981
Type Value
Name Elsa Henrietta Horstmann
Born 1885-06-03 Iowa
Gender F
Died 1981-07-12
Buried Orondo Community Cemetery, Orondo, Douglas County, Washington
Type Value
Father Claus Friedrich Wilhelm Horstmann b. (1839-08-23, Schleswig-Holstein, Germany) d. (1909, Templeton, San Luis Obispo County, California)
Mother Amelia A. Petersen b. (1844-03-27, Meldorf, Schleswig-Holstein, Germany) d. (1923-04-20)
Married 1864-10-13, Germany
Type Value
Family Van Soest
Children 1 Amelia Margaret Van Soest b. (1919-04-30) d. (1959-11-22)

Notes

In Salinas, San Luis Obispo, California per the 1900 census

Dr. Elsa Horstmann Van Soest

              THE GOLDEN WEDDING
              by Elsa Horstmann

    There was a young couple lived near Waterloo,
    They had so many children they didn't know what to do,
    This young bride and groom I will hasten to say,
    Were happily married on the thirteenth day,
    Of October, sixty-four, back in Ioway.

    Then it wasn't long 'til there came along,
    To add to their fun, a little son, Adolph,
    Their first born of promising quality,
    Studious, lovable, and full of jollity,
    He is with us tonight and we make him our bow,
    As the family pet from that day 'til now.

    Then to add to their measure of fortune and pleasure,
    (a treasure)
    In the shape of Minnie arrived at length,
    She's there with fine dressmaking, smart hats and
    cake baking,
    The family good angel, a tower of strength.

    When next the bloom was on the barley,
    They welcomed little towhead Charley,
    With laugh and joke, or solemn face,
    He led his parents a merry chase,
    In the business world is his success,
    We would not have him weigh a single ounce less.

    Next little Lena stepped into the list,
    A brown eyed winsome little Miss,
    Whose voice did rival any lark,
    Whoever with the beaux did spark.

    Gentle Edward, a few short years was given,
    To us, a little loan from heaven.

    Next in the family outs and ins,
    And ups and downs and all such sins,
    Calamity with all its kins,
    Rained on this couple a pair of twins,
    They ate their share of nails and pins,
    They sometimes kicked each other's shins.
    And raised such lusty, gusty dins,
    But lest your patience to wane begins,
    As my little story longer spins,
    I'll introduce these heavenly twins,
    The towhead was Mollie,
    As an infant so squally,
    But soon she outgrew her teething and colic,
    And now keeps us entertained in a frolic,
    A giver of parties and all things jolly,
    What would we do without our Mollie?
    Gussie was the dark haired one,
    Her studious qualities early begun,
    Came back from the Normal,
    A teacher quite formal,
    And happily lived 'til her appendix grew harmful,
    She puts all the rest of us quite in the shade,
    When it comes to getting families all ready made.

    Next Will arrived with many pranks,
    Which called down upon him some good handy spanks,
    He's forced to be absent from us tonight,
    Which robs our occasion of much delight,
    As a man of business with record breaking sales,
    He balances high on Toledo scales.

    But this is not all, no indeed we've another,
    Dear gentle Albert our baby brother,
    Such a winning favorite is he with all,
    Every child, horse, and dog will follow his call,
    And busily over the world he jogs,
    Buying fine cattle and selling hot dogs.

    Next the family beauty,
    The one we call Tuty,
    With laughing brown eyes and such a tease,
    Of her we're so fond, oh,
    But she's in Orondo,
    So only in thought have we with us Louise.

    Did you think I had given quite all the eleven?
    I hope you haven't for that would have shocked her,
    For fever and chills she'll offer you pills,
    She'll cure you of ills for large dollar bills,
    I'm sure you all know I refer to the Doctor. (Elsa)

    This crowd of eleven was not enough,
    To keep this family up to 'Snuff',
    So one by one these girls and boys,
    Were married and added other joys,
    In brothers and sister-in-laws galore,
    But still there's room for just one more.

    So this is the fifty years narration,
    Which brings us to this glad occasion,
    The golden wedding bells must sound,
    Greetings and handclasps send around,
     The little bride of fifty years,
    Still strong and young and gay appears,
    A wife so brave and dutiful,
    A mother true and beautiful,
    Adorned with all her homey graces,
    Maker of goodies and dainty laces,

    The golden wedding bells let ring,
    To the groom of fifty years we bring,
    The good will of all friends who have noticed his habits,
    Of dispensing hospitality and raising fine rabbits.

    And to the pair we offer cheer,
    We children who've felt their love sincere,
    We are so pleased to have you here,
    Let smiles and joys but never tears,

The Twenties ended with the disastrous collapse of the American stock markets on Black Thursday—October 24, 1929. Medically, the decade ended on a more positive note: penicillin was discovered, although it would not be readily available for another 15 years, and the “iron lung” was first used to “breathe” for polio patients. These and other advances were summed up by Dr. Elsa Horstmann Van Soest, who grew up in Templeton, went to medical school at the University of Southern California, and began her practice in 1908. In 1973, she looked back at the early years and explained, “Oh, there were many anxieties and frustrations in the equipment, remedies, and facilities we did not have. We had only opiates for pain relief and feared to use those as they were so habit-forming. But then, a great day dawned, the blessed Bayer Company gave us aspirin…I am glad I had to experience these lacks. How, otherwise, could I have appreciated the tremendous satisfactions in later years of a portable X-ray bought to the bedside, oxygen tank, and diagnostic laboratories available?….Tuberculosis [was a] killer of multitudes. We knew only to give patients milk and fresh air. Now we have this dreaded disease almost eradicated….We began to get the great blessing of antibiotics and we had help against that great killer, pneumonia. Most elderly people died of pneumonia, though it was often labeled heart failure. There was the advent of hormones, vitamins, and safe anesthesia…we had only chloroform….And thank god for insulin! We didn’t know what to do for diabetes. We took away their candy but we didn’t know how to offset that terrible demand on their bodies. The list of miracles is now endless and I have lived to witness them.”