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charter members, eighteen identified themselves as gardeners, two were saloonkeepers (Michael
S. Conrad and Joseph Hohs) and one identified himself as a laborer (Nicholas Schaefer).
The predominant listing as gardner among these first 21 members is a clear indication of the
type of rural agrarian society which ruled the area at the turn of the century. It further shows the
nature of the society from which these men emigrated. An examination of the occupational
listings of the 313 members of this Section reveals that sixty-eight listed their occupation as either
gardener, farmer or nursery worker. The next highest occupational listing, with 24, was salesman.
The Section meetings were
initially held at the tavern
owned by Peter A. Hohs,
brother of first president,
Joseph Hohs. Their father,
Jacob, was born in Nilder Kor,
Luxembourg and came to
America circa 1850. Both
brothers were born in Oconto,
Wisconsin and came to this
area with their father in 1882.
Though Peter A. listed his
occupation as a gardener, he
owned the aforementioned
tavern which was located
north of present day Terminal
Park on the east side of Gross
Point Road, south of Golf
Road, in the Sharp Corner
Area.* In the Author's interview
with Brother Francis Pat
Seul, who joined the Section
in February, 1928, he stated
that he attended Section meetings
at the Hohs tavern well
into the 1950's, though the
tavern was then under different
management. In addition
to his duties as tavern owner,
Peter A. founded the Sharp
Corner Fire Department and
Peter Hohs, Proprietor of The 19th Tee,
'where Section 15 held its meetings.
became a director of the Niles
Center National Bank.
An interesting note pertains
to President Joseph
Hohs. In the membership book, his last name is spelled Hoss. This discrepancy in spellings was
explained by Peter's son Bernard Hohs, late of Skokie, who informed the author that Joe
returned to Luxembourg and reported back to the family that their last name, Hohs, was misspelled
and that the proper spelling was Hoss. Thereafter, various family members had different spellings
for their last name. Peter advertized in the 1911 Schobermesse Book and spelled his name Hoss
although in the 1916 Schobermesse Book he spelled it Hohs. His gravestone is spelled Hoss.
* The area known as Sharp Corner was situated north of present day Church Street and took its name from the
intersection of Gross Point Road and Niles Center Road. The area was annexed by Niles Center in 1926.
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