Sunday, May 10, 2020

The grave site of Andreas von Zirngibl

(Satellite)

(If you Google "Zirngibl grave," you will get quite a few results.)

Rod Sellers posted
Where am I?
Carl Zavala In the background salt company prior to that same site was grain elevator Garvey Gran elevator. It blew up one morning three years prior to that Garvey grand was located at 98th off the river it blew up my dad works there memories.
Mark Pofelski At one time it was Material Service Co.
Rod commented on his post
Answer: The grave site of Andreas von Zirngibil, an early German resident of the East Side, is located along the Calumet River at about 92nd Street. According to the headstone, he was a "one armed veteran of the Battle of Waterloo" who died in 1855. His last wish was to be buried on his land. A series of court battles protected his grave although the land around the grave has been owned by various industrial enterprises. The Southeast Chicago Historical Society and the Zirngibil family restored the grave which is located in the middle of a former scrap yard. Attached [above] photo shows grave before restoration.
[I've learned everybody else spells it Zirngibl.]
Mark Simunic commented on Rod's post
I led a walk by there last year. [So that walk would have been in 2019.]

Rod Sellers posted
“Where are we?”
Youngstown Sheet and Tube in background

Rod Sellers posted
Answer to Apr 29 "Where are we?"
Photo taken June 2, 1930.

While walking on the 92nd Street Bridge, while I was on the east side of the river, I took a photo to the north to record some more lost industry in Chicago.
20160521 3279
I used a street view to confirm that the little bit of green on the left in the above photo was not the grave. It was just weeds.
Street View
A satellite shot when I wrote the notes for the 92nd Street Bridge (Aug 2016) shows that it was in business rather recently as a Sims Metal Management site. Judging from the satellite image, it crushed and ground up cars.
Satellite

Wikimapia
Actually, the Battle of Waterloo took place in 1815. [ChicagoTribuneByGoneChicago has some pictures not only of the grave, but of the scrapyard when it was more prosperous.
Satellite accessed May 2020 is up to date enough to show that SIMS is gone.

safe_image for A Cemetery for One
Along Ewing Avenue, you’ll find Chicago’s smallest graveyard.
Paul Petraitis I believe Andreas is the last grave from this the community graveyard with burials going back to the 1830's including a local Potawatomi Chief and his wife.
Linda Herrick Swisher The big stone was dedicated in 1987. I was at the ceremony, and it’s where I met my former husband.

Rod Sellers posted
Where am I?

Rod Sellers commented on his post
Answer: Most recently the site of a scrap processing plant next to the bridge at 92nd and Ewing. Also the location of the gravesite of Andreas Von Zingibl who was one of the earliest settlers in the Southeast Chicago region. Andreas Von Zirngibl died in 1855 and was buried on land that became prime industrial property. His family would have to endure a 41 year long legal battle to keep his grave site there. The site was restored in 1987 and rededicated on July 27, 1987. Prior to the scrap processing operation at the site, Material Service was located there as shown by the attached 1954 photo.

Julio Ponce commented on Rod's post


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