Los Angeles-San Francisco County CA Archives Biographies.....Preuss, E. A. 1850 - ************************************************ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.rootsweb.com/~usgenweb/copyright.htm http://www.rootsweb.com/~usgenweb/ca/cafiles.htm ************************************************ File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by: Joy Fisher sdgenweb@gmail.com December 26, 2005, 9:39 pm Author: Luther A. Ingersoll (1908) E. A. PREUSS, for forty years a resident of Los Angeles, is a native of New Orleans, La., and was born June 7th, 1850. When yet a child the family removed to Kentucky and located in the city of Louisville, where he attended the public schools and business college. In 1861, he entered the employ of a drug store in Louisville as an apprentice to the business which, after several years, he thoroughly mastered. In 1868 he came to California, and, following a brief stay in San Francisco, he came to Los Angeles and embarked in the drug business. In 1875, he associated in business with the late John Schumacher, one of the best known of the early pioneers of the city. Some years later, C. B. Pironi succeeded to the interests of Mr. Schumacher and the business continued until September, 1885, when Mr. Preuss permanently retired. In June, 1887, Mr. Preuss received the appointment of postmaster of Los Angeles by the lamented President, Grover Cleveland, which office he acceptably filled to February 14th, 1890, until the appointment of his successor. His encumbency covered four years of the most phenomenal growth that Los Angeles has ever had, known as the boom of 1887 to 1889, and it may safely be stated that probably no postmaster in any city of the country ever held his office under more strenuous conditions. By reason of the great and sudden influx of people from all parts of the country, the postoffice, not any too well equipped for handling the business of a city of 12,000 people, was required, before Mr. Preuss' term of office closed, to meet the demands of 50,000 inhabitants, and this through one office, there being no branch stations. The office was then located on North Main street near Republic, opposite the Baker block. As the boom crowds increased the clamor for mail at the windows became so great that two long lines of men and women extended up and down Main street waiting their turn. Mr. Preuss promptly petitioned the government for an increased allowance for the employment of additional help, and for a branch office in East Los Angeles, but relief, because of the exact and deliberate routine of the department business at Washington, was meager and slow in coming. The total cash handled during the year 1887 was $1,838,000.00, being an increase of more than $700,000.00 over 1886. Stamp sales alone exceeded $120,000.00 for the year 1887, when the office handled the mail for over 200,000 transients. Mr. Preuss retired from the office with a splendid record as a man of executive ability and ready resource for emergencies. During those days, Mr. Preuss was wide awake and ready to take a hand in forwarding the best interests of Los Angeles, and was also identified with the social life of the city. He was one of the charter members of the Turn Verein, organized in 1870. He was one of the prime movers in the organization of Los Angeles' first athletic club, in 1883. In 1877 he married Miss Mary A., eldest daughter of the lamented John Schumacher, one of the most prominent and highly esteemed pioneers of Los Angeles, of 1847. Mr. Schumacher was a native of Wurtemburg, Germany, and was born January 23rd, 1816. In 1832, being then an orphan, he left his native town and went to Paris, soon thereafter coming to America. He lived in New York until 1846, when he enlisted for the Mexican War in the First Regiment New York Volunteers, under Col. John D. Stevenson, and was mustered into Company G. On September 26th of that year he sailed for San Francisco in the ship Thomas H. Perkins, arriving at destination in the month of March, 1847. The following May they shipped for San Pedro and reached Los Angeles on the 9th of that month, there remaining until mustered out of service, September 18th, 1848. He almost immediately set out for the newly discovered placer gold diggings on Sutter's Creek, El Dorado county, where he unearthed a gold nugget for which he realized $800.00. He continued in the mines for several months, having fair success, then returned to Los Angeles and embarked in merchandising in a store near the northwest corner of Spring and First streets, which property he very soon acquired, together with all the land bounded by Spring, First, Fort (now Broadway), and Franklin streets, for which, it is said, he paid $700.00. He also later owned a tract of land at what is now Temple street and Belmont avenue, which, in company with Jacob Bell, he used as a sheep range. He was a man of energy and enterprise and experimented with the raising of grapes without irrigation on land he owned between Los Angeles and the seabeing a portion of the old Brea grant. He acquired other lands in the city which ultimately became very valuable. John Schumacher was a popular citizen, having a host of friends. He served on the City Council two terms. He spoke the German, English, French and the Spanish languages, was everybody's friend and was specially useful to the Spanish and non-English speaking people in adjusting their business affairs, as all had unbounded faith in his unerring judgment and integrity. In 1880 he built the Schumacher block on his property, First and Spring streets, then regarded as one of the most substantial and architectural business blocks in the city. It stands today as a fitting monument to his enterprise and stability. He also built what was for years known as the White House, a pretentious and very substantial business block at the corner of Commercial and Los Angeles streets. He died from the effects of a stroke of apoplexy, March 2nd, 1885, leaving a valuable estate and an untarnished name as an inheritance to his six children. These children, besides Mrs. Preuss, are Carrie, who is the widow of Professor Paul Schumacher (no kin)John H., Frank G., Percy F., and Arthur W. Mr. and Mrs. Preuss are old-time summer residents of Santa Monica. They have one son, Kenneth. Additional Comments: Extracted from: Ingersoll's century history, Santa Monica Bay cities: prefaced with a brief history of the state of California, a condensed history of Los Angeles County, 1542 to 1908: supplemented with an encyclopedia of local biography and embellished with views of historic landmarks and portraits of representative people. Los Angeles: Luther A. Ingersoll (1908) File at: http://ftp.rootsweb.com/pub/usgenweb/ca/losangeles/bios/hamilton149bs.txt File at: http://ftp.rootsweb.com/pub/usgenweb/ca/losangeles/bios/preuss223bs.txt This file has been created by a form at http://www.poppet.org/cafiles/ File size: 6.9 Kb