The Bibelhausen Grocery in Shawano

Published February 28, 2023

Photo Gallery

Notes

Taken in 1902, the first photo in the gallery is the Bibelhausen Grocery at 129 S. Main St. in Shawan, Wisconsin.   Margaretha Bibelhausen is holding Gertrude.  Frank is next to Margaret and the boys, Peter and Louis are to the right. Gertrude was born in 1900. Notice the fruits, including the bananas, in the window on the left.

The grocery was located on the west side of Main Street approximately midway between Green Bay and Division streets.

Francis “Frank” Bibelhausen, was born in Brown County on December 31, 1855. When he was 16 years old he came to Shawano with his parents, John and Katherine (Corneli) Bibelhausen. His two brothers already established a meat business in the city and as an adult, he started Bibelhausen Grocery, one of the first in Shawano. In addition to the grocery, Frank operated a farm in the Town of Wescott, to the north of Shawano.

On January 15, 1878 Frank married Miss Margaretha Hoffman, born on July 13, 1860 in Sheboygan County. Margaret moved to Shawano when she was 14. The couple had seven children, three boys and four girls. In the census of 1910, Margaret lists having ten children with seven living. Frank Bibelhause was on the Shawano County Board and is sitting in the first row, on the left.

Frank Bibelhausen died relatively early in life of stomach cancer in 1918 while Margaret lived to be 88 years, dying in 1949. Their graves are in Sacred Heart Cemetery in Woodlawn.