Nov 2001:

Joseph Walther of DeSoto, Missouri was my great-great grandfather. His son Rudolph had an only child Raymond J.( 1901-d.1966) Rudolph had brothers Otto, Hermann and Edward that I know of. During the early part of the 20th century he had as a business the Walther Lighting & Heating Mfg. Co. in Davenport,Iowa.(making gas from coal tar and distributing it. Ko'd by Edison. Moved to Des Moines ,Iowa where he continued as an inventor/designer in the field of lamps and neon lighting. He passed away in the mid-thirties having been (adversely effected) financially by Oct.29th ,1929.(stock market crash) His wife Elizabeth lived 1971 where she passed away May 30th at my mother (Merlin Madolyn Huss nee Walther)'s house. Raymond grew up in Davenport and lived in Des Moines and Newton,Ia. Had six children-Merlin, Pat, Ray J., Jerry, Jack and Sharon. Merlin, Ray and Jack survive. I am Merlin.s oldest. There are also my sisters Ellen and Chris Ann,and of course lots of cousins all over.Anyway,in closing the ship arrival thing I looked up in the Dav. Library listed Josephs occupation as "hunter" which I guess was common in thoise days and approriate to getting roped into the civil war. Family story is that he was wounded at Gettysburg where a bullet was deflected by a bible in his pocket(classic,no?) but he spent the last 14 yrs. of his life having to sleep sitting up or the bullet that was still in there might dislodge and kill him? Hermann is listed in the 1905 or so Davenport City Directory as a "tinner". Richard Gowdy, Davenport, Iowa.

source: http://genforum.com/walther/messages/144.html

 

 

Ray J. Walther Jr., grandson of Rudolph Walther, born "Newton, Iowa on January 9, 1929 Departed on July 15, 2005" "graduate of the University of Iowa, where he was a member of the Phi Gamma Delta fraternity. He was an Army veteran of the Korean Conflict. He married Margaret Shaffer on September 1, 1951. She died in 1996. He married Phyllis in October, 1998 in Cedar Rapids. He had a long and distinguished career as a publisher at Stamats Communications Inc. retiring after over 30 years."