Pgs 936 - 37

WILLIAM SEERING is a self-made man, who has worked his way upward to a position of affluence unaided save by his own perseverance, diligence and good management. The record of such a man should serve as a source of encouragement to others, and it is with pleasure that we present the sketch of his life to our readers
     
Mr. Seering was born in Prussia, November 18, 1839, son of Gotfried Seering, farmer and miller, who in later life engaged in hotel keeping. Gotfried Seering was married in his native land to Miss Sophia Hoffman, and ere leaving Germany they became the parents of three sons and two daughters. The father was at one time possessed of a comfortable competence, but during the revolution of 1848 his property was all swept away, and he then concluded to come to the United States. In the spring of 1850 he embarked with his family at Hamburg on the "North America," which reached New York after a voyage of thirty-three days, a remarkably short voyage for that period. He made his way to Milwaukee, Wis., leaving his family there for a short time while he went to Mayville, Dodge county, to find a relative. Thither he took his family in a wagon, and for about a year was employed in a distillery in Mayville, after which he purchased forty acres of new land, building thereon a log cabin. He then began the cultivation of his farm, and as his financial resources increased extended its boundaries by additional purchase. The children of the family were: William; August, a farmer of Hartland township, Shawano county; Julius, a farmer of Dodge county, Wis.; Louisa, wife of August Waner, of Dodge county; one daughter who died in Milwaukee soon after the arrival of the family in this country; Amelia, wife of William Swan, of Dodge county; and Carl, who died at the age of fourteen years. The father spent the last seven years of his life at the home of his daughter, Mrs. Swan, his wife passing away five years before him. Both were members of the Lutheran Church, and were laid to rest in Woodland Cemetery. The father had prospered in his undertakings, and by persistent labor had acquired a good farm.

The schoolhouse where William Seering pursued his studies was far distant from his home, and, as his services were needed on the farm, his educational privileges were, in consequence, limited, but he has always been a warm friend of education, and as a school director has done effective service in its interest. He early became familiar with the hardships and experiences of frontier life, and with the arduous task of developing a new farm, giving the benefit of his services to his father most of the time until his marriage. At the age of twenty-two, in Williamstown, Dodge county, Mr. Seering wedded Caroline Uhlerich. His father then gave him a wagon and yoke of oxen, and in 1861 he came to Shawano county, where the year before he had purchased a tract of government land in Section 15, Hartland township. The household goods were moved in a wagon drawn by oxen, and they were ten days on the road, being obliged to cut their way through the woods in order to reach their farm. He built a log house, 20 x 24 feet, and here began life in true pioneer style. A year and a half later his wife died, and, as his own health was poor, he returned to his parents' home in Dodge county, remaining with them until his second marriage. On July 3, 1867, in Mayville, Wis., he wedded Miss Johanna Petermann, who was born in Germany June 3, 1848, a daughter of Christian Petermann, a farmer, with whom she came to this country at the age of eighteen years. Again Mr. Seering made the trip with a wagon and ox-team to his farm in Hartland township, and has since made his home thereon. He now has 160 dcres of rich land, of which 130 acres are under a high state of cultivation—in fact, his farm is the best in Hartland township, it being assessed higher than any other. The buildings upon the place stand as monuments to his thrift and enterprise, and are modern in structure, and models of convenience. His fine brick residence was erected in 1880, and the other improvements are in keeping with the home.
     
The children of Mr. and Mrs. Seering are Albert, a merchant of Bonduel; Frank, who clerks in his father's store; Emma, wife of Herman Siebert; and Robert, Charley, Helen and Elizabeth, at home. Mr. Seering has always been a Democrat, and has served altogether for fifteen years as supervisor, and for nine years as school treasurer. In August, 1892, in company with Frank Siebert, he purchased the mercantile business of Philip Meyer, of Bonduel, of which he is now the sole proprietor. He possesses excellent business ability, and his enterprise and well-directed efforts have brought to him a high degree of prosperity, which he well merits. He and his wife are members of the Lutheran Church.