Henry Skow—The Next Generation

Continuing the story of the Skow family who lived in the Harriman-Nielsen house from 1907 to 1920. Henry Skow married Maren Buhl who passed away in childbirth with their third child. Henry took their three children, Ingeborg, Annie, and Maren, to Denmark to live with family. He returned to Denmark two years later, married Maren’s sister (Mary Cathrine), and returned to Iowa with his family. Mary Cathrine and Henry had two daughters: Helen (1901) and Kathryn Henrietta (1904). Henry died in September of 1932 from burns when his clothing caught fire. This edition focuses on the lives of his second wife and his children.

Following Henry’s death, Mary Cathrine Buhl continued to live in Hampton. She died of a stroke in her home on May 5, 1942, and is buried in the Hampton Cemetery.

Ingeborg Skow (born Jun 6, 1890, in Badger, Iowa) was the oldest daughter of Henry and Maren Skow. She became the bookkeeper at the George E. Sargent Construction Company in Hampton. On February 2, 1920, Ingeborg married George. (George’s first wife, Lena, had died in 1915.) Their child, Maren Elizabeth (Betty) Sargent was born May 4, 1921. George Sargent was a prominent builder in Hampton; his projects included the Hampton Library, the Congregational Church (his church), the Windsor Theater, Hampton High School (later the Junior High School), the Church of Christ, the Baptist Church, Masonic Lodge, and many other buildings, residences, garages, and roads. George died October 3, 1934, and is buried in the Hampton Cemetery.

Following his death, Ingeborg and Maren moved to Rockford, Illinois, where Ingeborg was employed by the Rockford Dry Goods Store. Ingeborg became the manager of the ladies’ foundation department and retired from the store in 1960. According to the Hampton Chronicle of Sept. 8, 1960, Ingeborg had come to Hampton to visit several friends over Labor Day. The article stated she was planning to move to Bound Brook, New Jersey, following her retirement to be near her daughter and family. Ingeborg died following a heart attack on May 9, 1968, in Somerset, New Jersey. She is buried in the Hampton Cemetery.

Ingeborg’s daughter, Maren, graduated from Rockford High School and became a registered nurse. On Thanksgiving Day in 1942 she married Robert J. L. Sundberg, a chemist. Maren and Robert lived in Iowa and New Jersey where Robert was the Manager-Director of the Pharmaceutical Research Section at Johnson & Johnson. They had three sons: Robert, Michael, and Thomas. Maren died June 13, 2003, in Charlotte, North Carolina. She and her husband, Robert, are buried together in the Hampton Cemetery.

Annie Kristine Skow, the second child of Henry and Maren, was born March 8, 1892, in Badger, Iowa. She died at her family’s home on September 29, 1909, of a ruptured appendix. She is buried in the Hampton Cemetery.

Mary A. Skow (Marie), Henry and Maren’s third child, was born March 30, 1894. She died at her family’s home on May 6, 1912, of consumption (tuberculosis). She is buried in the Hampton Cemetery.

Helen Skow was the first child of Henry Skow and his second wife, Mary Cathrine. She was born in 1901 and died at the age of five months after a short illness. She is also buried in the Hampton Cemetery and shares a gravestone with Annie and Mary.

Kathryn Henrietta Skow, second and last child of Henry and Mary Cathrine, was born August 2, 1904, in Hampton. She grew up in the house on the west side of town. She married Alfred William Schmitt on May 28,1924, in Chicago. They had two sons: Richard (1927) and William (1937). The census records from 1930-1940 show the family lived in Sterling, Illinois. According to the City Directory of 1935, Alfred worked in a pharmacy; and Kathryn was a saleswoman. She died in November of 1973 in Princeton, Illinois.

Descendants of Kathryn and Ingeborg have visited Hampton and toured the home where their mothers lived. A 1987 letter from Nielsine Nielsen to Robert Sundberg includes Nielsine’s desire to restore the house for historical purposes. One of her wishes, according to the letter, was to have displays highlighting the three owners of the house. Until this year, the Skow family did not have their own display in the Harriman-Nielsen House. A new display will make one of Nielsine’s wishes a reality.

As you tour the house this coming season, look for the information about Henry and his children. The picture of Kathryn was taken in the room where the display is located. The peacock feather arrangement is included since the Skow family had peacocks on their farm as well as deer. In fact, one of their peacock flock was stuffed and displayed at the Frank Kratochvil Tobacco Shop in Hampton for several years.

Mary, Ingeborg, and Annie Skow about 1899-1901 in Hampton

Kathryn Henrietta Skow 8-10 years old

Kathryn Henrietta Skow

Ingeborg Skow – 18 years old