by Marty Luebke, Post 23 member
As mentioned in an earlier article we want to feature the namesake of our post as we prepare to celebrate 100 years of Legion service. Thanks to those who responded, we now know more about who Henry G. Fix was. Back in 1919 our Legion Post #23 was named in honor of Henry G. Fix. The write up under his photo in the Dugout states “as he was the first serviceman from the Garretson Community to lose his life in World War I”.
Historian Owen Wiese has a newspaper clipping with some photos on the North Wall that will give more information. However, we unfortunately do not know much more about this young man. I was unable to find very few written records and no longer many who can share memories or stories. I did visit with the oldest known relatives some time ago. Henrietta (who liked to be called Hank in honor of her Uncle) and her sister Ella Mae but they did not have any written documentation and said that back then their folks didn’t talk much about the war or about Henry. I was thinking this was going to be a short feature.
Thanks to what Reid Christopherson found on Ancestory.com we know a bit more. Henry’s middle name was George and he was born on October 9, 1897 in Fremont, Benton Co. Iowa. He was the oldest son of Oliver Bruno Fix and Henrietta “Etta” Fix (Axelson) and had the same middle name of his grandfather Jacob George Fix. He had two younger sisters and one younger brother. Henry was 3 years older than Ada and 9 years older than Clarence (who some of the old timers may remember). His other sister Mathilda died shortly after birth. It appears the family moved to Edison Township in Minnehaha Co. in 1903.
Historian Owen Wiese did not have much written information but suggested I visit with Margie Martens. Margie told me their farm was West of Garretson on 253rd Ave. on the south side of the road ¼ mile East of HWY 113 (for you long time residents that is 1 N and ¼ E of the Risty Corner). Charlie Holzapfel, who now owns this land, said there were very few buildings standing and now all that remains are some old trees where the farmstead would have been. Oliver and other family members are buried on Summit Hill Cemetery 1 mile west of Garretson.
As stated, I found very little information about his growing up years or military record. Then I was talking with Bob Sanders, who told me Sanders' Printing has papers going back before WW I from when the paper first started. (He gave me access to these fragile copies. As a side note, I found them most interesting and the 14x22 inch single sheet of each Garretson Weekly was full of war information. For example, in the same October 3 Garretson paper that had information about Henry’s death were other articles of men enlisting in the military. There were also articles about other soldiers who were killed. Henry Selvig's services were being held at Highland Church, Carl Hokanson from Brandon was killed and William Gould who was MIA was found in a hospital. The school board announced ‘No School until further notice due to Spanish Flu’. There were many patriotic ads and an anti-Germany series that ran every week from someone who defected from Germany and now lived in the US. On the lighter side were complete sections on Sherman News or Edison News.)
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