Louise Schroeder was born in Germany Sept. 14, 1852. She arrived in New York May 13, 1873 with her older brother Wilhelm. She made her way to White Lake, and in April 1875 she married Frank Mangold. They had seven children: John G. (1876-1958); Louis W. (1877-1898); Frank E. (1879-1960); Albert W. (1881-1966); Emil H. (1884-1925); Henry R. (1887-1975); Hedwig “Hettie” (1890-1987).
Franz Peter “Frank” Mangold was born April 2, 1849 in Germany. He left school at the age of 13 and went to Mosburg to learn the trade of watch making, serving as an apprentice for three years. He worked at his trade from place to place until Oct. 6, 1870, when he entered the army enlisting in the King of Bavaria’s own corps. He was honorably discharged July 13, 1873.
He came to the United States in October 1873 and settled in New York for a short time before coming to the White Lake area where his brother John had settled five years prior. Frank worked in lumber mills and camps and the flour mill for a while before opening a jewelry store in 1882.
In 1883 Frank Mangold and G. C. Funk, a tailor, were sharing a storefront in the building identified as the Covell Block. In August 1883, Mangold installed a new safe to accommodate his increasing business.
It was reported in the local paper March 14, 1889 that they had a new awning installed for the front window of their shop. Strangely, a week later it was announced that Mangold planned to move his stock of jewelry to the corner of Colby and Mears occupying a room used as a reading room during the winter. His ads, however, continued to indicate the Covell block as the location of his store, so he must have changed his mind.
On Sept. 18, 1890 they were burned out in the fire that destroyed much of the business district of Whitehall.
A map from 1902 showed a jewelry store located on the corner of Thompson and Colby streets. The map from 1902 also showed that the jewelry store was next to a produce shop, a millinery and a photo studio on the corner where Big John’s Pizza was once located. A city directory listing in 1904 indicated Mangold’s shop was located at Thompson and Colby.
The ads in 1905 did not indicate a specific location, only that Mangold’s was “The Reliable Jeweler”.
Frank Mangold died Nov. 11, 1911 in Montague. His wife Louise died March 20, 1915. They are both buried in Oak Grove Cemetery.
After Frank died, his son John G. took over the business for a while. In 1929 he closed the store but did some watch and jewelry repairs from his home. In 1932 John went to work for the White Lake Leather Company. He died in 1958.
Johanna Wilhelmine Schroeder was born in Germany Oct. 1, 1855. According to the 1900 Census, she indicated that she immigrated through New York in 1874 – the exact date is unknown. She came to the White Lake area where she married G. C. Funk Oct. 15, 1876. They had four children: Anna (1877-1927); Lewis (1879-1882); Martha (1883-1931); and Arthur (1884-1955). Their oldest son Lewis died around two years of age from scarlet fever.
Gottlieb Charles “G.C” Funk was born Jan. 28, 1853 in Germany. He came to Whitehall in 1872 where he worked for a couple of years as a lumberman before going into the tailoring business. He came to be known as The Merchant Tailor.
A map from December 1883 showed a tailor and jeweler occupying the same storefront on Colby. Funk’s tailor ads indicated he was located “2 door East of the Post Office” while Mangold Jewelry ads indicated he was “in the Covell Block”. A review of the map showed the location of the post office – two doors from the tailor shop.
By June 1885, Funk had hired four tailors to help keep up with all the orders for new suits and things.
A written ad for Funk that appeared in March 1887 confirmed the location as the Covell block but there was no mention of the post office due to the fact it had moved by that time.
In September 1888 Funk had renovated his store and was putting in the largest and finest line of goods ever exhibited in the area.
An awning was installed over the Funk & Mangold storefront in 1889.
In June 1890 Funk’s ad indicated he was now located one door west of the opera house, which had been built in 1882 by E. M. Ruggles. It was located on the north side of Colby west of the alley (now the area of the Century building).
Following the devastating fire in September 1890 Funk relocated to the Mears Block, which was located on the south side of Colby street, between the alley and Mears Avenue, across the street from the former Covell Block.
In March 1893 it was announced that G. C. Funk was thinking about going west with his tailoring business. He had plenty of business here in the summer, but the winter was much slower. Funk was a first-class tailor, so many wearers of well-made garments would not like to see him go. In the end, he decided to stay.
In November 1893 Funk was burned out of his shop in the Mears Block, along with Reed Clothing and Conley Drugs. He then moved to the Green Block and set up his business again. In December 1901 he moved from the Green Block to a building opposite the Forum office (exact location unknown).
Johanna Funk died April 7, 1913. When she died, in addition to her husband and children, she was survived by two brothers in Rothbury and her sister Louise. Her mother, a brother and two sisters were still living at the old homestead in Germany. She is buried in Oakhurst Cemetery.
G. C. Funk retired in 1927 after over 50 years in the Tailoring business. He died at his daughter Martha’s home in Whitehall May 7, 1931, and is also buried in Oakhurst Cemetery.
