STOLL, John Jacob

History of Northern Wisconsin. Chicago: Western Historical, 1881, pp 167-168

Jacob STOLL, hardware dealer, Fountain City [Buffalo County, Wisconsin], was 
born 02 February 1831, came to America in 1850, and first located in Madison 
[Dane County, Wisconsin], where he lived two years. [It was not uncommon for 
men to be known by their middle rather than first names. The "Jacob STOLL" 
who married Barbara LICHTI (see next paragraph) was actually John Jacob 
STOLL. Because of the similarity in birthdates, submitter includes the 
information that there was a Johann STOLL born on 12 February 1831 in Baden, 
Germany.] From there he removed to New Glarus, Green County [Wisconsin], and 
in 1853 he went to Ohio, remained a short time, and in 1854 came West again 
and settled in Galena [Jo Daviess County], Illinois. In 1855 he moved again, 
and has since been a resident of this village [Fountain City]. His 
occupation was blacksmithing until 1869, when he went into the hardware 
business with Mr. FLORIN. [See also the Buffalo County, Wisconsin, biography 
of his business partner, Christian FLORIN.]

He [John Jacob STOLL] married Barbara LICHTI, also a native of Switzerland. 
[Her surname might also be spelled LIECHTI, LICHTY, or LEICHTI. Submitter 
did not seek record or attempt to verify this marriage.] They have three 
children: Emma, John J., and William G. [The STOLL family is enumerated in 
the 1880 census of Alma, Buffalo County, Wisconsin: John J. STOLL, 
forty-nine, hardware merchant, born in Switzerland, from his census age about 
1831 (the same year given in the biography), to parents also born in 
Switzerland; his wife, Barbara, fifty-five, born in Switzerland about 1825 to 
parents also born there; and two sons, both born in Wisconsin to parents who 
were born in Switzerland: (1) John J., nineteen, single, a student, born 
about 1861; and (2) William, twelve, born about 1868.]

[The daughter Emma STOLL is not enumerated in the family of John Jacob STOLL. 
She appears to be listed in the 1880 Alma census as the wife of Christian 
FLORIN, Mr. STOLL's business partner: Emma FLORIN, twenty-four, born in the 
United States, about 1856 from her census age. Further information about 
this family can be found in Christian FLORIN's biography. Submitter did not 
seek marriage record of Christian FLORIN and Miss Emma STOLL. Christian 
FLORIN may be related to Andrew FLORIN, who according to the history of 
Buffalo County, was a former resident of La Crosse County, Wisconsin, and 
came to Buffalo County in the fall of 1858, settling on Section 32, Montana 
Township.]

[Listed in a separate household in the 1880 census of Alma, Buffalo County, 
is George STOLL, thirty-eight, farmer, born in Germany to parents also born 
there. Looking at only one census enumeration for George, submitter does not 
eliminate the possibility he could have been born in a German-speaking canton 
of Switzerland and identified as German, although this does seems to occur 
more often on passenger lists than it does in census records. Were George 
STOLL and John Jacob STOLL related, or is their geographic proximity a 
coincidence? Bracketed material added by submitter (who is not researching 
these surnames) to support and clarify information given in the biography and 
to raise questions]

Submitted by Cathy Kubly