Herman Marstall

Herman MARSTALL, principal owner and general manager of The MARSTALL Furniture Company, of Henderson, Kentucky, was born in the northern part of Germany, May 22, 1855. His parents, Henry and Rosa MARSTALL, came to the United States in May, 1869, and located at Evansville, Indiana, where his father followed the trade of cabinet maker until his old age. The last years of his life were spent with his family in Henderson, where he died in August, 1896. The mother is still living and makes her home with the subject of this sketch. Both parents were devout members of the Catholic church, and reared a family of four sons and two daughters in that faith.

Herman MARSTALL learned the cabinet makers' trade in his youth, and afterward learned every detail of wood-working and furniture construction. His introduction to a furniture factory was in 1869, when he started in as a shaving-boy. From then on he worked his way up by his energy and close attention to his business until 1881, when he was selected from among fifty men for the position of superintendent of the REITZ & SCHMITS furniture factory in Evansville, which position he held until 1893, when he came to Henderson and leased the plant of the Henderson Furniture Manufacturing Company for four years. He started on a small capital, but by honest workmanship and a knowledge of what lines of furniture were most in demand, he soon came to be known to the furniture world.

The factory was purchased at the expiration of the lease, new machinery being added which increased the capacity of the plant. The products of the MARSTALL Furniture Company are sold all over the United States, Mexico and Cuba; they make a specialty of oak and walnut wardrobes, ranging in price from six to thirty-five dollars, and do an annual business of over $110,000.

Mr. MARSTALL was married in November, 1878, to Miss Elizabeth, daughter of George and Elizabeth FELDHAUS, of Evansville, Indiana. Their children are G. Edward and Joseph J., who are with the furniture company, and Mary, Frank and Leona, all in school with the exception of the last named, who is but three years of age.

While Mr. MARSTALL is nominally a Democrat in his political belief he votes for principle rather than party name. He is a fine example of a self-made man, who enjoys the confidence and respect of his associates.

Memoirs of the Lower Ohio Valley, Pages 44 - 45