Ruth wrote that her father had jet black hair and eyes. She also wrote: My father was a moulder in the steel mills. Re had learned his trade from his father at a very early age as did all young lads at that time. When my father was pensioned off at age sixty five, he was given a big banquet and a gold pocket watch. Our family had set a record. Between my grandpa, uncles, father, and brothers, they had worked for over two hundred years for the U.S. Steel Company. My father was a skilled man at his trade. He was made foreman of the foundry at an early age. It was an important job and there was never a mold poured without pa's supervision. He could detect a flaw or a crack at a glance. He was a hard working man and well liked. He was reliable and steady when on the job but like so many of the mill workers, he one bad fault - he liked his whisky and beer. The terrific heat of the molten lead and steel burnt their throats and the only relief was to ease the pain with cold beer or strong whisky. He was not a steady drinker but when he did go off on his sprees, they lasted for a week at a time or until he was so sick that we had to call in the doctor. Then he would not touch liquor of any kind for a couple of months. My father had a hobby that was very important to him. He raised game roosters, or fighting cocks, and he trained them for the fighting pit. During the years that he followed the fights, he won many prizes and bets. His roosters were considered the best around and were in great demand. Chicken fights were legal then and it was a weekly event that all the men looked forward to. The fights were held at some remote spot on the outskirts of town every Saturday night. My pa worked six days a week, so as soon as he came home on Saturday, he stripped to his waist, stood over the sink in the pantry, and scrubbed his body with a big cake of American Family soap. He always washed his head at the same time. The water was usually cold as it was pumped from the cistern that was built in the basement. This was made of bricks and was of a good size. The water was rainwater that ran down into the cistern after a shower. By the end of summer, we usually had enough water to carry us through the winter months. Our cistern would get to full and sometimes it overflowed on to the basement floor. We never wasted that water. It was used for baths and dish washing.
But to return to my pa and his Saturday nights - after he finished washing his chest and head, he would put the wash basin on the floor and wash his feet. The water was then thrown in the sink and went down the drain into a large pail that was under the sink. Every day, after every one had washed and the dishes were done, the pail was carried outside and poured over a bush, or tree. It was never wasted. Pa would then change into clean clothes, eat his dinner, then go out into the chicken house and pick the two roosters that he was going to fight that night. He would take the sharp, steel, spurs from where they were hanging on the hook and off he would go. We didn't have any means of transportation then, so he had to walk, which must have taken him a half hour or more. Nobody ever waited up for pa because that was his night out.
Ruth wrote that her father had jet black hair and eyes. She also wrote: My father was a moulder in the steel mills. Re had learned his trade from his father at a very early age as did all young lads at that time. When my father was pensioned off at age sixty five, he was given a big banquet and a gold pocket watch. Our family had set a record. Between my grandpa, uncles, father, and brothers, they had worked for over two hundred years for the U.S. Steel Company. My father was a skilled man at his trade. He was made foreman of the foundry at an early age. It was an important job and there was never a mold poured without pa's supervision. He could detect a flaw or a crack at a glance. He was a hard working man and well liked. He was reliable and steady when on the job but like so many of the mill workers, he one bad fault - he liked his whisky and beer. The terrific heat of the molten lead and steel burnt their throats and the only relief was to ease the pain with cold beer or strong whisky. He was not a steady drinker but when he did go off on his sprees, they lasted for a week at a time or until he was so sick that we had to call in the doctor. Then he would not touch liquor of any kind for a couple of months. My father had a hobby that was very important to him. He raised game roosters, or fighting cocks, and he trained them for the fighting pit. During the years that he followed the fights, he won many prizes and bets. His roosters were considered the best around and were in great demand. Chicken fights were legal then and it was a weekly event that all the men looked forward to. The fights were held at some remote spot on the outskirts of town every Saturday night. My pa worked six days a week, so as soon as he came home on Saturday, he stripped to his waist, stood over the sink in the pantry, and scrubbed his body with a big cake of American Family soap. He always washed his head at the same time. The water was usually cold as it was pumped from the cistern that was built in the basement. This was made of bricks and was of a good size. The water was rainwater that ran down into the cistern after a shower. By the end of summer, we usually had enough water to carry us through the winter months. Our cistern would get to full and sometimes it overflowed on to the basement floor. We never wasted that water. It was used for baths and dish washing.
But to return to my pa and his Saturday nights - after he finished washing his chest and head, he would put the wash basin on the floor and wash his feet. The water was then thrown in the sink and went down the drain into a large pail that was under the sink. Every day, after every one had washed and the dishes were done, the pail was carried outside and poured over a bush, or tree. It was never wasted. Pa would then change into clean clothes, eat his dinner, then go out into the chicken house and pick the two roosters that he was going to fight that night. He would take the sharp, steel, spurs from where they were hanging on the hook and off he would go. We didn't have any means of transportation then, so he had to walk, which must have taken him a half hour or more. Nobody ever waited up for pa because that was his night out.
Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/76373673/john_luke-schmitz: accessed
), memorial page for John Luke Schmitz (24 Aug 1871–29 Aug 1962), Find a Grave Memorial ID 76373673, citing Oakwood Cemetery, Joliet,
Will County,
Illinois,
USA;
Maintained by Dawn Comish (contributor 47710313).
Add Photos for John Luke Schmitz
Fulfill Photo Request for John Luke Schmitz
Photo Request Fulfilled
Thank you for fulfilling this photo request. An email has been sent to the person who requested the photo informing them that you have fulfilled their request
There is an open photo request for this memorial
Are you adding a grave photo that will fulfill this request?
Oops, some error occurred while uploading your photo(s).
Oops, something didn't work. Close this window, and upload the photo(s) again.
Make sure that the file is a photo. Photos larger than 8Mb will be reduced.
All photos uploaded successfully, click on the <b>Done button</b> to see the photos in the gallery.
General photo guidelines:
Photos larger than 8.0 MB will be optimized and reduced.
Each contributor can upload a maximum of 5 photos for a memorial.
A memorial can have a maximum of 20 photos from all contributors.
The sponsor of a memorial may add an additional 10 photos (for a total of 30 on the memorial).
Include gps location with grave photos where possible.
No animated GIFs, photos with additional graphics (borders, embellishments.)
This memorial already has a grave photo. Please indicate why you think it needs another.
There is no plot information for this memorial. Your photo request is more likely to be fulfilled if you contact the cemetery to get the plot information and include it with your request.
You are only allowed to leave one flower per day for any given memorial.
Memorial Photos
This is a carousel with slides. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate, or jump to a slide with the slide dots. Use Escape keyboard button or the Close button to close the carousel.
Quickly see who the memorial is for and when they lived and died and where they are buried.
Show Map
If the memorial includes GPS coordinates, simply click 'Show Map' to view the gravesite location within the cemetery. If no GPS coordinates are available, you can contribute by adding them if you know the precise location.
Photos
For memorials with more than one photo, additional photos will appear here or on the photos tab.
Photos Tab
All photos appear on this tab and here you can update the sort order of photos on memorials you manage. To view a photo in more detail or edit captions for photos you added, click the photo to open the photo viewer.
Flowers
Flowers added to the memorial appear on the bottom of the memorial or here on the Flowers tab. To add a flower, click the Leave a Flower button.
Family Members
Family members linked to this person will appear here.
Related searches
Use the links under See more… to quickly search for other people with the same last name in the same cemetery, city, county, etc.
Sponsor This Memorial
Remove advertising from a memorial by sponsoring it for just $5. Previously sponsored memorials or famous memorials will not have this option.
Share
Share this memorial using social media sites or email.
Save to
Save to an Ancestry Tree, a virtual cemetery, your clipboard for pasting or Print.
Edit or Suggest Edit
Edit a memorial you manage or suggest changes to the memorial manager.
Have Feedback
Thanks for using Find a Grave, if you have any feedback we would love to hear from you.
You may not upload any more photos to this memorial
"Unsupported file type"
Uploading...
Waiting...
Success
Failed
This photo was not uploaded because this memorial already has photos
This photo was not uploaded because you have already uploaded photos to this memorial
This photo was not uploaded because this memorial already has photos
This photo was not uploaded because you have already uploaded photos to this memorial
Invalid File Type
Uploading 1 Photo
Uploading 2 Photos
1 Photo Uploaded
2 Photos Uploaded
Added by
GREAT NEWS! There is 1 volunteer for this cemetery.
Sorry! There are no volunteers for this cemetery. Continuing with this request will add an alert to the cemetery page and any new volunteers will have the opportunity to fulfill your request.
Enter numeric value
Enter memorial Id
Year should not be greater than current year
Invalid memorial
Duplicate entry for memorial
You have chosen this person to be their own family member.
Reported!
This relationship is not possible based on lifespan dates.
0% Complete
Saved
Sign in or Register
Sign in to Find a Grave
Sign-in to link to existing account
There is a problem with your email/password.
There is a problem with your email/password.
There is a problem with your email/password.
We encountered an unknown problem. Please wait a few minutes and try again. If the problem persists contact Find a Grave.
We’ve updated the security on the site. Please reset your password.
Your account has been locked for 30 minutes due to too many failed sign in attempts. Please contact Find a Grave at [email protected] if you need help resetting your password.
This account has been disabled. If you have questions, please contact [email protected]
This account has been disabled. If you have questions, please contact [email protected]
Email not found
Please complete the captcha to let us know you are a real person.
Sign in to your existing Find a Grave account. You’ll only have to do this once—after your accounts are connected, you can sign in using your Ancestry sign in or your Find a Grave sign in.
We found an existing Find a Grave account associated with your email address. Sign in below with your Find a Grave credentials to link your Ancestry account. After your accounts are connected you can sign in using either account.
Please enter your email to sign in.
Please enter your password to sign in.
Please enter your email and password to sign in.
There is a problem with your email/password.
A system error has occurred. Please try again later.
A password reset email has been sent to EmailID. If you don't see an email, please check your spam folder.
We encountered an unknown problem. Please wait a few minutes and try again. If the problem persists contact Find a Grave.
Password Reset
Please enter your email address and we will send you an email with a reset password code.
Registration Options
Welcome to Find a Grave
Create your free account by choosing an option below.
or
Ancestry account link
To create your account, Ancestry will share your name and email address with Find a Grave. To continue choose an option below.
or
If you already have a Find a Grave account, please sign in to link to Ancestry®.
New Member Registration
Email is mandatory
Email and Password are mandatory
This account already exists, but the email address still needs to be confirmed. Resend Activation Email
Your password is not strong enough
Invalid Email
You must agree to Terms and Conditions
Account already exists
Please check the I'm not a robot checkbox
Internal Server error occurred
If you want to be a Photo Volunteer you must enter a ZIP Code or select your location on the map
You must select an email preference
We have sent you an activation email
Your new password must contain one or more uppercase and lowercase letters, and one or more numbers or special characters.
We just emailed an activation code to
Please check your email and click on the link to activate your account.
cemeteries found in will be saved to your photo volunteer list.
cemeteries found within miles of your location will be saved to your photo volunteer list.
cemeteries found within kilometers of your location will be saved to your photo volunteer list.
Within 5 miles of your location.
Within 5 kilometers of your location.
0 cemeteries found in .
0 cemeteries found.
Add a cemetery to fulfill photo requests
You can customize the cemeteries you volunteer for by selecting or deselecting below.
Search above to list available cemeteries.
Getting location…
Loading...
Loading...
No cemeteries found
Find a Grave Video Tutorials
Default Language
Translation on Find a Grave is an ongoing project. If you notice a problem with the translation, please send a message to [email protected] and include a link to the page and details about the problem. Thanks for your help!
Preferred Language
We have set your language to based on information from your browser.