| Notes |
- George Bernreuter was the middle son among three brothers, who with six sisters were born in the vicinity of Nashville during the Civil War period. their parents were Dr. Conrad Bernreuter and Catherine Stullken.
All three of the brothers became highly educated: Edward, the oldest, in medicine, George in theology, and Louis in law.
George was born in Nashville on october 20, 1860. He graduated from Central Wesleyan College, Warrenton, MO. and then from McKendree College at Lebanon, Il. in 1888. He then attended Boston University School of Theology, graduating in 1892. While there, he preached at a church in Osterville, Mass. on Cape Cod. He had previously preached during his college years at Humboldt, Neb. in both Enjglish and German. He knew seven languages and was also a poet and hymn writer. He was a professor of ancient languages at Spokane College, Washington at one time.
After leaving Boston, he returned to Illinois and joined the Rock River Conference of the Methodist Church. His final church was at Tampico, Il. where he died on April 19, 1904. A large stained glass window was placed in the Tampico church in his memory by his devoted parishoners.
While serving at Rockford, Il. he married Edith Wynne Gibbon, a member of the church choir, who was born in Stockton-on Tees, England on July 15, 1875. She died on April 1, 1964 in Washington, D.C. and is buried next to her husband in Nashville, IL.
They had two children, Getrude Etelka, bornb January 16, 1896, and Robert Gibbon, born December 9, 1901. Gertrude graduated from Northwestern University and did graduate work at University of California. She taught Latin and Music in high school before her marriage in 1922 to Howard Hosmer of Nashville. She became a registered parliamentarian, is active in church and club work, and in 1966 was listed in Who's Who of American Women.
Gertrude and Howard Hosmer have three children. Mary Edith, born September 3, 1925, Helen born April 16, 1929, and Howard, Jr. born June 27, 1932. Mary Edith and Helen graduated from Northwestern University. Howard, Jr. from Penn State University and George Washington School of Law.
Mary Edith married Gordon Gilbertson of Salem, Oregon in 1947. Their children are Douglas born August 11, 1948, Meredith, born September 28, 1951, and Grant Hosmer, born April 20, 1954. Paul Douglas married Hope Campbell. they have one son, Brockman Hosmer, born December 5, 1975. Meredith married Dwight Clark Smith on May 19, 1979
Helen Hosmer married Robert Arnold Dentler, a sociologist who became Dean of the School of Education at Boston University. Their oldest child was born October 31, 1952. She graduated from Boston University in 1974 and from the Law School of the University of California at Los Angeles in 1979, with honors. She married Garrett Stewart, an English professor and writer at University of California at Santa Barbara. Eric Arnold was born August 6, 1955. He graduated from the University of Massachusetts in Hotel Administration. Robin Howard was born April 13, 1960 and attends Middlesex College at Bedford, Mass.
Howard Jr. served in the army in England from 1954 to 1957. He married Dorothy Addison who was born in Liverpool, England. Their children are Dianne Louise, born February 8, 1958, Philip Howard born July 30, 1962, and David Addison born August 19, 1967.
The younger child of George and Edith Bernreuter is Robert Gibbon. He graduated from the College of the Pacific and then earned a degree in Psychology from Stanford University. He taught psychology at Penn. State University, then served as Dean of Admissions, as Registrar and as Vice-President for student affairs. He constructed a personality test, the Personality Inventory, that was widely used and was translated into most major languages.
Robert married Shirley Trimble Buell, born August 5, 1909. She is a professional artist, who works mainly in pastel. they adopted a child Betty Jane Teeter, born September 22, 1940. Betty Jane married Karl Purnell by whom she had three children. Alexandra Spottswood, born September 14, 1968; Christopher Saxten, born August 14, 1969 and Justin Montcalm, born May 18, 1970. After a divorce from Karl Purnell in 1974 she married in 1975 Carl Paulin Zietlow, born April 14, 1931. They have one child, David Robert Gibbon, born September 28, 1976.
1979 Washington County History
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1860 - 1904 (43 years)