Matthias Schroeter

Matthias Schroeter
Born	(1829-11-09)9 November 1829 Aegidienberg, Kingdom of Prussia
Died	3 May 1923(1923-05-03) (aged 93) Kalk, Cologne, Weimar Republic
Occupations	Carpenter Undertaker
Era	Stamvader Era Pre-Vader Era Vader Era
Spouse	Elisabeth Breuer ​ (m. 1858)​
Children	Johann Matthias Schroeter (born 1860) Josef Schroeter (born 1865)
Relatives	Laurenz Schroeter (brother) Lorenz Schroeter (nephew)
Family	Schroeter family

Matthias Schroeter (9 November 1829 – 3 May 1923) was a German carpenter and undertaker who operated a coffin-making business in Cologne. He began manufacturing coffins during the 1850s and later supplied other undertakers in the city. He retired in 1906 after selling his business to a longtime employee.

Early life

Schroeter was born in Aegidienberg on 9 November 1829. He was the younger brother of Laurenz Schroeter, who later settled in Stommelerbusch. In 1847, Matthias moved to Cologne and began an apprenticeship as a carpenter. He subsequently worked in the trade and began making wooden coffins for local families during the 1850s.

Career

Schroeter married Elisabeth Breuer, a seamstress, in Cologne in 1858. Their first son, Johann Matthias Schroeter, was born in 1860, followed by Josef Schroeter in 1865. Matthias continued making coffins and expanded into arranging funerals around 1870, when he acquired a horse-drawn hearse. The family lived in accommodation adjoining his workshop.

In 1872, Matthias took his nephew Lorenz Schroeter into his household after Lorenz moved to Cologne from Stommelerbusch. Matthias employed a local Stellmacher to maintain his funeral carriages and introduced Lorenz to the tradesman. Lorenz began an apprenticeship with him in April 1873.

During the late 1880s, Schroeter began concentrating more on coffin production. He hired additional joiners and started supplying wooden coffins to other undertakers in Cologne, while continuing to arrange funerals for his own customers. Elisabeth made coffin linings and funeral textiles, eventually supervising that work as production increased. She had continued working in the business after their children were born.

When Lorenz died in December 1896, Matthias helped his widow, Catharina Ladesteijn, arrange the funeral. His undertaking business handled the practical arrangements.

By 1906, Johann Matthias and Josef had established their own livelihoods. Neither wanted to enter the undertaking trade, so Matthias sold the business to a joiner who had worked in his workshop for years. The new owner continued manufacturing coffins and serving the existing funeral customers. Matthias also sold the workshop premises and adjoining residence. He and Elisabeth moved into a smaller house in Kalk, where he spent his retirement.

Later life

During the First World War, Matthias and Elisabeth experienced the food shortages affecting Cologne. The winter of 1916–1917 was particularly difficult. Matthias lost weight and became physically weak from inadequate food, spending several weeks largely confined to bed. Elisabeth collected their rationed food and managed the household. Coal was also scarce, and she could heat only the room where Matthias was staying. The rest of their house remained largely unheated.

Matthias recovered enough to move around the house, but remained too weak for shopping or extended walks throughout 1917 and 1918. Elisabeth continued handling these errands. The couple lived on the savings from the sale of his undertaking business, although rising prices forced them to reduce their household spending by 1918.

Inflation further reduced the purchasing power of their savings during 1922 and early 1923. By the beginning of 1923, Matthias and Elisabeth were struggling to meet their household expenses. Johann Matthias and Josef began regularly buying groceries and fuel for their parents, who continued living in their house in Kalk.

Death

Schroeter's health declined during the months before his death. He died at his home in Kalk on 3 May 1923, aged 93.

Elisabeth and their sons arranged his funeral. The undertaker who had purchased Matthias's business in 1906 supplied the coffin and funeral transport. Schroeter was buried at Kalker Friedhof in Merheim, Cologne, in May 1923.

See also

• Schroeter family members