Louis Espenschied

Louis (Loudwig) Espenschied (January 25, 1821- February 3, 1887) was a successful Western wagon-maker and owner of Louis Espenschied Wagon Co. By the 1850s, the company was making large numbers of wagons for pioneers heading west during the great migration of 1853. During the civil war, he received a large contract for wagons and wheels for the Union Army.
Early life
Louis (1821 - 1887) was the son of Johann "Peter" Espenschied Espenshade (born in 1793-1855) and his wife Maria Philippina Spies (1796 - 1868).
On January 26, 1844, Louis married Catharina Weber, who was the daughter of Conrad Weber and his wife Maria Katharina. During the Civil War (1861- 1865), Louis received a large contract for wagons and wheels for the Union Army.
Philippina Espenshied was known for her modeling. Busts of her in bronze and marble have been made by the distinguished sculptor Ruckstuhl, and exhibited in the Paris Salon and later at the World's Fair in Chicago in 1893. She was the subject of the Frederick Ruckstull sculpture Evening, which is currently in the Metropolitan Museum of Art. On returning to U.S. in 1892, Ruckstull opened a studio in New York City, where his work Evening won the grand medal for sculpture at the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition.
Louis was sent to a German university to complete his education. He returned with his health impaired and died a few years later.
Charles, married Achsah Gardner Espenschied (1851 - 1926). He with Nash & Smith in the tea, coffee and spice business. Upon marrying the daughter of Stephen Gardener, Charles went into his father-in-law's business of flouring milling. He later took over the operation of a mill at Hastings, Minnesota. When Charles later retired, he wrote for The Northwestern Miller "Some Random Recollections". Returning to St. Louis he became a City Councilman, and fathered a bill to take the city hospital out of politics. He and his with had two daughters, Louise and Ruth.
Louise "Lizzie", married Henry Van Noye Lucas in 1880. They had one child, "little Henry". Henry was the twelfth and youngest child of James H. Lucas and Marie Emilie (Desruisseaux) Lucas. When Henry's father died in 1873, he inherited $2 million of his nine-million-dollar estate. Henry's his French-born paternal grandfather, John Baptiste Charles Lucas was born into an old Norman family in Normandy, France, in 1758. After meeting Benjamin Franklin, he was so inspired—and so impatient with class injustices in France—that he sailed to America. Armed with a letter of introduction from Franklin, Jean Baptiste was made a federal land grant judge by Thomas Jefferson, then elected to the U.S. House of Representatives. He resigned and moved to St. Louis, reportedly in part because he and his wife, Anne, missed French society. He had been attorney to the King of France before he emigrated to the United States. In 1805, he was appointed by President Thomas Jefferson to serve as land commissioner of the Louisiana Purchase Territories. It was he who named the area Normandy, because the terrain reminded him of his home country. His son Charles had an opportunity to purchase 1150 acres in this area, which he willed to his sister Anne.
Lizzie later divorced her husband Henry and she married again; she married William Capet Clopton (born in Holly Springs, Mississippi on March 16, 1853), who was the son of Major John H. Clopton. He was educated by private tutors, prepared for college at the Columbia Collegiate School. He later was educated at the universities in Virginia and Berlin, Germany. An orator of mark, he spent four years abroad and then settled in New York to practice law. His success was immediate and he became a leading railroad and corporate attorney, as well as a trustee, director and executor of many important trusts. William was a violin collector and was referred to as the "Judge".
Louis died on February 3, 1887 and is buried in Bellefontaine Cemetery in Saint Louis.<ref name=":4" />

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