Obit: Crane, Edward J. #2 (1878 - 1953)

Contact: Stan

Email: stan@wiclarkcountyhistory.org

Surnames: Crane, Uttormark, Starr

----Source: OWEN ENTERPRISE (Owen, Clark County, Wis.) 07/30/1953

Crane, Edward J. #2 (2 JUL 1878 - 27 JUL 1953)

The name E. J. crane is a familiar one in this community as to most people it refers to one of the largest feed stores in this section of the state, but only a few old timers recall that E. J. Crane lived in Owen (Clark Co., Wis.) when he started his first feed store in 1911.

Today the founder of E. J. Crane and Sons is dead.  He passed away suddenly and unexpectedly at 6:45 Monday evening, July 27^th, 1953, in St. Joseph’s Hospital, Chippewa Falls.

Funeral services were held Wednesday afternoon at two o’clock from Christ Episcopal Church in Chippewa Falls.  The Rev. R. E. Ortmayer, also a former Owen resident and no pastor of Christ’s Church, officiated at the final rites.  Burial was made at Forest Hill Cemetery of Chippewa Falls.

Mr. Crane was born on July 2, 1878 at Weyauwega.  In 1901 he married Alice Uttormark at Weyauwega.  He began his business career in the seed and feed business in partnership with his father.  He was also in the general merchandise business in Stanley as well as the logging and sawmill business at Crane.

In 1911 he and his family moved to Owen, opening a large feed store on the same site where today’s business is situated.  An energetic and aggressive businessman he continued to expand his business holdings in Owen, as well as establishing seed stores in neighboring communities until today he and his two sons own and operate stores in Owen, Chippewa Falls, Abbotsford, Stanley, Cadott, Thorp, Medford, Cornell, Greenwood, Colfax and Bloomer, Wis.

As the business continued to grow he moved his residence to Chippewa Falls, making that exchange the headquarters for his holdings, leaving Owen in 1919.

He was a member of the Christ Episcopal Church, serving as a vestry man for many years and was also a member of the Masonic Order.

Her is survived by his wife; three children, Kenneth, Donald and Kathleen, and three sisters, mrs. F. W. Starr, Nellie Crane and Anne Crane, all of Los Angeles.  He has three grandchildren.