Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1911-12-16
is A VETERAN ON
The FRONT END
Alois Studer Who Has Stood a
Street Car Watch for %
Long Years.
HAS INTERESTING CAREER
Has Driven Stage Coaches, Circus
Wagons and Been a Soldier
Still Active.

Alois Studer, the Oldest motorman
In the employ Of the Tri-City Railway
company, VIII finish his 2sth year OF
service for the company next month.
The story OF his career reads like a
work OF fiction. Left an orphan when
but three years old, he had to fight the
battle Of life unaided. and as he ex-
pressed ~, 81 have been getting kick
ed around from one corner OF the
country to the other like an old pair
OF boots ever since" He has worked
at almost everything.
He has done everything from work
ing on a farm to fighting Indians and
working for a circus.
When he began to work for the
street railway company, which at that
time was known as the Moline & Rock
Island Horse Railroad company, the
line extending only from Moline to
this city through the main street Of
both cities. and the Third street line
IN Davenport were the only street rail
ways in operation. He started in as a
driver on one Of the horse cars and
has witnessed the steady progress OF
the methods of transportation in all
these years. Twenty-eight years ago
a driver of a horse car and now a
motorman on one OF the latest pay-as-
you-enter cars is the progress which AL
Studer has made.
BORN IN SWITZERLAND.
He was born in Switzerland, and
came TO this country with mis- parents
when a mere baby. On ,Se journey
his mother died at New Orleans. He
and his father came on TO Iowa City,
where his father died two years later.
The orphan boy was taken in By a
family named Ferdinand Hatherstrum
OF Iowa City. At the age of nine,
Alois grew restless, probably because
he saw SO many migrating TO Cali.
fornia. and in the year 1919. ran away
from home. He went to work on a
farm for IS a month WheE the Civil
war broke out he enlisted with Com
pany l., Seventh Iowa, at Iowa City
and was sent west to Fort Randall.
South Dakota where he remained for
a year. after which his company was
sent TO Fort Pierre. This was during
the time OF the Sioux Indian uprising
and he had a real taste of red skin
warfare. Studer returned east and in
October OF the year 1864 was muster
ed out at Iowa City.
ON THE CIRCUS WAGON.
The next four years were equally
divided, two being spent work.
ing in a livery stable at Marengo
Iowa, and two driving a stage from
Narengo to Blairstown. Studer rode
on the first train Of the Northwestern,
20 run from Chicago to Omaha. The
vailroad only extended as far as Coun-
I'll Bluffs, where the passengers were
dumped of on the open prairie, max,
Ing IL necessary to stage 1t to Omaha
He worked around Omaha N q livery
stable for two years and then caught
the circus fever and hired out as q
driver for Yankee Robinson One
Ring Overland circus Studer held
the reins for four horses on one OF
he red and gold wagons. as they
drove from town to town in Missouri
The Perry family of acrobats were
the feature attraction OF the show al
that time. After five weeks OF life
around the szwGdst ring. he was taken
sick with typhoid fever and was fore
ed TO give up the gay life, leaving Tic
circus at Rushville. Mo Here ne re
nained with a private family through