William Hohenschuh
It’s not a stretch to say William Hohenschuh was born into the family business. Literally, he was born in 1858 in the same building on Dubuque Street where his father, Frank, a cabinet maker by trade, opened a furniture business three years earlier and made by hand many of the goods he sold.
Frank Hohenschuh also founded a nearby funeral home. William, the son of parents who were native Germans, took over the family businesses in 1876 after his father’s death. William quickly developed a name for his work in the funeral business. Historians have even referred to him as the father of the funeral profession in Iowa. He organized the Iowa Funeral Directors Association in 1891. He served as the president of the National Funeral Directors Association in 1894. He was known as the “best funeral director in America.”
Hohenschuh did other things, too. He served on the Iowa City Public Park Commission for six years. He was the Johnson County coroner for 15 years. He was one of the instigators of the Hotel Jefferson.
But Hohenschuh gained national fame for his work in the funeral profession. He founded two colleges of embalming, traveled nationally as an author, lecturer and demonstrator on the subject.
Hohenschuh set the foundation for the business in the community. His company was sold after his death in 1920 to John Donahue and later purchased by Michael and Vicki Lensing.