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Show Spanish War Veteran Quits Job As City J. P. A L : .. QUITS J. P. POST John Baumgaertel, city justice of peace for 13 years, has resigned and will spend the summer traveling. trav-eling. A Spanish-American War vet, he came to the Basin as a soldier in 1902. 83 Year Old Judge To Quit Law Work On May 15th The announced resignation of John Baumgaertel as city justice of the peace, which will become effective May 15, will bring to an end sixteen years as a judge in the justice court in Roosevelt. His resignation was filed with the city council last Monday night, with failing eye-sight given as the reason for leaving the law administration admin-istration field. A native of Philadelphia, the judge tells rather an interesting story of the 83 years he has lived and toiled upon this old earth. At the outbreak of the Spanish-American War, John Baumgaertel enlisted en-listed from his home city and spent 14 years in the service of the United States as a member of the 12th Regiment of the W. S. Infantry. In fact, it was the Vle of a soldier that brought the Judge to the Uintah Basin. According to the Judge after spending approximately 10 years in Cuba and the Philippine slands as a fighting soldier, w' ere he was wounded, he was one of a group of soldiers making up Companies Com-panies G and H of Regiment 12, to be sent to Fort Duchesne in 1902 for a new assignment. He remained re-mained in the Army at the Fort until 1907, being mustered out in that year. It was the second time-continued time-continued on Ptuje 2) JOHN BAUMGAERTEL . . . (Continued from page one) he had received a discharge, the other being in the Islands, but he i immediately re-enlisted. I Liked The Country I When asked why he decided not ! to return to the East after com-i com-i pleting his 14-year stretch in the Army, the Judge said he had two . reasons "a wife, and then I liked I the country." He and his first wife, ! whom he married on Oct. 17, 1903, j were divorced, and on Oct. 27, 1919 he married Martha A. Sweat, of Wallsberg, Utah. Together they raised 9 children, 7 boys and 2 girls. All are living. They have 13 grandchildren and 2 greatgrandchildren. great-grandchildren. After getting his discharge from ' the Army, Judge Baumgaertel be-' be-' came a gilsonite miner, a vocation 1 he followed from 1907 until 1939, ' except -for two years, 1912-13, ' when he was postmaster at Wat-' Wat-' son, Uintah County. I Mr. Baumgaertel was elected I precinct justice of the peace in the fall of 1940 and served contin-i contin-i uously until Jan. 1, 1955. His first I appointment as Roosevelt City J.P. I was 15 years ago, and except for I one 2-year term, he has been I Roosevelt's J.P. since. I To Visit Children I The Judge stated that as soon I as school is out, or when the city I appoints a successor to him, he I and his wife are going to leave l their Roosevelt home and spend the summer visiting relatives and friends on the Pacific and Atlan- tic coasts. At present they have a grandchild and a foster child living with them, who are attending attend-ing school. |