Friedrich W. Bichel (1831-1896)

Source: The Opinion Tribune

The people of Oak township were inexpressibly shocked and saddened to learn that their old time neighbor and honored fellow citizen, Fred Bichel, had suddenly died Thursday morning. Mr. Bichel had been in Mineola the day before to attend the funeral of his old acquaintance, John Hartje and while he was not feeling quite as well as usual still he did not feel seriously indisposed.

Thursday morning he was in his room reading when along about 11 o'clock someone of the family happened in and saw him sitting his chair, dead. The end had come very quietly and painlessly without apparently a single struggle.

Mr. Bichel is one of Mills county's oldest inhabitants, having come to this country in 1858, thirty-eight years ago. He settled on his present farm in Oak township and has been there ever since until the day of his death. The funeral services were held at his residence on Saturday, the interment taking place in the Brick church cemetery in the Plumer settlement. Mr. Bichel was sixty-four years and ten months old at the time of his death. He has always been an honorable and exemplary man and his loss will be keenly felt by the entire community.