Memories about her parents, William Louis and Ella Mae (Risch) Hintz, by
Lillian Hintz Wipplinger
William Louis Hintz usually signed his name as Wm. L. Hintz. When they
were first married they lived with Ernest Hintz, Sr. on the farm at
Mansfield for a few years until his Dad and Mom moved to Albert Lea,
Minnesota. William then farmed the land and lived on the home place.
When Ernest Sr. died, Marie lived in Albert Lea alone a few years and
then moved back to the farm. She had the front room and bedroom of the
house. William was a very progressive man, always inventing easier ways
of doing things and buying the most modern inventions. He bought the
first car in the area. Before that everyone was using the horse and
buggy. The car was a Ford rambler. It had no doors in the front and a
top that could be raised like a convertible. The car had curtains
instead of windows and when it rained they hung the curtains up. William
made his own radio and listened to it with ear phones. The neighbors
would come over at night to listen to it. Later they got a horn on the
radio so everyone in the room could hear it, although some nights it
would be quite static. William made a cart to pull behind the drag as he
thought what is the use of walking behind it - it would be much easier to
fide on the cart behind the horse and drag. The neighbors would make fun
of him, saying he was too lazy to walk. The wagons had steel wheels at
that time, and he decided to put rubber on his wheels so the wagon
wouldn't ride so rough and bumpy. They also had a phonograph.
William was given the home farm and he added another two farms. he had
about 480 acres (which is now the Martin Elevbak farm). William built a
saw mill on the home place and they cut many of the cottonwood trees and
used them. He cut himself badly on the saw once.
In 1928 he and Ellsworth and Melvin built 3 houses in Albert Lea. They
sawed the trees down from the farm place and used the cottonwood lumber
to build the houses. The house on 330 Ulstad street still stands.
Ellsworth wired the houses and he lived in one of the houses for a time.
William and Ella moved to Albert Lea 1936 and the rented the third house.
William and a lung injury at one time and its believed this contributed
to his death in 194. Ella then accompanied Ruby and her son, Larry to
California where she lived until she died in 1953. There was a memorial
service in California and she was flown to Minnesota and laid in rest at
her daughter, Lillian Wipplinger's home for the wake. They are buried in
the Mansfield Cemetery.
William L. Hintz was a candidate for Representative of Freeborn County,
Minnesota in _____.
Eleanor Risch came to the Mansfield area and worked as a hired girl
before she married.