Oppermann, Kurt P.

Kurt P. Oppermann was the son of Nettie and Gustav Oppermann. Nettie was the eldest daughter of Anna (Seemann) Peters and Charles H. Peters of the Seemann and Peters newspaper firm in Saginaw (Mich.). Gustav was the son of Frederick Oppermann, a German furrier who founded the Oppermann Fur Company in Saginaw in 1895. Kurt was the third of seven children born to Nettie and Gustav, including: Arthur "Art" (1893-); Helen "Letto" (1895-); Kurt (1898-1977); Eugene "Gene" or "Jene" (1900-1942); Paul "Barney" (1903-); Robert "Bob" (1906-); and Peters "Pat" (1908-). The family was of German ancestry and loved each other very much. They all enjoyed musical events and were active in orchestras and the Germania Society. Kurt graduated from Saginaw High School in 1915. E.C. Warriner got him a scholarship to encourage him to attend the University of Michigan (U of M). Kurt attended the U of M from Oct. 1916 to Sept. 1918. While there, he played in the Symphony Orchestra, took cello lessons from Mr. Weir, and joined Sinfonia House fraternity. Kurt was drafted on Sept. 3, 1918 and served at Fort Custer in Company 1, Battalion 1, 160th Depot Brigade. He caught pulmonary tuberculosis while tending sick soldiers. The illness forced Kurt to spend a lot of time in the 1920s and 1930s in Castle Point, a Veterans Administration hospital in Beacon (N.Y.). To help his lungs, Kurt also purchased Arrowhead, a 15-acre farm near Freeland (Mich.). He worked as a fur agent for his family's company in New York, Chicago, and Saginaw. After both of his parents died, in 1936, Kurt returned to Saginaw try to save the family business and lived in the family mansion. The business closed by 1939. Although Kurt had a number of girlfriends, he never married. He was a devout Christian Scientist, as were several of his many penpals. In the 1950s Kurt became active in trying to save old Saginaw buildings from destruction and helped found a number of preservation and historical organizations. He died on June 17, 1977 in the Saginaw Veterans Administration Hospital. Bude Volusin was a Saginaw architect and builder, 1853-1871. Mabel de Fere (1899-1968) was raised in Bergland (Mich.) and earned a B.A. from Norther State Teachers' College (1936). She taught at Webber School (Saginaw, Mich.) until she died. She was pivotal in getting the white pine declared the state tree. Mabel and Kurt were apparently engaged in 1939, but they never married. Marion Weir was an Assistant Professor in the U of M Department of Rehetoric, 1917-1924, an instructor at the U of M School of Music, 1922, and Professor in the English Department at Brown University, 1919-1929. Frank Selzer was a Saginaw artist and lithographer, 1930-1941. (This information is from the collection.)