The original William Mueller bakery is pictured above with William Mueller standing (far left). SCHS image from the Mike and Van Mueller collection.
William Mueller was born in Wurttemberg, Germany on July 7, 1869 and was orphaned in early childhood. While still in his youth he was apprenticed to a baker. In 1890, when he reached the age of 21, he emigrated to the United States which he viewed as a land of freedom and opportunity. At that time the rulers of Germany pursued a policy of conquest and were often at war with their European neighbors. William applied to the German government for permission to visit his brother who was living in England. His request was approved, but when it came time for him to return to Germany, he emigrated to America instead.
He came first to the Chicago suburbs where he worked in several different bakeries. He married in 1894 to Doris Winecke and one child was born from this union. His second marriage took place on December 8, 1900 to Marie Kirchner, with the remainder of his children being born from this marriage.
In 1902, Mueller decided to leave the Chicago area and start his own bakery. He heard that Manistique was a growing town with good prospects for business success. He sent his wife Marie here to check it out. She stayed a few days and was favorably impressed. Following her good report, the Mueller family moved to Manistique in 1902 and bought out the Hood Bakery on Main Street, located behind the former Strassler Tire Shop. The family resided at the American House hotel on Oak Street until they were ready to move into the apartment above the bakery shop.
A major deficiency with the bakery location was the lack of running water. Mueller’s sons, William Jr. and Richard had the job of hauling water. A tank was mounted on a wagon in summer and on a sleigh in winter to haul the water. Each morning the tank would be transported to the pump in front of the old CL Hardware, where it would be filled by the boys and pulled back around the corner to the bakery on Main Street. There, the water for the day’s baking would be unloaded by William Sr. and his eldest son Louie.
The Mueller Bakery was truly a family business. All five of the children who were still living at home assisted in the days baking. William Sr. began his day at 11:30 p.m., heating up the oven and mixing the dough for the next day’s baking. Bread was made with a hearth fired oven. Wood was used as fuel, and when the logs were transformed into a bed of coals the baking could begin. White bread required the highest temperature and was baked first in pans, followed by the dark breads with the dough being placed directly on the oven tiles. Rolls, pies, cookies and cakes followed, one after the other, as the oven gradually cooled. A long handled flat scoop was used to retrieve baked goods out of the oven.
The children got up at 4 a.m. just as the bread was coming out of the oven. They worked until 8 a.m. when it was time to get ready for school. The Mueller Bakery delivered their bread and other baked goods to individual homes and stores. This was accomplished with a horse drawn delivery wagon, until old Dobbin was finally retired and replaced with a 1921 Ford delivery truck. The Mueller Bakery prospered and by 1917 they were able to build a new brick bakery located at 107 River Street. The new location had running water and the family lived in the five bedroom apartment above the bakery. The aromas emanating from Manistique’s old time bakeries were said to be “out of this world.”
William Mueller continued in the bakery business in Manistique for 43 years. He died on August 5, 1947 at age 79.