ROSE, Henry

ROSE, Henry. (Louisiana, Pike County, MO, May, 1847 (1)--Dubuque, IA, Dec. 17, 1919). Dr. Henry Charles Rose was an African American man born in the antebellum South in the town of Louisiana in Pike County, Missouri, 90 miles north of St. Louis. Due to a lack of detailed records or autobiography, it is unknown if Rose was born an enslaved person or free.

Census records and newspaper articles indicate that Rose honorably served the 11th Missouri State Militia Cavalry, Company E, during the CIVIL WAR. He enlisted on July 1, 1862 and left the military on May 15, 1865. It is unclear whether Rose was an enlisted soldier in the 11th Missouri, or more likely, contracted as non-combatant military personnel serving the company quartermaster. It is clear he was recognized by his white comrades and fellow Dubuque veterans for his service to the Union cause. General C.S. Bentley and the Iowa National Guard chose Rose to organize and run the officer’s headquarters at the Waterloo, Iowa, National Guard encampment in 1882. (2)

Rose moved to Dubuque in the 1874 where he started a 38-year career at the JULIEN HOTEL (later HOTEL JULIEN). For thirty-eight years he was employed as a porter at the JULIEN HOTEL. He retired from this position the day before the fire which temporarily destroyed the business. Rose married German-born Kathrine Derbe on June 20, 1883 in Chicago, Illinois. (3) The couple raised three sons in Dubuque: Harry Walter, August J, and William Henry Rose. (4)

Rose was a respected Dubuque community leader who helped organize Dubuque Emancipation Day celebrations, established African American benevolent societies including the Dubuque A.F. & A.M. Masonic Lodge and the International Order of Twelve. He was active in the A.M.E. Church, and was a mentor to numerous young Black men in Dubuque. In the mid-1890s, Rose became a chiropodist and opened a podiatry practice in an office at the Julien Hotel. Dr. Rose opened a second office at 314 BANK AND INSURANCE BUILDING at the corner of 9th and Main Streets in 1898.

His wife Katherine died on June 16, 1912. (5) On March 27, 1915 he married Miss Mayne Lucas of Helena, Arkansas. (6) Ms Lucas received a musical education and traveled throughout the country performing concerts at churches. (7)

Dr. Rose has been credited with beginning Henry A. MARTIN on his career.

On October 1, 2023 members of the Robert Mitchell Camp #206 of the SONS OF UNION VETERANS OF THE CIVIL WAR held a commemoration of Dr. Rose's service in the Civil War. Over what had become an unmarked grave in LINWOOD CEMETERY, the SUVCW funded the placement of a gravestone to Dr. Rose and another for his wife, and infant daughter. A grave-side ceremony was held with a following reception at the Hotel Julien. (5)

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Source:

1. 1900 Federal Census

2. Program from the Memorial Service on October 1, 2023

3. Cook County, Illinois Marriage Records, 1871-1920

4. Iowa, U.S. Wills and Probate Records, 1758-1997

5. "Died," Dubuque Telegraph-Herald, June 17, 1912, p. 5

6. Iowa, U.S. Marriage Records, 1880-1947

7. "Dr. Henry C. Rose Weds," Dubuque Telegraph-Herald, Mar. 28, 1915, p. 4