By R. C. Forrester, Obion County Historian
as printed in The Daily Messenger
Union City, Tennessee, Friday, November 10, 1995

Recently, another Union City landmark fell victim to changing times.

The Union City Ice and Coal Co., which dated from 1887, is no more. The remains of this enterprise, located west of Second Street and north of West Main Street, were recently razed. Its passing should encourage us to pay it homage by a review of its history and that of the Dahnke family which established it.

In the late 1870’s and 1880’s immigrants from several European countries, began to arrive in this area. Their energy and enterprise contributed greatly to the post-Civil War recovery.

One of these immigrants was George Dahnke, who in 1887 came to Union City from Nashville, IL (Washington, Co.). His parents had immigrated from Germany to that area shortly before the Civil War. Ironically, they were leaving Germany partly because of unsettled conditions and possible forced military service as the various republics engaged in civil wars in the struggle to form a united Germany.

George may have come here because of the presence of the Dietzel family which arrived some years earlier.

He opened a small cafe on First Street, located about half-way between Church and West Main Streets on the west side. It was to boast a 16-foot soda fountain which sold Coca-Cola bottle by J. B. Clark and John E. Church of this city. They had their own brand of ice cream, “Velvet.” (An interior photo of this cafe is on p.9 of Vol. 1, Obion Co. Family History).

In an interview with Louise Dahnke in 1976, she stated that a friend, Charles Tomerlin, wanted Dahnke to start a bakery. He was not a baker himself, but he brought in some German bakers from St. Louis and established a bakery on the second floor over his store, which was where the family lived, as did many merchants in Europe.

At least at first, Louise Dahnke stated, bread was kneaded by hand. As the demand increased, the bakery was moved to Church Street, then called Mary Street, and was located next to Andrew’s Saloon (this places the bakery in the third lot east of First Street and on the north side of Church Street).

The brand was “Dahnke’s Cream Bread.” As production increased to 3,000 loaves daily, the bread was delivered by wagon, driven first by a Mr. Ross and later by Clarence Yates. Both five-cent and ten-cent loaves were produced. Later, branch bakeries were established in Dyersburg and Fulton KY.

George’s older brother, Henry, also settled in Union City and in 1894 they opened the Union City Ice and Coal Plant which Henry first managed. By 1912, Henry had died, George was president, D. F. Dahnke vice-president, and Fred Dahnke secretary and treasurer.

The coal brand was “Bon Air,” and the photo it is touted as the blacksmith brand. They also sold firewood. The photo shows three enclosed delivery wagons and two flat wagons. Also noted is electric lines and the rail lines remain in the same location today.

In an interesting innovation probably soon after the ice company opened in 1894, Dahnke ran an electric line from the ice plant generator to his cafe on First Street, thereby introducing the first electricity in any downtown business. His ceiling fan was something of a novelty.

George Dahnke was one of Union City’s leading citizens and served in 1912 as president of the Commercial Club, an early organization similar to the present Chamber of Commerce.

He and D. N. Walker formed the Dahnke-Walker Milling co. In 1900. Dahnke proposed having an agricultural agent to advise farmers on better methods of farming and was a commissioner with a group working to prevent the flooding problems associated with the Obion River.

Page created by Jane N. Powell who remembers her folks going there to buy a sack of coal and a bundle of kindling – about 3 days worth, maybe. The kindling was narrow wooden strips kind of like that in the bottom of a window shade and made excellent pieces for kites, when they could be spared, that is.