Kruidenier Cadillac

Mike at Vintage-Snapshots.com came across a photo taken on Locust Street in Des Moines, Iowa, in 1914 (the year my father was born), and was kind enough to share a digital copy with me.

The photo is important to me as it features the sign for the Kruidenier Cadillac Company, founded by my great-grandfather, Dirk Kruidenier, in the early 1900's (on the right side of the photo). Dirk Kruidenier emigrated from Holland with his family as a six-year-old in 1854 and settled in Pella, Iowa, moving later to Des Moines where he engaged in business and ultimately became the Cadillac dealer in the region. His son, Edward, also worked in the business and my father and his two brothers grew up around cars as young men. I don't know what happened to the dealership, but am grateful for this photo. (More on Dirk Kruidenier here.)

Thanks again to Mike for the photo and the detail enlargement: