Community scrapbook - Businessman William H. Vedder

William H. Vedder was well-known in the business community of Cape Girardeau for many years, according to his great-niece Jane Bodine of Cape and his obituary that ran in the Southeast Missourian on Dec. 1, 1956. Born Jan. 30, 1869, in Osnabrueck,Germany, Vedder came to America in 1881 and settled in St. Louis. He moved to Cape Girardeau in 1898 and soon began peddling novelties from house-to-house throughout Southeast Missouri. In 1906, he established the Excelsior Music Company, which became Excelsior Furniture and Music Company in 1920. This business was at the corner of Broadway and Frederick, where Shivelbine's Music Store is now. Vedder served as a justice of the peace and public administrator. An uncle to Minnie Brandon and Neva Brandon Mehrle, both of Cape Girardeau, he died in 1956 at the age of 87. If you have any old photos you think would be of interest to readers, call Janis Gosche at 335-6611, extension 133, or e-mail her at jgosche@semissourian.com.