PHOTO OF THE DAY: MONDAY REVIEW
The two-story building in this photo is familiar as the home of Merchants State Bank from 1913 to 1974. But it and the single-story brick structure adjacent to the north were also home to Dr. Ernest J. Hofer’s medical practice.
In a feature story in the December 10, 1986 issue of the Freeman Courier, Hofer described himself as an “old-fashioned country doctor” providing medical care for community residents for more than half a century.
A community native, after graduating from the University of Illinois School of Medicine in 1932, he returned and began his medical practice on January 1, 1933, on the second floor of the Merchants State Bank building. Twenty years later, he built a new office building on the lot next to the bank. He continued to practice there until his retirement in December 1986; he was 80 years old. In addition to practicing medicine, Hofer gave critical impetus to the effort to build the Freeman Community Hospital (today, Freeman Regional Health Services), which opened its doors in 1953.
Hofer practiced in the north portion of the one-story brick. The southern portion of the building was home to a variety of businesses over the years including a jewelry store and law and insurance offices.
The building was razed in 1999 in preparation for the expansion of Merchants State Bank into the facility we know today.
We enjoy providing these weekly trips down memory lane as part of our mission to preserve and share the history of our community. Our museum is open Mondays through Saturdays during the summer and we invite you to visit.
