YOUR SILENT NEIGHBORS, Julius M. Horn, Collins Company Workman
by David K. Leff
Town Poet Laureate and Deputy Town Historian 

Born in Alsace-Lorraine, Julius M. Horn (1871-1917) came to Collinsville in 1888 when the once French area was part of Germany.  For the remainder of his life, he worked for the Collins Company.  For at least part of that time, he was a buffer.  

He was a member of St. Patrick’s Church and its Holy Name Society, and joined other fraternal organizations.  He “was a leading spirit in all” groups to which he belonged, according to the Farmington Valley Herald.  

Horn married Minnie Scheidel in 1896, and they lived in Burlington.  The couple had seven surviving children, all living at home when Horn died after a short bout of pneumonia. 

The funeral was held at St. Patrick’s Church where a solemn requiem of High Mass was celebrated by Reverend William P. Kennedy.  Members of his fraternal organizations turned out for the funeral and at graveside.  “It is felt in Collinsville,” the Farmington Valley Herald wrote, “that one of the most useful citizens of the village has passed to his reward.”

Julius M. Horn is buried in Calvary Cemetery, Collinsville. 

“Your Silent Neighbors” introduces readers to people out of Canton’s past.  Readers are encouraged to visit these gravesites and pay their respects to the people who have helped make our community what it is today.