Jewish History of De Soto, Missouri

De Soto, Missouri (named for Spanish conquistador Hernando de Soto) founded in 1857.  Originally a company run by the St. Louis Iron Mountain and Southern Railroad, the town quickly grew around the railroad industry, surpassing 2,000 residents by 1880.  Among the early residents of De Soto was Bernard Mannheimer, an immigrant from the French Alsace-Lorraine.  Arriving sometime before 1870, Mannheimer owned a dry goods store in De Soto and lived in town with his wife and five children.  Ten years later, Mannheimer's sister and father-in-law, Charles Baer, joined the family in De Soto.  Before retiring and moving in with his daughter and son-in-law, Baer owned a dry goods store in St. Louis.  The Mannheimers remained in De Soto for several decades, last appearing in the census in 1910.