Mr. J. L. Piergue was the Delmonico of Ottawa and vicinity. Through long years of experience he has earned a well-deserved reputation as chef and caterer. A brief review of his life is as follows:
J. L. Piergue was born in France, in 1844, of a good family noted for their industry, honesty and morality. His father was a baker by trade, and under him our subject served an apprenticeship, thus laying the foundation of his successful career. He attended school until he was sixteen, when, in order to perfect himself in his trade, he became an apprentice to a regular caterer. During the World's Fair in Chicago, in 1893, he was chef of the Hungarian Cafe, which he successfully conducted and which was one of the most popular of the "White City" resorts. He is now located at Ottawa, Illinois, where he maintains his reputation in his line of business. His elegant and successfully conducted saloon is located in his own building, a three-story brick structure, it being finished and furnished first-class in every respect.
Mr. Piergue was married, in Ottawa, to Miss Victoria De Claude, daughter of M. De Claude, and she is a woman of excellent qualities, and has proved herself a worthy helpmate to her husband. They have four children: Bert, of Omaha, who had charge of the German Village Cafe at the Omaha exposition in 1898; Edith, wife of Lee Uhl, of Ottawa; and Carrie and Louise, at home.
Politically Mr. Piergue is identified with the Democratic party. Socially he is a Knight of Pythias, a member of the uniform rank in that order, and an officer and one of the active promoters of the same.
Extracted by Norma Hass from Biographical and Genealogical Record of LaSalle County, Illinois published in 1900, volume 1, pages 46-47.
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