Albert married Margaret Frances De Groote, of Pecatonica, on February 22, 1923. Margaret was the daughter of John and Martha (Frey) De Groote. Albert spent at least some of the 1920s as a tenant farmer, at various times renting the Andrew Flynn farm near Irish Grove and the Wurtz farm on the south edge of Davis. An advertisement in the Freeport Journal-Standard promoted Albert's closing out sale on October 9, 1929.
In that same month, Albert earned a permanent place in local history when his car struck Joe Copas of Leaf River, Illinois on the newly opened Illinois Route 75 highway. By this time, the Kraul's had apparently secured a house in the village of Davis, adjacent to Route 75. According to The Davis Leader (10/10/1929), Albert was driving his car out of his yard to cross the highway and didn't see the oncoming auto of Mr. Copas. The collision created the very first auto accident on the new highway.
Following their move to Davis, the Kraul's were enumerated in the 1930 U.S. Census in April of that year, where Albert was listed as a salesman. He would later be appointed as a state highway maintenance patrolman, serving in that capacity until February 1933, when a newly elected Democratic administration replaced the appointments previously made by Republicans (per The Davis Leader, 2/16/1933).
The Kraul's next move was to Rock City in July 1934, after acquiring a grocery store from Jesse Meier. The new owners had added a tavern when the store's grand opening was celebrated on July 31st. The tavern was the first to open in Rock City after Prohibition was repealed. It's unclear how long the Kraul's operated the grocery store and tavern, but by 1938 the Rockey family had taken over the grocery store. The U.S. Census, as well as various newspaper articles, showed Albert as a milk truck driver in 1940. The Kraul's continued to live in the Rock City and Ridott areas in the 1940s, until purchasing our property in 1947.
In January 1949, the Freeport Journal-Standard advertised Albert's closing out sale. The advertisement stated that he had rented out the farm for cash, and was selling his half of the farm assets. Evidently Albert had a share lease that he was winding down, but it's not clear if he was ending a lease with a tenant, or exiting a lease (or leases) with other owners. Either way, Albert Kraul's return to farming was brief. Two growing seasons after buying the farm, he sold the property to Glen and Grace Mullican on October 17, 1950. By then, Margaret had developed health issues and was a frequent visitor of Freeport hospitals.
Margaret died of a heart attack in December 1953, at the age of 50. In July 1956 Albert married Elizabeth Fosler, who promptly filed for divorce in May 1957. Until his retirement in 1960, Albert worked for the H.A. Hillmer company, a feed, grain, and farm service company based in Freeport. The same year he retired, Albert married fellow widower Alice (Coon) Hartwig. Alice died on April 27, 1970.
Albert lived three more years before passing on September 26, 1973. He and Margaret are buried together in the Saint Paul's Epplyanna Cemetery near Davis.