A birthday took place on this day 175 years ago that I consider very special. Perhaps it is because there is a chapter in my book Mama Buenger: Mother of a Synod that tells the tale of this child’s baptism. Perhaps it is because this child was likely named after one of the Buenger children who were the first German Lutherans to live on the property that I now own. Perhaps it is one of those stories in which a girl marries a Lutheran pastor who lived in a variety of locations during her life.

Before I get into the story of Lydia “Liddy” Friedericke Neumueller, I want to review the story of the aunt that she was almost certainly named after. Lydia Buenger went by the name Liddy, and she would marry a Lutheran pastor by the name of Rev. Friedrich Lochner. The fascinating story of her meeting and marrying Friedrich was told in the post, A Tainted Wedding Record with a Wonderful Story. I will give a condensed version of this story, which also covers several chapters in my book. Rev. Lochner came to St. Louis is late May of 1846 to attend one of the organizational meetings that resulted in the formation of what became known as the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod. He was single, and some matchmaking efforts resulted in him being introduced to Liddy Buenger. After a matter of just days, he proposed marriage. Liddy responded by insisting that she hear him preach a sermon first. A few days after hearing his sermon, she agreed to marry him. That marriage took place on June 1, 1846. So, after meeting and marrying him in a matter of days, Liddy went off with her new husband to Cleveland, where he was a pastor.

While all this was happening, Liddy’s sister, Clementine (Buenger) Nuemueller, was pregnant with her 3rd child. It was that child who was born on August 5, 1846. The father’s name was Johann Neumueller. That child was a girl, and she was named Lydia “Liddy” Friedericke. I have to think that Clementine attempted to name her new baby after her sister and new husband, Friedrich. This baby was baptized at Trinity Lutheran Church in St. Louis, where Rev. C.F.W. Walther was the pastor. Rev. Walther was married to yet another Buenger sibling, Emilie (Buenger) Walther. The church record for this baptism even records her name as Liddy. I will display that record in 3 images.

One of her sponsors was another Buenger sibling…Dr. Ernst Buenger. I suspect he likely assisted in Liddy’s birth. This record even includes the detail that Liddy was born at 1:00 in the morning. The story of Liddy’s baptism is Chapter 109 in the Mama Buenger book. I’m putting an excerpt from that chapter below.

Here are photos of Liddy’s parents.

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The document shown below that was part of Mama Buenger’s estate records gives evidence that the Neumueller’s were still living in St. Louis in 1852. I giggle when I look at this document because it looks to me like Johann may have been asked to dig out a new place for his mother-in-law’s outhouse.

Even though the Neumueller’s probably lived in St. Louis at the time of the 1850 census, I was not able to find them in that census. We know that the Neumueller family would later move to Altenburg. We find Liddy in the 1860 census living in the Brazeau Township. She is called Lydia in this entry. She was 14 years old, and her father was a farmer.

Next, we need to take a look at Liddy’s future husband. His name was Edward Lehmann who was born on December 15, 1842 in Germany. I know little about his early life or his immigration to America. I do know that he became a Lutheran pastor. I do not know if it was his first call, but I found that he was serving Trinity Lutheran Church in Norborne, Missouri in 1869. That church was founded by Rev. F.J. Biltz, one of the first students at the Log Cabin College in Altenburg, who was pastor in nearby Concordia, Missouri. Edward Lehmann succeeded him and served that congregation from 1869-1871.

It was on July 20, 1870 that Rev. Edward Lehmann married Liddy Neumeuller. The Perry County marriage record for this couple’s wedding indicates that the pastor who performed the ceremony was Rev. J.F. Koestering, so it almost certainly took place at Trinity Lutheran Church in Altenburg.

I suppose there is a possibility that Rev. Biltz might have been doing some matchmaking between a young pastor in Norborne and a young daughter of some old acquaintances in Altenburg. I looked for a Lehmann in the 1870 census for the area around Norborne, but I was unsuccessful. Then, in 1871, Rev. Edward Lehmann was called to become the pastor at Immanuel Lutheran Church in New Wells. This call is documented in a history of that congregation.

Our German Family tree lists 4 children born to this couple who were baptized when Pastor Lehmann was serving Immanuel. Then, in 1878, he left that congregation.

The next location where I found Rev. Edward and Liddy Lehmann was at Zion Lutheran Church in Hillsboro, Missouri. Pastor Lehmann served there from 1879-1884.

The Lehmann household can be found in the 1880 census living in that area. Five children are included in this entry.

The time period from 1884 until 1898 is somewhat unknown. A family history on Ancestry.com says the last child born to the Lehmann’s was born in Brownstown, Indiana in 1889. I think Pastor Lehmann may have been serving Trinity Lutheran Church in Vallonia, Indiana. That is where Liddy’s mother, Clementine, died. Next, we find Rev. Lehmann in a list of pastors for St. Paul Lutheran Church in Cuba, Missouri. This record says that the same list of pastors served St. John’s Lutheran Church in St. James, Missouri. This record says Edward served there from 1898-1902.

There is a little mystery here because we find this census entry for Edward Lehmann that says he was living in St. Louis in 1900.

The last place we find the Lehmann’s was in Fort Morgan, Colorado. The oldest congregation there was established in 1906, so it is possible that Rev. Edward Lehmann went there to establish that congregation. Edward died in 1908 at the age of 65. We find Liddy still living in Fort Morgan when the 1910 census was taken.

Next, we find Liddy in the 1920 census. She was living in the household of Henry Otte, who was married to one of Liddy’s daughters, Emilie.

The last census in which we find Liddy was the one taken in 1930, which was also the year of her death.

Liddy died that year at the age of 83. Edward and Liddy were buried in the Riverside Cemetery in Fort Morgan, Colorado. Liddy’s birth year is given as 1844 on her gravestone. That is incorrect.

Both Liddy’s married pastors. In the case of Liddy Buenger, she died a long time before her husband did. The story of her tragic death can also be found in Mama Buenger. Liddy Neumueller outlived her husband by quite a few years. This story was difficult to research, but I am glad that I now know what happened to a character that I have included in one of my books.