There is a matter for debate in today’s story. The birthday boy for today was either born on January 2, 1844, as it is reported in our German Family Tree, or it is January 2, 1843 as his gravestone indicates. Either way, this baby was born on January 2nd, so you get his story today. It might be more interesting if this birth took place in 1844 which would make today his 180th birthday. However, for a reason I will explain later, I lean toward his birth taking place in 1843, which would calculate to be his 181st birthday today.

The birthday boy was named Johann Christian Friese, who was the son of August and Caroline Friese. Our GFT says Caroline’s maiden name was Kannegieser, but many family trees on Ancestry.com give Cougsen as her maiden name. A baptism record for Christian is found in the books of Grace Lutheran Church in Uniontown. No other church records for him are found in our GFT, and there is only one other person in GFT with that surname. I have to display Christian’s baptism record in the two images below.

I happen to think that Christian was born in Cape Girardeau County. I think his parents were living in a part of that county that was visited by Rev. Gruber, the pastor of Grace, Uniontown, who was known for being a type of circuit rider who would travel to nearby areas looking to serve the spiritual needs of German Lutherans. I also think Christian was likely baptized at his home, not a church, and Pastor Gruber then recorded his baptism in the Grace church books. If you look in the sponsor’s column in the 2nd image, you will see the term “Cape Girardeau” which would support what I am saying. I wish I could read this German handwriting to find more confirmation. If you look at his date of birth in the first image, it just says January 2 without a year of birth. This baptism record, however, is included in the list for those which occurred in 1844. Perhaps he was born in 1843, but did not get baptized until 1844. According to family trees that I find on Ancestry.com, Christian was the last child born into his family. We find him in the 1850 census at the age of 7. He is called John in this entry. His age of 7 gives credence to an 1843 year of birth.

Next, we find Christian in the 1860 census as a teenager. This time, the Friese’s are found living in the Union Township of Bollinger County. 

At this time, let me point out that this township (the rectangular area) is located not far from the village of Sedgewickville as displayed in this map.

Now, we will turn our attention to the woman who would become Christian’s wife. Her name was Missouri Ellen Rader, who was born on July 14, 1850. Missouri was the daughter of William and Malinda (Brown) Rader. The Rader’s had been living in Tennessee, but moved to Missouri not long before this child was born. Perhaps they named her in honor of their move to this state. Missouri is found in her first census in 1860. She is listed as being 11 years old, but I think she was only 10. Her father was a farmer and carpenter in the Apple Creek Township.

That would be the only census in which we find Missouri as a single woman. Christian Friese married Missouri Rader on June 6, 1867. This would not be the first Friese/Rader marriage. Christian’s older brother, Henry, had married Missouri’s older sister, Mary, in 1865. There is a civil marriage record for Christian and Missouri’s wedding from Cape Girardeau County, but it is very difficult to read.

Not long after this wedding, an important event took place near Sedgewickville. A congregation named Sargent’s Chapel Lutheran Church was established on January 17, 1869. For a lot of years, the Sedgewickville area had been served by a variety of pastors from a variety of denominations. A history of this church is included in a booklet we have in our library that was published in 1994 on the occasion of their 125th anniversary. 

That booklet contains a list of early pastors to serve in the Sedgewickville vicinity. I have highlighted the name of Rev. Thomas Sargent.

In that history, we find the following paragraph concerning Pastor Sargent.

When this Lutheran church was established, we find that Christian and Missouri Friese were charter members. We also see Christian’s brother, Henry, and his wife, Mary, on this list.

The 1870 census shows the Friese household with 2 young children. Right below Christian’s family, you will see his parents. His father was 96 years old. Christian was a farmer.

I located some church records from Sargent’s Chapel on Ancestry.com. This set of books has as its first baptism record one that took place in 1877. That first baptism was the one for Sarah Friese, one of Christian and Missouri’s children.

Next, we find the Friese’s in the 1880 census with 6 children. One more child would be born in 1881.

Christian Friese died in 1899 at the age of 56 (if you use 1843 as his year of birth). Missouri shows up in the 1900 census as a widow. She was living in the Whitewater Township in Bollinger County.

Next, we find Missouri in the 1910 census. She is listed right under her son, Christian’s, family.

Missouri Friese died in 1919 at the age of 68. We can take a look at her death certificate.

Christian and Missouri Friese are each buried in the Sargent’s Chapel Cemetery in Sedgwickville. You can definitely see that his gravestone says Christian was born in 1843. 

I did a search for the name, Friese, on the site for the Sargent’s Chapel Cemetery on Findagrave.com. I got 66 results. That is about 10% of that cemetery’s gravesites. That surname is apparently a prominent one in and around Sedgewickville.