I had this story “teed-up” to do yesterday, but things did not work out. The tale had an inherent problem anyway. After gathering all kinds of documents for the couple involved who were supposed to be married on May 19th according to our German Family Tree, I discovered that they were married on March 19th. I suppose I could have waited until next March 19th to write this story, but I know I would forget to do it. So, you are getting it today.

Louis Bingenheimer was born on March 1, 1858, the son of Martin and Louisa (Reinemer) Bingenheimer. I do not have any baptism information concerning Louis. He is found in his first census in 1860 at the age of 2. His father was a farmer in the Cinque Hommes Township.

In the 1870 census, we find Louis at the age of 12. Three more children had been added to this family in the previous decade.

Finding Louis in the 1880 census proved to be a little more difficult, but eventually I did find the Bingenheimer’s in the long-lost Union Township pages of that year’s census. I have to display his entry in 2 images. Louis was working on his father’s farm.

Now, we will turn our attention to the woman who would become Louis’s bride. Her name was Catherine Elizabeth Schrumpf, who was born on September 26, 1864. Catherine was the daughter of George and Elizabeth (Schaefer) Schrumpf. She was baptized at Grace Lutheran Church in Uniontown. We can view her baptism record from that congregation’s books shown here.

I failed to find the Schrumpf family in the 1870 census. In the 1880 census, we find the Schrumpf’s living in the Apple Creek Township, where her father was a farmer. Catherine was 15 years old.

Louis Bingenheimer married Catherine Schrumpf on March 19, 1885. Their church record is found in the books of Grace Lutheran Church in Uniontown. That record is displayed below. I think if you look at the date written on this document, you can see why someone may have read it as May 19th.

We can also take a look at this couple’s Missouri marriage license.

There are absolutely no children listed in our German Family Tree for this couple, but that is far from the truth. I think there might have been 9 children born into this family. I looked in several other sources that we have in our research library, but was unsuccessful at determining this couple’s church membership. Since we cannot view the 1890 census, the first one we can view that includes this Bingenheimer couple was the one taken in 1900. There were 6 children listed, and Louis was a farmer in the Byrd Township, which is the township where the city of Jackson is located.

When the 1910 census was taken, the Bingenheimer entry says they were living in Jackson. In the occupation columns, it says Louis had “own income” and “supt. farm”. I’m not quite sure what that means. There were 8 children in their household.

The Bingenheimer’s were once again living in Jackson when the 1920 census was taken. With 6 children in the household, Louis was called a street commissioner.

The last census in which we find Louis and Catherine was the one taken in 1930. Louis was 72 years old, and Catherine was 65. Just 2 daughters, both in their 20’s, were living with them. Louis had no occupation.

Both Louis and Catherine died in 1936. Louis died in May of that year at the age of 78. We can look at his death certificate below. He was called a retired farmer on this form.

Catherine died later that year in November at the age of 72. We can also view her death certificate which says she died of stomach cancer.

I located an obituary that was published for Catherine. It says her funeral was held at the Evangelical Church, and the pastor was Rev. Paul Piepenbrok. I did locate some old obituaries from Colorado that said Rev. Paul Piepenbrok was a Lutheran minister, but each obituary mentioned a burial at a Masonic cemetery. I am thinking he was not a Missouri Synod pastor.

Louis and Catherine Bingenheimer are buried together in the Russell Heights Cemetery in Jackson.

I have written a few other Bingenheimer stories. A few of them have mentioned a George Bingenheimer who had married Elizabeth Reinemer. This story gives Louis’s parents as Martin Bingenheimer and Louisa Reinemer. Two Bingenheimer brothers had married two Reinemer sisters. Most of the Bingenheimer records that are included in our German Family Tree are found in the Longtown and Uniontown church books. However, not many records come from the Martin Bingenheimer branch of the Bingenheimer family tree. Today’s Bingenheimer/Schrumpf couple certainly only shows a brief entry into the realms of our German Family Tree.