Back in 1913, a man named Peter Eckert from Lenzburg, Illinois married Anna Mahnken at Salem Lutheran Church in Farrar. That couple ended up remaining in Perry County for a number of years. It is a mystery to me how Peter and Anna got to know one another. However, I do know that Peter Eckert’s entry into Perry County led to two other Eckert/Mahnken marriages during that decade. I have yet to write Peter Eckert’s story, but I have written the story of his sister, Alwine Eckert, who married Rev. Frederick Mahnken, Anna’s brother in the post, Hometown Preacher. Rev. Mahnken even served Salem Lutheran Church as their pastor for a while. Today, you will read about a third Mahnken sibling who married an Eckert.

Martha Sophia Mahnken was born on October 30, 1894. That means Martha would be celebrating her 130th birthday today. She was the daughter of John and Maria (Heitmann) Mahnken. Martha was baptized at Salem Lutheran Church in Farrar. We can take a look at her baptism record below.

Martha is found in her first census in 1900 at the age of 5. The Mahnken family spills over 2 census pages. The first page is rather easy to read, but the second one which includes Martha is not so. Martha’s father was a farmer in the Salem Township.

Next, we find Martha in the 1910 census as a teenager. Two years prior to this entry, Martha was confirmed in 1908 at Salem.

Now, we will take a look at the man who would become Martha’s husband. His name was Albert Georg Eckert, who was born on November 4, 1891. Albert was the son of Herman and Regina (Schneider) Eckert. He was born in Lenzburg, Illinois. Albert is found in the 1900 census. It says he was 6 years old, but it looks as if the census taker made some changes in the ages along the way. Albert was more likely to be 8 or 9 years old. His father was a farmer near Lenzburg.

In the 1910 census, Albert was 18 years old. Even though he is given no occupation, he was likely helping his father on his farm.

When Albert’s sister had married Peter Mahnken, Albert and Martha were witnesses for the wedding. This may be one of those cases in which attendants at a wedding become acquainted and later fall in love. Albert Eckert married Martha Mahnken on November 13, 1914 at Salem Lutheran Church in Farrar. The church record for this event is shown below. It says Albert was from Darmstadt, Illinois, which is quite near Lenzburg. I will add that Frederick Mahnken and Alwine Eckert were attendants for Albert and Martha’s wedding. Those two would get married in 1916.

The Missouri marriage license for this couple is pictured here.

Evidence points to the fact that Albert took his bride to Illinois after they were married. In 1916, a son named Albert Martin Eckert was born on April 28th. A day later, Martha died on April 29th. It certainly looks as if she died as a result of complications with childbirth. That left Albert as a widower with a newborn baby. I do not know how he managed to cope with that, but I do know that the son lived to adulthood. Martha is buried in the Trinity Lutheran Cemetery in Darmstadt, but Findagrave.com has no gravestone photo.

Albert had a World War I draft registration completed when that war broke out. It gives Albert a Lenzburg address, calls him single, and says he had one child.

Albert married again. His second wife was Dora Hassebrock, who was born on October 8, 1894. Dora was the daughter of Henry and Wilhelmina (Storck) Hassebrock. I located Dora’s baptism record using the Missouri Synod records collection on Ancestry.com. That record is found in the books of Ebenezer Lutheran Church in Grand Prairie, Illinois. I am not quite sure where Grand Prairie is found, and that congregation’s books ended in 1922. Perhaps it was located near Okawville, Illinois.

In the 1900 census, Dora is found living near Okawville at the age of 5. Her father was a farmer.

In the 1910 census, Dora was a teenager in the same location.

Dora Hassebrock got married at Ebenenzer Lutheran Church in Grand Prairie. This seems to gives credence that Grand Prairie was located near Okawville. Dora and Albert Eckert were married on November 26, 1917. The church marriage record for this pair is shown here.

A family tree on Ancestry.com says Albert and Dora had 7 children. When the 1920 census was taken, the Eckert’s were living near Lenzburg with 2 children, one from Albert’s first wife and one from his second wife. Albert was a farmer.

Albert’s oldest son, Albert Martin, was confirmed in 1929, and his confirmation record is found in the books of Christ Lutheran Church in Jacob, Illinois.

The 1930 census indicates that the Eckert’s were living in the Fountain Bluff Township of Jackson County, Illinois, which is where Christ, Jacob is located. Albert was still farming. There were 6 Eckert children in this entry.

Albert Eckert died in 1933 at the age of 41. His death record is found in the books of Christ, Jacob. That record does not indicate a cause of such an early death. Dora is found as a widow in the 1940 census. An older son, Emil, was working the farm near Jacob. The youngest children in this entry were born in 1932 and 1933, just prior to Albert’s death.

Dora is found in one more census that we can view. The 1950 census shows Dora as a 55 year old widow. A son named Melvin was an auto mechanic.

Dora Eckert died in 1968 at the age of 73. I located this transcription of Dora’s obituary on Findagrave.com. It says she was born in Okawville, which gives more credence to Grand Prairie being located near that town.

Both Albert and Dora Eckert are buried in the Christ Lutheran Cemetery in Jacob.

Today’s tale of the Eckert’s has us venturing into our German Family Tree from a variety of places because early on, some Eckert’s got married in Farrar. Then later on, some Eckert’s made their way to Jacob, Illinois and into the church records of Christ Lutheran Church, another set of records that are part of our GFT. Perhaps someday, I will get to write the story of Peter and Anna Eckert, the 3rd Eckert/Mahnken couple.