Today’s birthday boy, as near as I can tell, never lived in the state of Missouri. Yet, because his baptism record is found in the books of Christ Lutheran Church in Jacob, Illinois, I still found his story for today’s post. About the only connection to Missouri I could find in this man’s history is the fact that his mother was originally from Altenburg.

Heinrich Herman Vogt was born on March 3, 1892, so today would be his 133rd birthday. Henry was the son of Hans Henry and Alvina (Schroeder) Vogt. The story of Henry’s parents was told in the post, Schroeder and Vogt. As said before, Henry was baptized at Christ, Jacob, and that baptism record is displayed here in two images.

Herman is found in the 1900 census at the age of 8. His father was a farmer in the Fountain Bluff Township.

Next, we find Henry in the 1910 census as a teenager. He was helping his father on his farm.

Henry’s older brother, Martin Vogt, is found in a Wisconsin census in 1910. He was living by himself and farming near the town of McKinley.

The rest of the Vogt family moved to that area of Wisconsin in 1911. Henry’s father and mother are buried in the Mt. Hope Cemetery in Turtle Lake, Wisconsin. I am placing a map here that illustrates many of the locations that were part of Henry and his wife’s life story.

It must not have been long after Henry arrived in Wisconsin that he met the woman who would become his wife. Her name was Elsie Helbig, who was born on Reformation Day, October 31, 1894. Elsie was the daughter of Charles and Martha (Henck) Helbig. There was a pair of Helbig’s who were part of the 1839 Gesellschaft, but I found no connection between that couple and the Helbig’s in Wisconsin. Elsie is found in the 1900 census at the age of 5. Her father was a farmer near Georgetown, Wisconsin.

When the 1910 census was taken, the Helbig’s were living near McKinley. Elsie was a teenager by that time.

Henry Vogt married Elsie Helbig on January 5, 1915. According to this Wisconsin marriage record, this couple was married in Barron County. If you look at the map above, the shaded county on the left is Polk County, but you can see how close McKinley is found to the border between Polk and Barron County (to the right).

It appears that Henry and Elsiie had 3 children, all girls. It also appears that this couple made a move to St. Paul, Minnesota not long after they were married. When Henry had his World War I draft registration completed in 1917, he is given a St. Paul address. It says he was a carpenter. There is also a note that says his right hand was crippled.

In the 1920 census, Henry and Elsie had one daughter, and Henry was called a checker at a warehouse.

During the next decade, the Vogt’s moved back to Wisconsin and remained in that state for the rest of their lives. The 1930 census shows this pair with all 3 of their daughters once again living near McKinley where it says that Henry was a farmer. In the column behind where it says, “farmer”, I think it says, “diversifying”.

When the 1940 census was taken, the Vogt’s were living in Dewey, Wisconsin where Henry was a laborer doing roadwork for the W.P.A., a government work program instituted during the time of the Great Depression.

Henry had his World War II draft card completed in 1942. It still gives him a Dewey address.

The last census we can view is the one taken in 1950. This time, Henry was back to farming in Beaver Brook, Wisconsin. Included in the Vogt household was their daughter, Luella, her husband, Andrew Peterson, and their young daughter, Doris.

Henry Vogt died in 1951 at the age of 59; Elsie Vogt died in 1962 at the age of 67. Henry and Elsie are buried together in the Mt. Hope Cemetery in Turtle Lake, Wisconsin. I did a search on Findagrave.com for that cemetery and found 11 gravesites that contained the surname, Vogt.

I also did a search of the Christ Lutheran Cemetery in Jacob, Illinois. There is only one Vogt buried there. It is the sister of Henry who died as a teenager prior to the family’s move to Wisconsin. Henry’s parents spent most of their lives in Illinois but moved to Wisconsin shortly after 1910. The children of the Vogt’s mostly ended up living in Wisconsin. A few of them, like Henry, spent some time in the Twin Cities.