Today’s birthday boy was born in Germany, but did not live there very long. He came to this country when he was just 2 years old, so he must have had no memory of his days in Germany. I will attempt to share his story with our readers today.

Heinrich Meier was born on June 15, 1865, so today would be his 160th birthday. Henry was the son of Henry and Anna (Beckmann) Meier. As said before, Henry came to the United States when he was very young. We find him on the passenger list shown below for the ship, Uhland, which arrived in New Orleans in 1867. The Ruhkopf’s on the list are children of Henry’s mother by a previous marriage.

Henry is found in the 1870 census at the age of 5. His father was a farmer in the Brazeau Township.

Henry’s father died in 1871. Then, in 1879, Henry was confirmed at Salem Lutheran Church in Farrar. When the 1880 census was taken, Henry was a teenager and living in the John Miessner household. John Miessner’s name is crossed out, probably because he died in April of 1880. Henry Meier is called a farmer. Also, above the Miessner household is that of Peter Meier, Henry’s uncle.

Now, we will turn our attention to the woman who would become Henry’s bride. Her name was Rosella Josephine Martin, who was born on October 9, 1866. Rosella was the daughter of William and Sarah (Morrison) Martin. Her baptism record is not found in our German Family Tree, so I think she was baptized at Brazeau Presbyterian Church. Rosella is found in her first census entry in 1870. She was 3 years old, and her father was a farmer in the Brazeau Township. Another clue that the Martin’s were members of Brazeau Presbyterian Church was the fact that her father had been born in North Carolina. Many members of that congregation migrated to Perry County from that state.

Next, we find Rosella in the 1880 census as a teenager. She is called Ella in this entry. This time, the family was living in the Union Township. The Union Township had been formed earlier in the 1870’s, so this family likely was still farming the same land. This entry is on the page before Henry Meier’s 1880 entry shown earlier. They were apparently close neighbors at that time.

Henry Meier married Rosella Martin on September 8, 1885. Their Missouri marriage license below says that they were married by a justice of the peace. Perhaps that was because it was a Lutheran/Presbyterian wedding.

We can also view this couple’s marriage certificate.

According to our German Family Tree, this pair had 5 children, but none of their entries on GFT include baptism records. Once again, I think they were baptized at the Presbyterian church in Brazeau. I can tell you that 2 of their children were later buried in the York Chapel Cemetery in Longtown, and the other 3 children are buried in a cemetery in Wayne, Nebraska.

The Meier’s are found in the 1900 census with 4 children. Henry was a farmer in the Salem Township.

When the 1910 census was taken, we see all 5 of the Meier children listed. One son, Otto, was old enough to be helping his father on his farm.

The Meier’s are found in the 1920 census with just 4 remaining children. The son who is missing, Arthur, was living in Nebraska in his 1880 census entry.

The last census in which we find this Meier couple is the 1930 census.

Rosella Meier died later that year at the age of 64. Her death certificate says she died of stomach cancer.

An obituary for Rosella was published in the Perry County Sun.

Henry Meier died in 1935 at the age of 70. We can also view his death certificate.

An obituary for Henry was printed in the Perry County Republican. It said that he had helped with butchering hogs earlier on the day of his death. He also died on the last day of 1935.

Henry and Rosella Meier are buried together in the Brazeau Presbyterian Cemetery.

Early in his life, Henry Meier was a Lutheran, but it appears that after he married the Presbyterian girl, he then became a member of the Presbyterian church in Brazeau. Later, their daughters were both buried in a Methodist cemetery in Longtown, and their sons were all buried in a cemetery in Wayne County, Nebraska.