I got to thinking about people who would be celebrating their 200th birthday during 2025. It almost certainly means that they were born in Germany and if they were part of the original immigration in 1839, they would have been about 14 or 15 years old. Under normal circumstances, that would also mean that they would have been at about confirmation age. In the case of today’s birthday boy, he was part of the Gruber Group. That group of immigrants, for some reason, did not depart Germany in November of 1838 like the others who left at that time. Instead, the Gruber Group left Germany later that year and arrived in the USA in November of 1839. I have to wonder whether Karl August Frentzel was confirmed right before his Frentzel family left his homeland. Perhaps if his group of immigrants had been able to join the earlier immigrants, he would have been confirmed in this country. I figure that next year, I might run across some bicentennial birthday celebrants who will be part of the first confirmation classes in Perry County.

Karl August Frentzel was born on September 13, 1825, so he would be celebrating his 200th birthday today. He was the son of Christian and Johanna (Hoffmann) Frentzel. Karl, mostly called Charles during his life, was listed as being 15 years old on the passenger list of the Johann Georg when it arrived at the end of 1839. I think he was only 14. On the image below, I am including the Hopfer family with the Frentzel’s because I find it interesting that the future wife of today’s birthday boy is found in the Hopfer family. I have highlighted the names of the two future mates in this image. Charles’s father was called a weaver, and Emilie’s father was called a cooper.

Both the Frentzel and Hopfer families settled in the area near the town that was established in Perry County first known as Paitzdorf. In the case of the Frentzel’s, I was unable to locate a census entry for them in the 1850 census. I tried every strategy I know, but I failed. So, I did not find Charles in an American census entry until after he was married. Now, we will take a look at his future Hopfer wife.

Emilie Hopfer was born on September 26, 1836, so she was about 11 years younger than Charles. Emilie was the daughter of Michael and Justine (Quaas) Hopfer. On the above passenger list, Emilie is listed as being 3 years old when she came to America.

Emilie is found in the 1850 census at the age of 14. She was the oldest child in the Hopfer household. Three more siblings were added to this family after they got to America. Her father was a cooper in the Cinque Hommes Township.

Charles Frentzel married Emilie Hopfer on May 14, 1854 at Grace Lutheran Church in what was then called Paitzdorf. This couple’s church marriage record is pictured here. I was unable to find a civil marriage record for them, but I did not look very hard.

According to our German Family Tree, this pair had 9 children, all of which were baptized at Grace, Uniontown. In the 1860 census, the Frentzel household can be found living in the Cinque Hommes Township where Charles was a merchant. There were 3 young children in their family. Also included in their household were 2 young men who were working for the Frentzel’s, one of them being a Schieferdecker.

A few notable things happened to Charles during the 1860’s. First of all, we find that he participated in the Civil War as part of the Missouri militia. His Civil War military record is displayed here.

After his service in the war, Charles was appointed as a postmaster on February 19, 1868. Most postmasters in those days were operators of general stores. What is significant in Charles’s appointment is that he was named to be the postmaster of the village of Uniontown. I think this may be the first indication of that place taking on a new name.

There are two stories floating around about how Uniontown got its new name. One is that a Union Army camp spent some time in or near Paitzdorf during the war, and the English-speaking soldiers had a difficult time pronouncing Paitzdorf, so they started referring to it as Uniontown, after the Union Army. The other story (which I happen to have been promoting), was that a new township was established in Perry County in the 1870’s called the Union Township, and it was decided that the main village in that town should be called Uniontown. When we find the Frentzel’s in the 1870 census, they were said to be still living in the Cinque Hommes Township. That, along with the fact that Charles was named postmaster of Uniontown in 1868, indicates that the town was named Uniontown prior to the Union Township being formed.

The Frentzel household had 8 children when the 1870 census was taken. Charles is called a retail dry goods merchant.

The 1880 census is the first one that includes the Union Township. That is where we find the Frentzel’s with 5 remaining children and a nephew living in their household. This time, Charles is called a grocer.

Since a fire destroyed the 1890 census, we cannot view the Frentzel’s in that year’s entry. Then in 1899, Charles Frentzel died at the age of 73. His church death record and his obituary state that he died of pneumonia. His obituary printed in the Perry County Republican can be read below. It states that he was the postmaster in Uniontown for 32 years, which means he had that position until the day he died.

Emilie Frentzel is found as a widow in the 1900 census. Her daughter, Victoria, had married Johann Leonhardt, and Emilie was living with the Leonhardt’s in the village of Longtown at that time.

When the 1910 census was taken, we find Emilie living right next to the Paul Hopfer household. Paul was Emilie’s nephew and was a merchant of a general store. I have reason to believe that Paul was operating the store that was once owned by Charles Frentzel.

Here is a photo of what was called the Hopfer Store in Uniontown with Paul Hopfer and Ernst Bock standing in front.

The last census entry in which we find Emilie was the one taken in 1920. At the age of 84, She was living by herself amidst some other Frentzel households in the Union Township. I suspect she was living in a more rural area because her Frentzel neighbors were farming.

I located 3 images (I am reluctant to call them photos) I would like to share. Two are of Emile and one of Charles. The ones of Emilie look like they were produced fairly early in her life, and the one of Charles was produced in his later years.

Emilie (Hopfer) Frentzel has appeared in posts on this blog before because she is in a list that I refer to as the last of the original 1839 immigrants to die. You can read about the 3 people on the list in the post titled, https://lutheranmuseum.com/2018/01/09/which-of-the-original-immigrants-was-the-last-to-die-part-2/. I consider my great grandpa, Gottwerth Schmidt, to be the last of the Stephanites to die who is buried in Perry County. He died in 1926. I consider Emily Frentzel to be the last of the original immigrants (part of the Gruber Group) who is buried in Perry County. So far, the last of the original immigrants to die was Henry Jacob who died in 1931. He is buried in Kansas.

Emilie Frentzel died in 1927 at the age of 91. We are able to view her death certificate here.

An obituary for Emilie was published in the Perry County Republican. It gives the amazing statistic that when she died, she had 70 grandchildren, 30 great grandchildren, and 2 great great grandchildren. Those numbers just astound me.

Both Charles (called Karl on his gravestone) and Emilie Frentzel are buried in the Grace Lutheran Cemetery in Uniontown. I am glad that someone took the time to clean up these gravestone so they are much easier to read.

Today, we wish a very special Happy Bicentennial Birthday to Charles Frentzel, one of the original immigrants to arrive in Perry County in 1839.