One of the main characters in my Wittenberg books is Lydia Weinhold who married Otto Lueders and took on the married name of Lydia Lueders. Today, you will read the story of another Lydia Lueders, one who was the daughter of Otto Lueders’s brother. So, after Lydia Weinhold got married, she became the other Lydia Lueders who would have been called Aunt Lydia Lueders by today’s birthday girl, Lydia Lueders. Are you confused yet? One more thing. I am almost certain that today’s birthday girl would have traveled to Wittenberg to attend the wedding of Otto and Lydia in 1904 to witness Lydia Weinhold becoming Lydia Lueders.

Bertha Lydia Lueders was born on February 24, 1896, so today would be her 130th birthday. Lydia was the daughter of Gustav and Clara (Schuessler) Lueders. A previous post was written about Lydia’s parents titled, Forth and Back. I located Lydia’s baptism record in Ancestry.com’s collection of Missouri Synod records. She was baptized at Holy Cross Lutheran Church in St. Louis. I will display that baptism record below in 2 images.

In the 1900 census, Lydia was 4 years old and part of a rather large Lueders household. Her father was a cigar dealer in St. Louis. I know that I made sure to get some of Gustav Lueders’s cigars into my books about Otto and Lydia.

During the next decade, Gustav Lueders moved his family to Wittenberg. Lydia was confirmed at St. Paul’s Lutheran Church in Wittenberg in 1909. We can view her confirmation record here.

In the 1910 census, Lydia’s family was living in Wittenberg where her father was a livery stable driver. Lydia was 14 years old at the time.

Gustav Lueders did not remain in Wittenberg for very long. He made a return move back to St. Louis. That is why I titled his story as “Forth and Back”. In the 1920 census, Lydia was once again found in a St. Louis census at the age of 23. Her father was a helper at a book binding company, and Lydia was a packer at a biscuit company. I think there is a good chance that Gustav may have been working at Concordia Publishing House, and Lydia may have been working at a National Biscuit Company (Nabisco) factory.

Now, we will turn our attention to the man who would become Lydia’s husband. His name was Henry John Muehlendyk, who was born on October 3, 1896. Henry was the son of Carl and Katharina (Breuer) Muehlendyk. He was born in St. Louis, but I have no baptism information for him. Henry is found in the 1900 census at the age of 3. His father was a truck gardener in south St. Louis.

Next, we find Henry in the 1910 census as a teenager. His father, along with Henry and his brother and sister, were all called truck farmers. As for his sister, Clara, she was called a truck farmer at only 10 years of age.

Henry had his World War I draft registration completed in 1918. He is given an Affton address.

The last census in which we find Henry prior to his marriage was the one taken in 1920. Henry and his father were each called truck gardeners.

Henry Muehlendyk married Lydia Lueders on November 29, 1922. Their church marriage record is also found in the books of Holy Cross Lutheran Church in St. Louis.

According to this couple’s Family Search information, they had 3 children, all born in the 1920’s. When the 1930 census was taken, we find the Muehlendyk’s living in south St. Louis with all 3 of their children. This time, Henry was called a mail carrier.

Sadly, their son, Kenneth died in 1931 at the age of 6. His death certificate below says that he died of measles.

When the 1940 census was taken, the Muehlendyk’s were living in the Lemay Township of St. Louis. Henry was still a mail carrier.

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

Although Henry was probably considered too old to be drafted during that war, the man who would become the husband of their daughter, Jean Lois, did participate in that war. His name was Emmett Lee Kilmer. While in the U.S. Navy and serving in the Philippines, Emmett became a prisoner of war. The information printed on the image below gives some details about his service.

Emmett would get married to Jean Lois Muehlendyk in 1946 after that war was over. However, when the 1950 census was taken, we find Jean Lois Kilmer living with her parents. Emmett was probably still serving elsewhere in the military at that time. Henry was still working for the post office, and this time, it says that Lydia was an auditor for a department store.

Henry Muehlendyk died in 1981 at the age of 84; Lydia Muehlendyk died in 1984 at the age of 88. Findagrave.com has images of both of the obituaries for Henry and Lydia. I will display them here. The obituary for Lydia says that she was a lifetime member of St. John’s Lutheran Church in Ellisville.

Henry and Lydia, along with their son, Kenneth, are buried together in the Sunset Memorial Park in Affton.

Just this morning, at Lindy’s Morning Table, I heard that St. John’s Lutheran Church (now called Pathfinder Church) was celebrating their 175th anniversary this past weekend in Ellisville. I was told that they began their special service there by speaking in German. The first called pastor to that congregation was Rev. J.A.F.W. Mueller, the first graduate of Concordia Seminary when it was still located in Altenburg. I have been amazed on many occasions to hear information in the normal conversations at Lindy’s that become part of a blog post that I am writing for that day. Today was another one of those times.