Frieda Martha Kasten was born on this day 130 years ago on August 17, 1896. Today’s birthday girl was the daughter of Henry and Mary (Boren) Kasten. Frieda was baptized at Immanuel Lutheran Church in New Wells. An image of her baptism record from that church’s books is shown below.

Frieda is found in the 1900 census at the age of 4. Her father was a farmer in the Shawnee Township.

In 1909, a new Lutheran congregation was formed just down the road from Immanuel, New Wells in the small town of Shawneetown. It became known as Trinity Lutheran Church. The Kasten family became members of that congregation, and that is where Frieda was confirmed in 1910. She was part of the very first confirmation class at Trinity. Her whole class can be seen in the image below.

In the 1910 census, Frieda was 13 years old. You can see that the Kasten family had become quite large.

Now, we need to take a look at the man who would become Frieda’s husband. His name was Harry William Ludwig, who was born on June 21, 1894. Harry was the son of Gustav and Minnie (Schmidt) Ludwig. I am not sure where Harry was baptized. When the 1900 census was taken, Harry was 6 years old, and his father was a farmer in the Apple Creek Township.

Next, we find Harry in the 1910 census as a teenager. He and 2 other brothers were farm laborers. It also says they were “working out”, which may indicate that they were farming for someone other than their father.

Harry Ludwig married Frieda Kasten on June 14, 1916 at Trinity Lutheran Church in Shawneetown. We can view this couple’s church marriage record below. It was the only wedding to take place at that congregation in 1916, and it was just the 7th wedding to take place there.

The Missouri marriage license for this pair is pictured here. Both the church marriage record and this marriage license say that Harry was from Oak Ridge.

One of the mysteries in this story is the fact that I was unsuccessful at locating a World War I draft registration for Harry. He certainly was at an age which would have required him to complete such a form. I think it is possible that Harry may have enlisted before America entered that war, but the database for young men from Missouri who served in the military during World War I does not include a record for a Harry W. Ludwig. It does have a record for a Harry L. Ludwig, but he joined the Army in St. Louis. I did also find some military records for a Harry W. Ludwig who was in the Marines, but none of the records I looked at gave evidence of where that Harry W. Ludwig was from.

Our German Family Tree lists 3 children born to Harry and Frieda. The first child was born in 1917 and was baptized at Trinity Lutheran Church in Shawneetown. In the 1920 census, we find the Ludwig’s with one child living in the Apple Creek Township. Harry was farming.

We find a record in the Trinity, Shawneetown books that says Harry was confirmed at that congregation in 1921 when he was in his mid-20’s. The Ludwig’s made a move during the next decade. Their second child, born in 1922, was also baptized at Trinity, Shawneetown. I found out from the communion records in that church’s books that the Ludwig’s were still taking Holy Communion in 1928, but not in 1929. That is likely about the time that the Ludwig’s made their move. When the 1930 census was taken, the Ludwig’s were living in the Shawnee Township. Harry was still farming.

One more child was born in 1934, and that child was baptized at St. John’s Lutheran Church in Pocahontas. In the 1940 census, there were 2 children still living with their parents. Their oldest daughter, Mildred, had married Martin Bodenschatz in 1936.

Frieda Ludwig died in early 1950 at the age of 53. A heart block was her cause of death on the form shown below.

The last census I am able to display that includes Harry, who had just become a widower, is the one taken in 1950. Their son, Norman, had married Mayovah Mirly, in 1942, and by this time, they had a daughter named Norma. That young family was living with Harry. Harry’s younger daughter was also included in this household.

Harry Ludwig died in 1975 at the age of 80. His death certificate says that he died at the Southeast Missouri Hospital in Cape Girardeau. His son, Norman, was the informant on this form.

Harry and Frieda Ludwig are buried together in the St. John’s Lutheran Cemetery in Pocahontas.

There are certainly a lot of Kasten’s and Ludwig’s included in our German Family Tree, and those names are mostly found living in the northern part of Cape Girardeau County. This is not the first time I have located a story in which a Kasten marries a Ludwig. A previous post, The Kasten-Ludwig Couple, told the story of a Kasten man who married a Ludwig woman. Maybe I will find another story someday that brings these two large family trees together.