Back in 2018, I wrote a post about Emma Engert who married Gottfried Schuerenberg, the man I referred to in the title as the Butcher from Friedland. Emma Engert was born on May 11, 1862, so she would be celebrating her 160th birthday today. However, Emma is not the only Engert who would be celebrating … More Petrina – The Other Twin
Back in March of 2020, I wrote a post titled, George’s Girls. That was a story about George Bingenheimer who had 6 children, all girls. Today, I found the story of George’s brother, John, and lo and behold, he had 4 children, and all of them were girls. I am not sure when exactly John … More Brother John’s Girls
The birthday boy for today is rather unusual. It is not often that I write about a character that arrived in America and Perry County, Missouri before the 1839 German Lutheran immigration. Today’s main character arrived on the ship, Bolivar, in 1837. The 22 year-old Leonard Fath is found on this passenger list for that … More Fath – Bergmann – Lang
Let me set the scene for today’s story. Back in the 1880’s, some Perry County residents moved across the Mississippi River to form a new congregation in Jacob, Illinois that was named Christ Lutheran Church. Several other immigrants settled in that area and joined that congregation, but there always was a close connection between the … More Another Farrar-Jacob Duo
Today’s tale includes a name that has appeared on this blog on a few occasions before. The name is Clara Schmidt. One of those Clara’s was my great aunt. The birthday girl for today is Clara Friederike Schmidt, who was born on March 27, 1861, making today her 161st birthday. Clara was the daughter of … More Joe and Clara – The Goehring’s
Yesterday, I was wondering if another Bertha would show up for today’s story. That did not happen. However, like yesterday, one of today’s characters is a Schuessler. Ida Josephine Schuessler was born on March 19, 1881, so today would be her 141st birthday. Ida was the daughter of Gotthilf and Sarah (Saalfeld) Schuessler. A previous … More Ida and Anton in Somerset
My grandmother’s name was Bertha Schmidt. I have discovered several Bertha Schmidt’s while researching for this blog. Some of them, like my grandmother, became a Bertha Schmidt by marrying a Schmidt. Others, like a character in today’s story, were born as Bertha Schmidt. I will eventually include her in this story, but I will begin … More Ben and Bertha
Today’s tale begins in Perry County, but the setting changes rather quickly. Most of today’s setting is the Fountain Bluff Township of Jackson County, Illinois, just across the Mississippi River. The birthday girl is Frieda Emma Darnstaedt, who was born on March 5, 1898. Frieda’s parents were Martin and Bertha (Haacke) Darnstaedt. Frieda was one … More Zerbst – Darnstaedt – Rowold
The Stueve family is another one of those surnames that presents all kinds of challenges for a researcher. Today, you will be told the story of a man by the name of Claus Johannes Stueve. I can tell you that there are numerous men in the Stueve family that carried the name Claus Stueve. I … More Stueve Leaves – Finds Bride in Kansas
I think most of you would recognize from the title that today’s tale will take place in Illinois. The story begins with the birth of a baby girl in Jacob, Illinois 130 years ago. Sophia Maria Johanna Arbeiter was born on February 7, 1892, the daughter of Henry and Caroline (Rowold) Arbeiter. Several other previous … More From Jacob to Prairie du Rocher to Red Bud
lutheranmuseum.com 