Both the bride and the groom in today’s story spent brief times in the places of their birth, but spent almost all of their lives in St. Louis. The groom is tied into our German Family Tree. The bride is not, at least not until she gets married. I am going to begin with the … More Leo and Daisy – Lueders in St. Louis
A baby named Friedrich August Gerhard Lesch was born on February 19, 1881 in Altenburg. That makes today his 145th birthday, and he will be a main character in today’s tale. Gerhard was the son of Edward and Louise (Lamperter) Lesch. He was baptized at Immanuel Lutheran Church in Altenburg. We can take a look … More Gerhard Lesch – A Delta Guy
When I was a youngster, my parents talked about going to a “filling station” to gas up the car. You do not hear that term used much anymore. I suppose that is at least partly because the place where gasoline is distributed has changed dramatically since it was called a filling station. Back in my … More Schamburg Filling Station in Perryville
As we approach another Valentine’s Day, I found it rather timely to discover a person named Valentine who would be celebrating a special birthday today. As it turns out, it will also be one of those tales about what may have been considered a forbidden romance between a Lutheran and a Roman Catholic. I will … More An Early Valentine Story from Crosstown
Today’s tale begins in Perry County, but it makes a journey through Lafayette County in this state and then on to the state of Michigan. As it turns out, today’s birthday girl is only included in the early part of this story. Hulda Maria Julia Demetrio was born on February 7, 1880, so today would … More Mr. Martin Merz – Michigan Lutheran Teacher
My grandmother’s maiden name was Bertha Mueller. When Bertha married my grandfather, Emanuel Schmidt, she was a widower and named Bertha Loebs. However, that pair could be considered a Schmidt/Mueller couple. Not long ago, I re-posted a story about another Schmidt who married a Mueller which was originally titled, Another Schmidt/Mueller Couple. It told the … More Yet Another Schmidt/Mueller Couple
When I began doing research about early characters in Perry County Lutheran history after I retired, I discovered how often that Lutheran pastors who would find their wives in the families of other Lutheran pastors. So often, I found Lutheran pastors who married the daughter of another Lutheran pastor. Then, as Lutheran teachers became trained, … More Pastor’s Son Marries Pastor’s Daughter
I will share the story of two Oswald’s today, but it may not be what you think. It is not every day that you write the story in which the groom’s first name is the same as the bride’s surname, but that is the case today. Oswald Pfeiffer is the groom, and Ella Oswald is … More Oswald and Oswald – Shawneetown Pfeiffer’s
When I saw the two surnames that make up today’s couple, Petzoldt and Schade, I had two thoughts. One was that I was going to be writing the story about a husband and wife who were both members of Immanuel Lutheran Church in Altenburg. Secondly, I figured that I had already written the story of … More Granddaughter of The Face – Longtime Widow
Paul Gerhard Stueve was born on January 11, 1891, thus making today his 135th birthday. You will discover by reading his story today that he began his life in Perry County but eventually found his bride in Pocahontas and spent the remainder of his life there. Paul was the son of Claus and Margaretha (Steffens) … More Paul and Lena – Pocahontas Stueve’s
