Fiegenbaum, Adolph Heinrich

Other Events:

• Baptism: 26 Dec 1793, Ladbergen, Grafschaft Tecklenburg
• Immigration: 1834, Missouri, USA
• Naturalization: 1838, St. Charles County, Missouri, USA
• Census: 1850, Wapello Township, Louisa County, Iowa, USA

Notes:

Birth:
Adolph's date of birth in 1792 has been reported as both December 17 or 19.

Immigration:

     Adolph was about 40 years old when he emigrated from the Hohne section of Lengerich, in the Province of Westphalia, Kingdom of Prussia with his wife, Christine, age 37, and their first five children (ages 13 to less than 1 year). The family is reported to have disembarked at New Orleans, Louisiana in late June 1834 and to have traveled up the Mississippi, arriving at St. Louis, Missouri about 3 or 4 July. They appear to have settled initially in Femme Osage Township, St. Charles County, Missouri. They later moved to nearby Hopewell, in Warren County, Missouri. Around 1850, Adolph, Christine and at least two sons still living at home settled near Wapello, Louisa County, Iowa.

Naturalization:

On 2 April 1838 in St. Charles County Circuit Court, Adolph Fiegenbaum, age 44, a native of Prussia and a resident of St. Charles County, declared his intention to become a citizen of the USA.

     I Adolphus Fiegenbaum do declare that I am a native of Ladbergen, Kingdom of Prussia, that I am about forty [sic] four years old; that I emigrated from Ladbergen that I there owed allegiance to King William III King of Prussia, that I am a Carpenter by profession, and that I am married to Cristina Peterjohan, and that I have six children, that I landed in New Orleans in June 1834 and that I intend to settle in the State of Missouri. I further declare that it is my bona fide intention to become a citizen of the United States, and to renounce and abjure forever, all allegiance and fidelity to every foreign Prince, Potentate, State and Sovereignty whatever, and particularly to William III of Prussia.
               [Adolph's signature]
     Subscribed and sworn to in open Court, this 2nd day of April A.D. 1838.


Census:
The 1850 U.S. Census found the Fiegenbaums living in Wapello Township, Louisa County, Iowa. According to the enumeration, the household was composed of Adolph, age 57, a farmer; Christine, age 54; Frederick, age 21, a day laborer; and, Rudolph, age 14.

Buried:
Adolph was buried in Concord Cemetery at Garner, Iowa.

Died:
Adolph died at the home of his son-in-law, H. F. Wellemeyer, in Garner, Iowa, where he had been living for about the last year of his life.

     The following obituary appeared in Der Christliche Apologete, on 29 January 1877.

     Am 11. Januar 1877, des Abends um 10 Uhr, starb, alt und lebenssatt, aber selig im Herrn, Vater Adolph Fiegenbaum. Vater F. wurde geboren am 17. December 1792 in Kirchspiel Ladbergen, Regierungs=Bezirk Münster, Königreich Preußen. In 1832 kam er nach Amerika und ließ sich in St. Charles County, Mo., nieder; von dort zog er nach Warren County, Mo., woselbst er mit seiner Gattin nebst drei seiner Kinder unter der Arbeit Br. Zwahlen's erweckt und nach dem unter der Arbeit des selig entschlafenen Br. F. Horstmann gründlich zu Gott bekehrt wurde, und schloß sich auch daselbst der Kirche seiner Wahl an, der er treu blieb bis an's Ende. Die übringen drei seiner Kinder wurden schon früher in St. Louis, Mo., zu Gott bekehrt. Immer war Vater F. opferwillig, nie machte er Einwendungen, als der Herr einen seiner Söhne nach dem andern in's Predigtamt rief. Endlich kam auch die Reihe an den jüngsten Sohn, auf den der alte Vater sich stützen wollte in seinen alten Tagen; auch er sollte nun das elterliche Haus verlassen. Der Vorstehende Aelteste meinte: Nein, das geht nicht, daß ich den alten Leuten auch noch den entreiße! Doch der Vater war willig, auch diesen noch zu geben. O, welche Opferwilligkeit, ihr Väter!
     In den letzen drei Jahren hatte Vater F. viel zu leiden, indem er sich durch einen Fall derart verletzte, daß er hülflos war und behegt und gepflegt werden mußte wie ein Kind, welches auch gewissenhaft und mit Liebe geschah. Er trug alles mit Geduld und ergeben in den Willen Gottes, wissend, daß dieser Zeit Leiden der Herrlichkeit nicht werth sei, die an ihm geoffenbart werden sollte. Er sehnte sich, daheim zu sein bei seinem Herrn. "Ja," sagte er, "ich möchte nun gerne heim gehen, dann ich habe schon lange darauf gewartet." "O ja," sagte er dann wieder, "ich gehe auch bald heim." Sein jüngster Sohn sagte mehrere Tage vor seinem Ende zu ihm: "Vater, du gehst nun bald über den Jordan." "O," sagte er, "durch den Jordan bin ich schon dindurch." Wenn die Schmerzen groß waren, rief er dem Herrn um Hülfe an. Er hat auch geholfen und alle Leiden ein Ende gemacht.
          Nun ist es überwunden,
          Nur durch des Lammes Blut,
          Das in den schwersten Stunden
          Die größten Thaten thut. Hallelujah!
     Ja, er hat nun übermunden, was wir noch zu überwinden haben. Er ist nun daheim bei siener Gattin, die ihm vor etwa 5 Jahren voran ging in einer lebendigen Hoffnung des ewigen Lebens. Er hinterläßt vier Söhne, die alle auf Zions Mauern stehen und schon manche Seele den Weg zum Himmel zeigten. Nebst dem hinterläßt er zwei Töchter, wovon eine die Gattin des Br. Winter, gegenwärtig Preidiger in Springfield, Ill., und die andere, hierselbst wohnend, die Gattin von Br. Wellemeyer ist, in dessen Hause er starb, und die ihn auch hegte und pflegte bis an den Tod. Alle schauen ihm nach im Glauben und in der lebendigen Hoffnung des ewigen Lebens. Mögen sie Alle wieder vereinigt werden als eine "volle Familei," wo sein Scheiden mehr ist. Welche Freude wird das sein, wenn all mit der blutgewaschenen Schaar einstimmen in das: "Heil sei dem, der auf dem Stuhl sitzt, unserm Gott, und dem Lamm! Amen. Lob und Ehre, und Weisheit, und Dank, und Preis, und Kraft, und Stärke sei unserm Gott von Ewigkeit zu Ewigkeit! Amen."
     Garner, Iowa.          C. W. Henke

An English translation might read thus:

     On 11 January 1877 at 10 o'clock in the evening, Father Adolph Fiegenbaum died, aged and finished with life, but blessed by the Lord. Father Fiegenbaum was born 17 December 1792 in the parish of Ladbergen, in the administrative district of Münster, Kingdom of Prussia. He came to America in 1832 and settled in St. Charles County, Mo.; from there he moved to Warren County, Mo., where he, with his wife and three of his children, was inspired by the work of Brother Zwahlen and thereafter was thoroughly converted to God by the mission of the blessed, departed Brother F. Horstmann, and embraced the church of his choice to which he was faithful for the rest of his life. The other three of his children had already turned to God in St. Louis, Mo. Father F. was always self-sacrificing and never objected when the Lord called one after another of his sons to the ministry. Eventually it became the turn of the youngest son, on whom the aged father wished to depend in his waning days; he, too, was to leave the parental home. The presiding elder objected: It is not right that I should take him away from the old folks! But the father was willing to surrender this son as well. Oh, what selfless devotion, your ancestors had!
     In the last three years, Father F. suffered much from a fall in which he injured himself in such a way that he was helpless, requiring protection and care as if he were a child, which was done conscientiously and with love. He met it all with forbearance and surrendered to God's will, knowing that the suffering of this time would not be worth the glory that would be revealed to him. He longed to be home with his Lord. "Yes," he said, "I wish to go home; I have waited for it for a long time." "Oh, yes," he repeated, "I am going home soon." Several days before the end, his youngest son said to him: "Father, you are soon going over Jordan." "Oh," he said, "the Jordan is already behind me." When the pain was great, he cried out to the Lord for comfort. He came to his aid and brought the suffering to an end.
          Now is it vanquished,
          Through the Blood of the Lamb alone,
          Which in the darkest hours
          Accomplishes the greatest deeds. Hallelujah!
     Yes, he has now conquered what we must still overcome. He is now at home with his wife who 5 years earlier preceded him into the expectation of eternal life. He left four sons, all of whom stand on Zion's walls and have already shown many souls the road to heaven. He also left behind two daughters, one of whom is the wife of Brother Winter, the current pastor in Springfield, Ill., and the other, living here, is the wife of Brother Wellemeyer, in whose house he died and who also protected and nurtured him until his death. Everyone looks to him in faith and the expectation of life everlasting. May they all be reunited as a "complete family," where his parting is. What joy there will be when everyone joins their voices with the blood-washed flock: "Hail to Him, who sits on the Throne, our God, and to the Lamb! Amen. Praise and glory, and psalms, and thanks, and praise, and strength, and power to our God, for ever and ever! Amen."
     Garner, Iowa.          C. W. Henke

     The following is a transcription supplied by Frances Gretchen (Klein) Leenerts of an obituary for Adolph Heinrich Fiegenbaum which she reported had appeared on 18 January 1877 in the Hancock Signal, of Garner, Iowa.

Died: at the residence of H. F. Wellemeyer, Garner, Hancock County, Iowa, in the evening of 11 January 1877, and the evening of his life -- tired of this world but happy in the Lord, Father Adolph Fiegenbaum, aged 84 years and 26 days. Father Fiegenbaum was born in Perish Ladbergen, Circuit of Muenster, Prussia on 17 December 1792. In 1832 he came to America and settled in St. Charles County, Missouri, and from there moved to Warren County in the same state, where with his wife and three of his children he was truly converted, under the ministration of Rev. Frank Horstmann, and at the same time joined the M.E. Church, of which he was a member to the end of his life. The other three children were converted in St. Louis. In 1850 he moved from Missouri to Louisa County, Iowa, where he resided until about a year ago when he came to Hancock County, Iowa, with the family of Mr. H. F. Wellemeyer. During this last three years Father Fiegenbaum had to suffer a great deal, from injuries received in a fall, rendering him helpless, so that he had to be handled like a child. He bore all of this with great patience and gave himself up to the will of God, knowing that the sufferings of the present are not worthy to be compared with the Glory which shall be revealed hereafter. He had a desire to go home, for he often said, "I would like to go home now, for I have waited long," and then would repeat, "I shall go home." He has now gone to meet his wife who went some five years ago to that better land "where sin and sorrow are no more." His four sons are all living, and are in the ministry; Rev. H. R. Fiegenbaum, at present located here in Hancock County, is the youngest of the four. There are two daughters, one the wife of Rev. Winter, Pastor of a church at Springfield, Illinois; where the father, Professor F. W. Winter, is Principal of the Garner School, the other, the wife of H. F. Wellemeyer of this place, at whose house he died. All hope to meet him again where parting is no more. May they all be united in that world to come, as a full family, to praise the Lord forever. F. W. Henke, Pastor.

Adolph married Peterjohann, Christine Elisabeth 25 Oct 1820, Ladbergen, Province of Westphalia, Kingdom of Prussia. Christine (daughter of Peterjohann, Johann Hermann and Otterman, Anna Maria Elisabeth) was born Abt 1796, Lengerich, Province of Westphalia, Kingdom of Prussia; died 17 Sep 1871, Colesburg, Delaware County, Iowa, USA; was buried 1871, Colesburg, Delaware County, Iowa, USA. [Group Sheet]

Notes:

Married:

     The record of Adolph and Christine's marriage in the archives of the evangelical church at Ladbergen identified Adolph as a Zimmermann (carpenter) living in the Wester Bauerschaft (district) of Ladbergen. After the marriage, Adolph and Christine lived in Lengerich, Christine's home town, where Adolph supplemented his skills as a carpenter by farming. Lieselotte Fiegenbaum, from her research on the family, has identified Adolph as a Heuerling or tenant farmer.
     Tenant farmers were low on the social scale in Ladbergen at the time. "They owned no land, and they lived in rented houses on larger farms. Every large or middle-sized farm in Ladbergen had one or more tenant houses (in German: Heuerhäuser) scattered over the farm. The highest number on any farm in Ladbergen was seven; two or three was common. Each tenant farm house had its own plot of 7 to 12 acres. The tenants rented the houses and plots for life. The tenant farmers were not the same as sharecroppers or rental farmers in the American sense. They had only a small plot to themselves, and they did not need to give any of the yield to the landowner. They were essentially renters of houses who paid for their dwellings with a small amount of cash and a specified number of days of labor. In the 19th century the tenants were typically relatives of the landowners, but this was decreasingly the case after the turn of the century."


Census (family):
The 1840 U.S. census enumerated eight people living in the "A. Frigenbottom" household in Femme Osage Township, St. Charles County, Missouri. The household consisted of: 5 males (2 at less than 5 years of age; 1 at 5 years to less than 10 years; 1 at 15 years to less than 20 years; 1 at 40 years to less than 50 years old) and 3 females (1 at less than 5 years of age; 1 at 10 years to less than 15 years; 1 at 40 to less than 50 years old).

Census (family):
The 1840 U.S. census enumerated eight people living in the "Rudolph Feigenbaum" household in Charrette Township, Warren County, Missouri. The household consisted of: 5 males (1 at less than 5 years of age; 1 at 5 years to less than 10 years; 2 at 15 years to less than 20 years; 1 at 40 years to less than 50 years) and 3 females (1 at 5 years to less than 10 years of age; 1 at 10 years to less than 15 years; 1 at 40 years to less than 50 years).

Census (family):
According to the 1860 enumeration, the household consisted of "Adolph Feigenbaum," age 67, born in Germany, a farmer; "Christina Feigenbaum," age 63, born in Germany; "Rudolph Feigenbaum," age 23, born in Missouri, who was married within the year; and "Elisabeth Feigenbaum," age 23 or 26, born in Germany, who was married within the year. This last person was no doubt the former Elizabeth Ann Krümpel; she and Rudolph, youngest child of Adolph and Christine, had been married in January 1860.

Census (family):
According to the 1870 enumeration, the household consisted of Adolph Fiegenbaum, age 76, born in Prussia, unemployed, a U.S. citizen; and Christena [sic] Fiegenbaum, age 73, keeping house.

1. Fiegenbaum, Heinrich Hermann was born 15 Oct 1821, Lengerich, Province of Westphalia, Kingdom of Prussia; died 13 Jan 1905, St. Joseph, Buchanan County, Missouri, USA; was buried 16 Jan 1905, St. Joseph, Buchanan County, Missouri, USA.
2. Fiegenbaum, Hermann Wilhelm was born 17 Sep 1824, Lengerich, Province of Westphalia, Kingdom of Prussia; died 30 Nov 1906, Edwardsville, Madison County, Illinois, USA; was buried 2 Dec 1906, Edwardsville, Madison County, Illinois, USA.
3. Fiegenbaum, Christine Elisabeth was born 25 Oct 1827, Lengerich, Province of Westphalia, Kingdom of Prussia; died 1 Feb 1918, Warrenton, Warren County, Missouri, USA; was buried 5 Feb 1918, Garner, Hancock County, Iowa, USA.
4. Fiegenbaum, Friedrich Wilhelm was born 10 Apr 1830, Lengerich, Province of Westphalia, Kingdom of Prussia; died 27 Feb 1914, Wathena, Doniphan County, Kansas, USA; was buried 1 Mar 1914, Wathena, Doniphan County, Kansas, USA.
5. Fiegenbaum, Maria Wilhelmine was born 27 Jul 1833, Lengerich, Province of Westphalia, Kingdom of Prussia; died 16 Mar 1917, Wymore, Gage County, Nebraska, USA; was buried 17 Mar 1917, Lincoln, Lancaster County, Nebraska, USA.
6. Fiegenbaum, Heinrich Rudolph was born 2 Jan 1837, St. Charles County, Missouri, USA; died 11 Sep 1908, Gooding, Gooding County, Idaho, USA; was buried 15 Sep 1908, Garner, Hancock County, Iowa, USA.

Notes:

Birth:
This man's second given name is reported variously as Hendrik, Hedrich, Henrich and Heinrich. Alternative dates of birth are sometimes given as 9 February or 17 March 1764.

Died:
According to the church records in Ladbergen, Hermann died of water dropsy and was in need of a doctor.

Hermann married Horstmeier, Anna Christine Katharina 20 Nov 1785, Lienen, Grafschaft Tecklenburg. Anna was born 21 Oct 1759, Lienen, Grafschaft Tecklenburg; died 9 Jan 1830, Ladbergen, Province of Westphalia, Kingdom of Prussia. [Group Sheet]

Notes:

Birth:
Anna was born in Lienen (in the township of Holperdorp), a neighboring village to the east to Ladbergen.

Died:
Anna was 70 years, 2 months and 19 days old when she died.

Notes:

Married:

     The newly married couple lived in the Horstmeier Heuerhaus located in Bauerschaft Holperdorp, a section of the town of Lienen. Their first child was born there. It would appear that within a few years the family had moved. The couple's second child was born in the nearby village of Ladbergen. By 1800, the family had built a house at Ladbergen-Wester 21, located in the section of the village know as "In der Laake." Hermann died in this home in 1829 and Anna passed a year later. In 1840, the house was sold. It may be that some of the proceeds from this sale helped finance Johann Heinrich Fiegenbaum's family emigration to the USA in 1841.
     In addition to being a carpenter or house builder, Hermann Heinrich Fiegenbaum was a Heuerling or tenant farmer. Tenant farmers were low on the social scale in Ladbergen at the time. "They owned no land, and they lived in rented houses on larger farms. Every large or middle-sized farm in Ladbergen had one or more tenant houses (in German: Heuerhäuser) scattered over the farm. The highest number on any farm in Ladbergen was seven; two or three was common. Each tenant farm house had its own plot of 7 to 12 acres. The tenants rented the houses and plots for life. The tenant farmers were not the same as sharecroppers or rental farmers in the American sense. They had only a small plot to themselves, and they did not need to give any of the yield to the landowner. They were essentially renters of houses who paid for their dwellings with a small amount of cash and a specified number of days of labor. In the 19th century the tenants were typically relatives of the landowners, but this was decreasingly the case after the turn of the century."

Other Events:

• Occupation: Ladbergen, Grafschaft Tecklenburg; farmer

Notes:

Occupation:
Johann and his family lived at Hölter 11. Hölter is one of the three 'Bauernshaften' in the village of Ladbergen. A 'Bauerschaft' is an ancient grouping of farms that emerged from the earliest agricultural settlements, and comprised the earliest administrative units of a community. Until the early 1960s, Ladbergen had three Bauernshaften: Hölter, Overbeck and Wester. These settlement areas are still recognized in present day Ladbergen. Recently, the residential sections of the village center have become known by street names and a fourth section of Ladbergen, called 'Dorf' [village] has been created. The number 11 would indicate that this was the 11th farm established in this Bauerschaft. In 1980, Hölter 11 was renamed Ostbeverner Damm 40 and is the home of Lieselotte (Freese) Fiegenbaum.

Johann married Grotholtmann, Catharina Elisabeth 14 Aug 1763, Ladbergen, Grafschaft Tecklenburg. Catharina (daughter of Grotholtmann, Johann Heinrich and Norendorff, Anna Margaretha) was born 11 Nov 1731, Ladbergen, Grafschaft Tecklenburg; died 19 Apr 1816, Ladbergen, Kingdom of Prussia. [Group Sheet]

Notes:

Died:
From 1813 to 1816, in the closing days of the Napoleonic era, the village of Ladbergen was liberated from French occupation and was governed provisionally by the Kingdom of Prussia, until the formation of the Province of Westphalia.

Notes:

Married:

     At the time of their marriage, Johann was 24 years, 4 months and 11 days old; Catharina was 31 years 9 months and 3 days old.
     At the time of the births of each of their children, the father and mother were the following ages, respectively: Hermann Heinrich, 25 years, 4 days and 29 days & 32 years, 9 months and 21 days; Johann Henrich, 27 years and 8 months & 35 years and 22 days; Cord, 30 years, 10 months and 15 days & 38 years, 3 months and 7 days; Anna Elisabeth, 34 years, 2 months and 7 days & 41 years, 7 months and 9 days; Anna Elsabein, 38 years, 4 months and 13 days & 45 years, 9 months and 5 days.
     Lieselotte (Freese) Fiegenbaum, of Ladbergen, surmises that Catherina Elisabeth Grotholtmann was a sister to Anna Elsabein Grotholtmann (1746-1818), who married Hermann Wilhelm Fiegenbaum (1745-1813) on 5 August 1770.

Notes:

Birth:
Johann was born about 1 year and 1 month after his brother, Hermann, his next eldest sibling. In the year of his birth, 1707, Grafschaft Tecklenburg was sold to Friedrich I, King of Prussia.


Died:
Johann Jacob was 50 years, 11 months and 10 days old when he died. He died 2 months before his brother Hermann (52 years old); and 2 days after the death of his son, Johann Henrich (23 years, 10 months and 13 days old); and 2 months and 18 days before his sister Anna Katharina (aged 69 years, 10 months and 2 days).

Johann married Schowe, Christine 26 Sep 1732. Christine was born 1704, Lienen, Grafschaft Tecklenburg; died 1 Feb 1782, Westerkappeln, Grafschaft Tecklenburg. [Group Sheet]

Notes:

Died:
Christine was about 77 or 78 years old at the time of her death in Westerkappeln, a community about 14 miles northeast of Ladbergen. In 1786, it had a population of 3,249. The church in the village was the oldest in the district of Tecklenburg. Its location to the west of Osnabrück gave the village its name - 'western chapel'. A similar church east of Osnabrück provided the foundation for the name of the village of Osterkappeln.

Notes:

Married:
This marriage, Johann's second, occurred 11 months and 3 days after the death of his first wife, Anna. Johann was about 25 years old; Christine was about 28 years old.
     The parents of seven children, Johann and Christine were approximately the following ages, respectively, at the birth of each child: at Johann Henrich's birth, 27 and 30; at Johann Wilhelm's, 28 and 31; at Anna Liesabeth's, 30 and 33; at Johann Hermann's, 32 and 35; at Christina Lisabeth's, 34 and 37; at Cord Wilm's, 36 and 39; at Anna Elsabein's, 40 and 43.
     Of the seven children, four died before their father, who passed away nearly 24 years before his wife.

Johann married Norendorff, Anna Margaretha Feb 1727. Anna died Yes, date unknown. [Group Sheet]