So, it has been over four years since I last posted a story to this blog and today is the 11th blogiversary for the OurAncestories blog. Eleven years ago today, I wrote my first story about my great grandfather, August Jacob Wise. That story was written on Thanksgiving and now, eleven years later, I am writing another Thanksgiving post, giving thanks to all my family and ancestors and all the trials and tribulations they experienced. During this time, we have been asked to use the hashtag #GiveThanks in our social media and other online posts to show what we are thankful for.
Back in 2009 I posted:
"At this time of Thanksgiving, let us remember our ancestors for the people they were, not for the dates they lived. Let us see them in a more complete light as people, not just names. We are what we are due to the decisions they made. For better or for worse, they are all part of us and we are part of them. Take the time to talk to your families and learn something more about each of them as you gather around the dinner table this holiday season."
That thought still stands today even though we are separated due to the COVID pandemic. We should strive to learn more about the lives of our ancestors and now, with the ever increasing amount of records and data that are available online, the task is much easier. This blog post will highlight some of the German Catholic records that I have discovered over the past several days. These records come from the Matricula website which provides free access to digital images for many Catholic church records from Germany and surrounding areas.
My post today is about Johann Heinrich Pöppelmann (Poeppelman), my 4th great grandfather and his family. According to information on Findagrave, Johann was born 15 June 1770 near Damme, Vechta, Germany. I have not yet found his baptism record since there is a gap in the online records around 1770. His father, Johann Herman Pöppelmann was baptized on 4 May 1737 in St. Viktor Church in Damme. His mother was Anna Maria Saalfeld.
On 22 January 1805, Johann Heinrich Pöppelmann married Maria Adelheid Arkenberg (1785-1861) in St. Viktor Church in Damme. Witnesses to the ceremony were Carl Westendorf and Heinrich Arkenberg.
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| Marriage Record for Johann and Maria Arkenberg Pöppelmann (22 January 1805) |
Johann died on 12 November 1822 and was buried in the cemetery at St. Viktor Church in Damme on 15 November. His funeral record stated that he was 50 years old but he was actually 52. It is believed that he died in an accident at a windmill.
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| Funeral Record for Johann Heinrich Pöppelmann (d. 12 November 1822, buried 15 November 1822) |
His wife, Maria Adelheid Arkenberg died 28 January 1861 and was buried in the St. Viktor cemetery on 1 February. Her funeral record states that she was 75 years, 5 months and 8 days old at the time of her death.
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| Funeral Record for Maria Adelheid Arkenberg (d. 28 january 1861, buried 1 February 1861) |
(1) Their first child was also named Johann Heinrich Pöppelmann. He was born on 25 June 1806 and was baptized in St. Viktor Church on 27 June 1806. His baptism record was a great help in my research since it included his marriage date, 8 November 1836.
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| Baptism Record for Johann Heinrich Poppelmann (b. 25 June 1806, baptized 27 June 1806) |
With the marriage information that I found on Johann Heinrich's baptism record, I was able to find his marriage record. On 8 November 1836, he married Catharina Maria Baumer who was born on 23 July 1814. The ceremony took place in St. Viktor Church with Bernard Pöppelmann and Maria Anna Baumer as the witnesses.
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| Marriage Record for Johann Heinrich Pöppelmann & Catharina Maria Baumer (8 November 1836) |
Johann Heinrich Pöppelmann and his wife emigrated from Bremen, Germany aboard the ship "Ernst & Gustav" in July 1837 and arrived in Baltimore on 25 September 1837. They are listed on lines 22 and 23 on the passenger list with a destination of Cincinnati. From Cincinnati, the family settled in Egypt, Auglaize County, Ohio where they had 7 children.
Catherine Maria died on 12 August 1884 and Johann Heinrich died on 2 December 1889 and both are buried in St. Joseph Cemetery in Egypt, Ohio.
(2) Their second child Johann Bernard Pöppelmann was born 28 June 1809 in Damme and was baptized on 2 July in St. Viktor Church. Again, this baptism record was a great help since it provided the marriage and death dates for Johann Bernard.
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| Baptism Record for Johann Bernard Pöppelmann (b. 28 June 1809, baptized 2 July 1809) |
Using the marriage date of 24 April 1834 found in the baptism record, I was able to find his marriage to Catharina Maria Osterhoff (b. 7 August 1802) on 24 April 1834 in St. Viktor Church. The witnesses for the marriage were Heinrich Pöppelmann and Maria Engle Osterhof.
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| Marriage Record for Johan Bernard Pöppelmann & Catharina Maria Osterhof (24 April 1834) |
Johann Bernard Pöppelmann died 31 August 1871 and was buried on 3 September 1874 in the St. Viktor cemetery in Damme, Germany.
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| Funeral Record for Johann Bernard Pöppelmann (d. 31 August 1874, buried 3 September 1874) |
(3) Their third child was Johann Frans Henrich Pöppelmann who was born on 20 September 1811 and baptized on 21 September 1811 in St. Viktor Church. This baptism record includes his death as 27 August 1839.
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| Baptism Record for Johann Frans Henrich (b. 20 August 1811, baptized 20 September 1811) |
He died on 27 August 1839 and was buried in the St. Viktor cemetery on 30 August 1839. He was 27 years, 11 months and 8 days old.
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| Funeral Record for Johann Frans Henrich Pöppelmann (b. 27 August 1839, baptized 30 August 1839) |
(4) Their forth child was Anna Maria Pöppelmann who was born on 26 January 1814 and was baptized on 27 January 1814 in St. Viktor Church.
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| Baptism record for Anna Maria Pöppelmann (b. 26 January 1814, baptized 27 January 1814) |
(5) Their fifth child was Bernard Heinrich Pöppelmann who was born on 18 March 1816. He was baptized on 20 March 1816 in St. Viktor Church. Witnesses to the baptism were Heinrich Wilkam, Elisabeth Kramer, and Bernard Schmiesing. His baptism record helped find his death record since the death date was included.
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| Baptism Record for Bernard Heinrich Pöppelmann (b. 18 March 1816, baptized 20 March 1816) |
Bernard Heinrich died on 2 March 1832 and was buried in the St. Viktor cemetery on 4 March. He was 15 years, 11 months and 16 days old at the time of his death.
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| Funeral Record for Bernard Heinrich Pöppelmann (d. 2 March 1832, buried 4 March 1832) |
(6) Their sixth child was Anna Maria Angela Pöppelmann. She was born 6 August 1818 and baptized in St. Viktor Church on 8 August 1818. Witnesses to the baptism were Angela Kophanke and Herman Arkenberg. Again, this baptism record included the marriage date so it was easy to find her marriage record.
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| Baptism Record for Anna Maria Angela Pöppelmann (b. 6 August 1818, baptized 8 August 1818) |
Anna married Johann Hermann Lagemann on 22 August 1840 in St. Viktor Church. Johann Hermann Lagemann was born 11 March 1819. Witnesses to the marriage were Johann Heinrich Meyer and Agnes Lagemann.
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| Marriage Record for Anna Maria Angela Pöppelmann & Johann Hermann Lagemann (22 August 1840) |
I have not yet found the death record for Anna or Johann Hermann.
(7) Their seventh child was Anna Maria Pöppelmann. Anna is my 3rd great grandmother. Her baptism record lists her name as Maria Anna Pöppelmann but later records in Ohio have her as Anna. Anna was born 26 February 1821 and was baptized on 1 March 1821 in St. Viktor Church. Witnesses to the baptism were Maria Engle Beckmann and Johann Bernard Heitmann.
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| Baptism Record for Maria Anna Pöppelmann (b. 26 February 1821, baptized 1 March 1821) |
Anna immigrated to the United States around 1845 and married Johann Bernard Schmiesing (1818-1903) on 29 July 1845 in Auglaize County, Ohio. She and Johann Bernard lived in Egypt, Auglaize County, Ohio where they had at least 9 children. Anna's obituary lists her name as Maria Anna and her death date as 31 December 1902. She was buried in St. Joseph Cemetery in Egypt, Ohio on 3 January 1903. She and her husband have a shared headstone.
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| Obituary for Maria Anna Pöppelmann Schmiesing (d. 31 December 1902) Source: Minster Post, 9 January 1903, page 5 |
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| Obituary for J Bernard Schmiesing (d. 6 January 1903) Source: Minster Post, 9 January 1903, page 5 |
(8) The last child that I have been able to find was Maria Angela Elisabeth Pöppelmann. She was born 31 January 1823 and baptized 2 February 1823 in St. Viktor Church. Witnesses to the baptism were Maria Elisabeth Arkenberg and Johann Heinrich Kophanke. The baptism record also included the marriage date of 18 March 1843
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| Baptism Record for Maria Engel Elisabeth Pöppelmann (b. 31 January 1823, baptized 2 February 1823) |
Maria Angela Elisabeth Pöppelmann married Johann Bernard Baumer (b. 13 October 1821) on 18 May 1843 in St. Viktor Church. Witnesses to the marriage were Heinrich Baumer and Hermann Lagemann.
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| Marriage Record for Maria Engel Elisabeth Pöppelmann and Johann Bernard Baumer (18 May 1843) |
Johann Bernard Baumer died on 28 October 1880 and Maria Angela died on 27 March 1897. Both are buried in St. Augustines Cemetery in Minster, Ohio.
I have been in communication with the descendants of Johann Heinrich Pöppelmann (Poeppelman) who still live in Ohio as well as a Pöppelmann cousin in Germany.
