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Until two weeks ago, my Great-great-grandmother
Catherine Elizabeth Shank Heideman
(January 20, 1836 - February 19, 1914)
had not appeared on any of my blogs before,
so to get you caught up on her life, here is
her obituary from the Emporia Gazette
February 24, 1914:
"Mrs. Heidemann's maiden name was Catherine Shank. She was born in Germany in 1830, and came to America when she was 13 years old, and settled in Wisconsin, where she was married to William Heidemann in 1853. Twelve children were born to Mr. and Mrs. Heidemann, nine of whom survive. They are William Heidemann, of Elk City; Mrs. Jonny Diestelhorst, of Missouri; Mrs. Minnie Tippens and Mrs. Sadie Miller, of California; Mrs. Emma Solsby, Council Grove; Charles Heidemann, Wisconsin; George Heidemann, Washington, Iowa; Mrs. Kate Hammond, Burlington; Mrs. Dora Young, Iowa.
"From Wisconsin, with her family, Mrs. Heidemann went to Iowa, where several years of her life were spent. From there she came to Kansas and Emporia, where she lived for about twenty years, moving from Emporia to Burlington with her daughter, Mrs. Hammond, about fourteen years ago.
"Mrs. Heidemann had known much sorrow. One son, Louie Heidemann, was drowned when 16 years old; in 1887, her husband was accidentally killed at his post of duty; four years ago, a daughter, Mrs. Augusta Golder, died suddenly, and three weeks later, another son, Henry Heidemann, an engineer, of Emporia, was killed."
And in the words of her daughter Minnie:
"Father and Mother were born in Germany -- Father in Berlin, Mother in Hamburg.
"Father was 24 when he came over and Mother was 13. With her mother they went to Wisconsin, a small town called Two River. They met there and got married when Mother was 17. The four oldest children were born there. Father cleared off timber and built a log house I think about 13 miles out of Two Rivers; lived there until the War broke out when he hired a man to take his place, sold out and went to Iowa. Bought a 40 acre farm; lived there. All the rest of us children were born there except Kate, was born in Kansas.
"We sold out in Iowa and bought 160 acres in Kansas. El Dorado, Kansas, is built on that land. He had bad luck, worked so hard on the land. Everything burned up, didn't rain, so he started to work on the railroad there. And from there we went to Emporia, was there until he got killed on the RR. I was only 12 years old then. All us children are two years apart, until there were 12. Mother lived and saw all of them get married. Jennie and Dora were married in Iowa, the rest in Kansas as far as I know; only not Brother Charley, who returned to Wisconsin. All the girls were married at 17 and 18 except Kate, she was 20 and I at 16."
In this 1960 letter to her nieces and nephews,
Minnie includes a complete list of her siblings,
the 12 children of Catherine Elizabeth Shank
and William Henry Heideman
[some families kept the double N, some changed to single N]
William Michael (June 3, 1855 - 1931) [my great - grandfather]
Jennie M. (October 1, 1857 - October 19, 1937)
Dorothy Louise ~ called Dora (March 22, 1859 - ??)
Mary Augusta ~ called Gusta (February 13, 1861 - June 14, 1910)
Henry C. (April 21, 1863 - July 10, 1910
Emma E. (March 30, 1865 - October 11, 1938)
Sadie LaSetta (April 9, 1867 - February 1, 1965)
Louis (April 20, 1869 - June 16, 1884)
George W. (April 25, 1871 - January 6, 1932)
Minnie C. (May 29, 1873 - ??)
Charles L. (September 2, 1875 - June 28, 1961)
Ethel Kathryne ~ called Katie (May 13, 1879 - February 16, 1950)
Minnie writes: "I can't tell you when they died [I added the dates] but all are gone except Setta, me, and Brother Charley; we kind stick in, none of us too well anymore.
"If you were here, I could tell you more and explain everything. I will tell Pearl [Setta's daughter] and maybe she knows more but Setta gets things mixed up now, so don't go too much on her. The time comes to all of us. I found the letter from Grandpa's sister, so I will send it to you. It's all in pieces and in German, and I have kept it since I was 12 years old, but I don't suppose you folks can make it out. [I wish I had this letter, but I don't.] I kept Dorothy [Katie's daughter] Hammond's wedding notice and sent it to her some time ago, and she liked it so much.
"Wish I could see you and talk instead of scribbling. I can hardly write on account of my hands. Try and make it out. If I think of anything more I will write it. Ask me. If you can read this, you ought to have a gold medal!"
"Love to all from Aunt Minnie"
The quaint, reflective tone of Minnie's narrative captures both the joy and the sorrow of the family archivist. She knows the family group is aging, running its inevitable course, beyond which some information and some artifacts will be lost forever. Yet, she has not ceased sharing whatever history and lore she can, if only on the outside chance that it might be valued one day by some far-flung younger relatives, hoping for a glimpse, a characterization of their elders.
I feel her keen awareness that "The time comes to all of us." But after that may come another time -- a time in the future when someone will think of you. For Minnie and her siblings, that time is now!
MORE FAMILY STORIES TO COME
in the meantime . . .
Lots of Family Pictures: Calendar 2024
Calendar 2025: #1 ~ #2 ~ #3
Photo Ablums: Gravestones & Grandparents
There's no vocabulary for love within a family,
love that's lived in but not looked at,
love within the light of which all else is seen,
the love within which all other love finds speech.
This love is silent." ~ T. S. Eliot
ENTIRE SERIES:
Family History #1
Family History #2
Family History #3
Family History #4
Next Fortnightly Post: Family History #5
Tuesday, July 14th
Between now and then, read
THE QUOTIDIAN KIT
my shorter, almost daily blogs
www.dailykitticarriker.blogspot.com
Looking for a good book? Try
KITTI'S LIST
my running list of recent reading
www.kittislist.blogsppot.com
