Read about Fred's
siblings:
ROSNOW
family
PENK
family
RUTZ
family
Brother Emil
Read about
Elsa's extended family:
KAEMPER
family
RUTZEN
family
Read about
family friends:
LOMKER
family
VIEW
Extended family and friends
photo file
*******************************************************************************
Fred and siblings in America:
Minnie immigrated in 1892 (August Rosnow, in1883)
Thersa immigrated in 1893
(Louis Penk, in1882)
Emil immigrated in 1894
Ottilie in 1895 (Fred Rutz, in 1895)
Fred in 1895
Theodore - not known to be in America
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The ROSNOW family:
Though census data tells us that Fred Althoff immigrated to America in
1895, our first knowledge of his whereabouts place him with his sister
"Minnie" Rosnow and her family. In 1900, the Rosnow family lived in
Ward township, Moody county, South Dakota. Minnie is listed on other
census forms as "Wilhelmine", one lists her middle initial, which looks
like a "K," and another report reflects the name "Wilhelmine Caroline
Rosnow." "Minnie" earned her Rosnow name by marrying August Rosnow.
August immigrated to America in 1883. Minnie immigrated in 1892, at
about age 20. Their first child, Rosa, was born in 1896, in South
Dakota. Interestingly, child number two, Freitrich Emil (named after
two of his uncles) was listed as being born in Minnesota, in 1898.
Child three, Otto, born in 1900, was born in South Dakota. No
1910 census information is available, but in 1920 the August Rosnow
family was now in Hillman township, Kanabec county, Minnesota. Three
more children are listed. The first, Paul, born in 1902 in South
Dakota, the next two born in Minnesota, Leo in 1903, then William in
1905. One additional note from census data which is of interest is that
on the 1930 census, August lists the "place of birth" as "Poland",
where previous census forms listed "Germany." The
boundary changes resulting from World War I were likely to have caused
this shift for many "German" immigrants.
On the 1900 census, Another Rosnow family is listed, which is likely to
be August's father, mother and siblings. The family of William and
Henrietta Rosnow are listed
as immigrating the same year as August, 1883. (William would have been
43 and August would have been 12.) This 1900 census listed one child
born in
Illinois, one in South Dakota, then two more in Minnesota. William was
listed as a blacksmith on the 1900 census, and was a neighbor to August
and
Minnie. In 1920, William and Henrietta were living in Pipestone city,
Pipestone county, Minnesota. (This is where Elsa Kruse Althoff was
born.) The census reports that Henrietta was mother to ten children,
all living, though only four were living with them at the time of the
1900 census.
Another Rosnow found in Altona township, Pipestone county, Minnesota is
Gustave Rosnow and family. This could possibly be a brother to August.
He is listed as having immigrated the same year as August and William,
1883, and would have been 8 years old..
Gustave and family are listed on the 1900 census in Minnesota, then in
1910 had moved to Ward township, Moody county, South Dakota. Gustave
married Sophia and had three daughters that we know of, Marie, Lydia
and Elma, all born in Minnesota.
Another more obscure possible connection between the Althoffs and the
Rosnows may link back to a Rosnow named Julius. He is found on the 1880
census, living in Bismark, Sibley county, Minnesota. If he IS related
to the other Rosnow families, it may be that he is William's brother,
or a cousin. He came at least three years earlier than the other Rosnow
family members. The reason that this family caught my eye is that
Sibley county is where Fred's sister Thersa and her family settled.
This begs the question as to whether these families knew each other in
Germany and settled near each other when they arrived in America.
Some links you might enjoy if interested in the ROSNOW family:
1) Write-ups of Moody county,
South Dakota
life, with mention of William Rosnow as the first blacksmith (2
sources):
"History
of Ward" write-up
Immanuel
Evangelical Lutheran Church history write-up
2) For ROSNOW researchers,
August's nephew Alvin Klitzke's obituary (2 sources):
Black
Hills Pioneer Obituary
Plainsman
Obituary
3)
Brown
county, South Dakota atlas listing for W. H. Rosnow:
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The PENK family:
Early Althoff family reports noted that Fred had a sister named Thersa,
whose married name was Penk. A review of the name Penk turned up a
Thersa Penk
living in 1900 in Bismark township, Sibley county, Minnesota with her
husband
Louis and their children. There were three children at the
time,
named Ella, age 4, Agata,
age 2, and Errich, age 1. Louis is listed as being a farmer in 1900.
The Penk family stayed in Sibley county over
the next 30 years, not joining many of the other families in the
Althoff friends and family clan in the South Dakota,
Pipestone,
Minnesota and Kanabec county, Minnesota travels. Of the siblings and
their extended families, Thersa's husband is the first to have
immigrated to America, in 1882, when he was 18 years old. He may have
been the catalyst for the Penk
relatives and Thersa herself in coming, and it is interesting to
speculate
what the recommendations might have been to those who came after. (See
also the note about Julius Rosnow, above, in this same small town in
Minnesota.) If,
indeed, Louis Penk arrived first, was land surrounding him all taken by
the time the others followed? Maybe there was just talk of more land,
maybe reportedly better land available elsewhere. Interesting to
speculate.
Indeed, other Penk families came, living in the same county. The 1900
census shows Ludwig Penk and his wife Augusta as neighbors to Louis. It
is likely that they are Louis' father and
mother, though we cannot be sure. Ludwig is 31 years older than Louis.
Augusta is listed as having 7 living children (of 11 total, per
census), though only two sons live with them at the time of the 1900
census, Otto, age 25, and William, age 20. This family unit of four
Penks all immigrated to America in 1890. Records of Otto's death in
Minnesota in 1955 list his mother's maiden name as "Dupsluff." This
fact helps to tie in another Penk living in Minnesota. Gustav
Penk immigrated to America in 1889. We first see Gustav on the 1910
census in Arlington Village, Sibley
county, with his wife Augusta and children Erna and Roy. We can tie him
to Ludwig and mother Augusta because a Minnesota death record for
Gustav lists his mother's maiden name as "Dufslaff." Indeed, this
maiden name is what clued this online genealogy researcher to another
sibling to Otto and Gustav (and, likely, Louis). Emilie Penk's family
has submitted some of the Penk genealogy history online with the
Ancestry.com "One World Tree" service, as follows:
Ludwig
Penk One World Tree listing
Otto
R. Penk One World Tree listing
The 1910 census reports a move to for the Louis Penk family to Gibbon
Village, Severance township, still in Sibley county, Minnesota. Louis
is now reported by the name of Ludwig, likely named after his father.
Two more children have been born, Irene in 1905 and Hertha in 1908.
Another child had apparently died, as Thersa is listed as mother of 6
children, 5 of whom are living. Louis/Ludwig is now listed as
a
"laborer" doing the work of "teaming." Census reports list
Thersa
as "Theresa", Agata is now listed as "Agatha" and Errich as "Erich."
Thersa, per family records, has been listed on census and other records
as Theresa, Tiresa, Theresia, and with full name of "Thersia Mathilda
Penk" 1930 census lists Thersa as a widow, living with daughter Irene.
A genealogy research treasure??
The connection of the Dufslaff (sic) family may have blown the cover
(to this researcher anyway!) as to where in "Germany" our Althoff
ancestors were from. Thersa's mother in law is listed as being born in
"Osswa, Marienfelde, West Prussia, Germany." The "Osswa" data yielded
no results, but "Marienfelde" pulls up a region, indeed in West
Germany, near Cologne. I thought it possible that Louis' family and the
Althoff's may have originated from the same area, but this was only a
possibility. However, in trying to answer the question as to what
happened to Louis and Thersa's daughter Hertha, I found her listed on
the 1930 census as a tecnitian (sic) at Harlan Hospital, Harlan town,
Harlan county, Kentucky. She lists her place of birth as Minnesota and
the place of birth of both her father and mother as "Marienfeld." Note:
in trying to locate "Marienfeld" in Germany today, I come up with three
distinct and very different areas, so the verdict is still out as to
just where this is. We can combine this data with reports of "West
Prussia" to narrow things down.
See the following link for information on West Prussia (note a couple
of towns with the "prefix" "Marien.."
http://www.polishroots.org/genpoland/westpr.htm
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The RUTZ family:
The first "official" published family tree data for the Althoff family
included a brief summary of Fred and Elsa's parents and siblings. The
listing mentioned a sister named Ottilie, with note of last name
"Rootes." After having success in finding information about other
extended family members, (see Rosnow and Penk summaries, above) it was
a little bit disappointing to find no information about Ottilie Althoff
or Ottilie Rootes, and the thought occurred that perhaps Ottilie
remained in Germany. However, after biting the bullet and paying for an
annual subscription to Ancestry.com, a connection was found that was
both a wonderful discovery and a cause for concern. Two people in the
internet genealogy world have put up some information about Ottilie
Althoff. (See link information, below.) Both are from the Ancestry.com
"One World Tree" system. In reading how that system works, Ancestry.com
states that their computer program "stiches" together information from
all provided sources, and that information may not necessarily be
correct! There are some reasons to suspect that some of the information
about Ottilie falls into this category. For example, both Ancestry.com
listings show "Andy Althoff" as Ottilie's father. We know from family
data that Fred's (and Ottilie's?) father was Ludwig Althoff. A
Minnesota death listing from Ancestry.com also lists the mother's
maiden name for "Ottilie Rutz" as "Winters," and we know that Fred's
mother was Rosa Schauer. Of course, it could be possible that Fred and
Ottilie had a different father, or mother, due to the death of one or
the other. So, what information is correct? At the least, these One
World Tree listings connect Ottilie Althoff with husband Friedrich Carl
Rutz. This at least made clear why I had not found anything about
Ottilie "Rootes", and it seems very likely that "Rutz" is a good match.
Indeed, data for Ottilie states that she was from "West Preussen" which
also lines up with the rest of the Althoff clan. Another note of
interest is that data for Friedrich, or Fred, Rutz states that he was
born in "Westpreusen, Marlenfelde, Germany." See notes on the Penk
family for the significance of the "Marienfeld" location. Also, given
the fact that the Rosnow family lived at various times in Pipestone
county, Minnesota, and that is where we find Ottilie from 1900 to 1930,
it seems even more likely that this is our gal! Assuming so, what can
we learn about the Rutz family? The 1900 census listing for Gray
township, Pipestone county, Minnesota lists Fred C. Rutz living with
his brother Louis John Rutz and his wife Hulda. Fred was 26 years old,
listed as a "laborer." Louis John was also listed as a "laborer" and
census data tells us that he and Hulda has been married just two years.
It also tells us that Hulda was the mother of two children, only one of
which was living. However, no child is listed on the census. Hulda was
also listed as 26 years old, Louis John was 31. There is a Minnesota
death index listing for "Hilda Wilhelmina Rutz," though all census data
lists Louis' wife as Hulda. There is also another Ancestry.com One
World Tree listing for Hulda Domke, who married Louis Rutz. (See link
information, below.) On this listing, daughter Elsie is listed as being
born in 1900, which may explain the phantom child on the 1900 census
form.
The 1920 census shows (at least) three Rutz households. Fred is now
listed with Ottilie and three children; Helen, age 13, Hellmut, age 11,
and Gertrude, age 6. We learn from this census that both Fred and
Ottilie immigrated in 1895 and were naturalized in 1897. Fred is again
listed as a "laborer" with note of "RR Section" under the column for
further definition of "Industry, business or establishment in which at
work." Several other families were noted as working on a/the "RR
Section," with one neighbor listed as being the freight agent at the
railroad station. Louis and Hulda Rutz are now also in Pipestone city
or township, now listed with a daughter, Irma, age 12. Louis is listed
as a "Teamster" with the "Oil Co." as his employer. This census notes
that Louis immigrated in 1884. (The 1930 form showed 1883.)
1920
data showed year of naturalization as 1900. Another Rutz household in
1920 is that of Eldora Rutz, a 44 year old woman, listed as divorced,
with four children; Philoa, age 31, Theodore, age 18, Marian, age 16,
and Arnold, age 10. Eldora is listed as having been born in Wisconsin,
with father and mother born also in Wisconsin. All children were born
in Minnesota. As Ancestry.com listings show a lot of Rutz families, it
is unclear whether this family is related at all to Fred and Louis.
However, related or not, there is some confusion with all the Rutz
records, such as the fact that Eldora's son Arthur is noted as having
married to a girl named Gertrude. This causes some confusion in looking
up data for Fred Rutz's daughter Gertrude...which Gertrude Rutz are we
looking at?
A newsworthy note: Fred Carl Rutz filled out a World War I draft
registration card. It was completed on September 12, 1918. On it, his
permanent address was listed as being in "Ward, S.D.". This was crossed
out, and "Pipestone, Minn" written above it. His occupation at that
time was noted "farmer" with "place of employment" being "Ward S.D.".
The listing for "Nearest Relative" was filled out as being "Mrs.
Ottilie Rutz" and her address as "Ward S.D.". Here is another
connection with the Althoff's in South Dakota. Interestingly, this
foray into South Dakota occurred between censuses, so this never would
have been known if not for the draft registration card.
Several data sources tell us that Fred Carl Rutz died in 1922 in
Pipestone Minnesota. On the 1930 census Ottilie is listed, as a widow,
living with daughter Gertrude, now 16 years old. Census reports that
Ottilie is working as a nurse, ("practical.") Transcription of this
census had Ottilie as "Ottillie Reetz." Louis Rutz is now also a
widower, living with daughter Erma and nephew William Lukoski.
Some internet links you might enjoy:
One World Tree listings for Ottilie:
Listing One
Listing
Two
One World Tree listing for
Hulda
Domke Rutz
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************************************************************************************************************************
Fred's
brother EMIL:
The first time we see Emil show up on U.S. Federal Census data is in
1910, though that same census tells us that he immigrated to America in
1894. He was living in 1910 in Whited township, Kanabec county,
Minnesota. He is listed as a farmer. He is still living there in 1930.
This census tells us that Emil in a "general" farmer. One of the Kruse
extended family pictures made special note about Emil on the back of
it (Emil is the man in the front, on the ground, with a buttoned
sweater.)
View
this picture.
***********************************************************************************************************
The KAEMPER family:
Elsa's mother was Eliese Wilma Kaemper. I'll
start off this
brief writeup of the Kaemper connections in Fred and Elsa's life by
relaying a story. Recall that Elsa's
father William had been married before he married Eliese. Reports were
that William and Otillie together had nine children, "most of whom died
(4) of diptheria in South Dakota." It is not clear how or
when Otillie
died, but when she did, it was obviously quite a hardship for William
to farm and take care of the household and children. It could be
generally agreed that William needed a mother for his children. The
story goes that
Otillie's
family felt this so strongly that they put
William in contact with Eliese, who was reportedly "hired out" on
another
farm at the time, perhaps as a nanny. William basically interviewed her
for the "job" of
mother - and wife - by confirming the skills she had. Another story,
Eliese's
granddaughter confirmed that, while she couldn't speak much with her
grandma (Eliese) because she didn't speak much English, she enjoyed
watching her spin flax, which she made into yarn after carding the raw
fibers. She would then knit mittens, socks, scarves and the like.
Perhaps it was these very skills that allowed her to "pass the test"
and become our ancestress!
We don't know for sure anything about Eliese's parents or siblings.
However, there were the following Kaemper families on census records in
South Dakota and Minnesota, as noted:
Lette Kaemper is listed on the 1910 census for
Elkton township, Brookings County, S. D. She is a 68 year old widow in
1910,
so would have been born in 1842. She
immigrated to
America in 1888 and was the mother of eight children, seven living as
of 1910. As Eliese was born in 1863, it would be possible for Lette to
ber her mother, or another relation. (Note, Eliese is listed on
different censuses as having immigrated in 1884 and 1885.) A record of
the death of "Lisette Kaemper" is recorded for Brookings
County,
South Dakota on April 6, 1924. No birth date is given, but this doesn't
match any known Kaemper family. It may a formal name for "Lette" or
perhaps record of a child.
Another Kaemper family found in Elkton Township, Brookings
County, SD in 1930 is headed by another widowed woman, Anna Kaemper.
She was born in 1872, so would more likely be a sister-in-law to
Eliese, assuming a relation. Her late husband was William Kaemper, who
appears
on the 1900 census, but not on the 1920 census. He, like Lette, above,
immigrated in 1888, making him 17 at the time. William and Anna had six
children
in all: Fred W., Martha E., Margaret A., Marie H., Anna M., and Louisa
E. Kaemper. If William was Eliese's brother, these would be cousins to
Elsa. Records show Anna's maiden name as Wolff.
Herman Kaemper also immigrated to America in 1888, at age 22. In 1900
he lived with his wife, Minnie and children Emma, Elsie, and Rudolph
(born Nov. 1899, see also below). Also living with them, a "boarder" -
Emma Schaefer, of whom Elsa had a photo. This family was living in
Altona township, Pipestone county, Minnesota. By 1920, the family had
moved to Woodland City, Yolo County, California. Emma was not listed
with the family at that time, and son Alfred had been born, sometime in
1902, in South Dakota. The 1930 census showed Minnie F. Kaemper living
in Santa Barbara City (unincorporated), Santa Barbara County,
California with her daughter Elsie and son-in-law Dan E.
Grove. Official
records mark the death of "Minna" Kaemper in Yolo county in 1947.
One more Kaemper family, headed by Rudolph Kaemper, also lived in
Altona township, Pipestone County, Minnesota in 1900. This Rudolph is
probably uncle to Herman and Minnie's son. He was born in July, 1875.
He married Rose, or Rosalie, and had two children, Laura and Florence.
"Mrs. R. Kaemper" is the sender of a postcard style photo of two girls,
likely Laura and Florence (see photo file). Rudolph Kaemper died in
1907, in Moody County, South Dakota. In 1910 Rose, Laura and Florence
are now living in Ward township, Moody County, South Dakota. In 1920 we
find "Rosalia" remarried to Emil A. Zander. His son Albert is in the
household, as well as Florence A. Kaemper, noted as "step daughter." In
1930, Albert has moved away and the household is listed as Emil Zander,
wife Rosalie and step daughter Florence A. Kaemper. A record of
marriage in 1932 shows Florence marrying Mr. John Thiele of Brookings
County, South Dakota.
Another Kaemper, found through internet genealogy resources, is
Christine Kaemper Rutzen. See the listing for the RUTZEN family, below.
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The
RUTZEN family:
Ancestry.com is an internet based genealogy information service which
includes many public record listings which help family researchers.
Elsa Althoff had a picture postcard signed "Bertha Rutzen", mailed in
1909 from Elkton, S. Dakota. Census records list the Rutzen
family in Elkton Township, Brookings County,
South Dakota in 1900. Bertha's father's name is not listed
very
clearly, but other records confirm that his full name is Ferdinand, who
sometimes goes by Fred. Bertha's mother is listed as Cristina. Other
records provided to Ancestry.com subscribers are listings for birth and
death records for each state. It is through the "South Dakota Births"
records that we can link the Rutzens and the Kaempers, and, thus, Elsa
Kruse Althoff. The Rutzen family listed in 1900 included Ferdinand,
Cristina, and Bertha, as already mentioned, along with additional
children Emilie, Anna, Emma and Rose. Also living with the family is
Ferdinand's father, John Rutzen. While there are no birth listings for
Bertha or Emilie, there are listings of the birth of Anna, Emma, and
Rose. These forms list "Mother's name" and "Father's Name," which are a
big help in linking family members. In this family's case, all of these
forms list Mother's name as "Cristina Kaemper." (Actually, there are
variations of spelling for her first name, but all list Kaemper.) So,
what do we know about Cristina Kaemper Rutzen? She is listed as having
immigrated to America in 1887. She was born in 1866, while Elsa's
mother, Elise Kaemper was born in 1863, so they could be sisters.
Cristina and Ferdinand married in about 1890. She is listed as the
mother of six children, five of whom were living in 1900. Twenty years
later, on the 1920 census, none of these first five children are living
in the household, and five more children have been born. They are:
Franklin, Clarence, Walter, Mary and Selma. (See also information about
Ferdinand, Jr., below.) The family is still in
Elkton City, Brookings County, South Dakota. Interestingly, this census
lists "Fred" as being born in what looks like "Pomeria" (Pomerania) and
"Christina"
is listed as being born in "Holstein." These notes are overwritten with
"Ger" throughout the form.
1920 census listings show two of Fred and Cristina's children now
living in Altona Township, Pipestone County, Minnesota. Ferdinand, Jr.,
age 17, escaped our notice on the 1900 census and was, as mentioned, no
longer living at home in 1920. However, sister Emma is living with him,
now at
age 23. Ferdinand lists his occupation as "farmer." Both list their
father's birthplace as "Pommeria" or "Pommern", again overwritten with
"Ger." By 1930, Ferdinand, Jr. is now married, to Hilda.
Living
with them are son Vernon, brother Franklin, and father Ferdinand, Sr..
Listings for Minnesota death records show "Christine" Rutzen passing
away in 1924, and Ferdinand Rutzen passing away in 1932, both in
Pipestone County.
Be sure to see the Extended family and friends photo file, as one photo
postcard is likely to be of the Rutzen family. It is signed, "Your
Cousin, Emilie." Seven children are depicted, with mom in the
background (Cristina?), and the dog.
Putting together information from census data and photos in Elsa's
collection, it seems pretty safe to conclude that Cristina Kaemper
Rutzen was Eliese Kaemper Kruse's sister.
Rutzen family historians may wish to see the Ancestry.com One
World Tree file for
Anna
Alvina Rutzen.
Other Rutzen family notes: Information is available from a database on
Ancestry.com showing Fred Rutzen arriving in America on May 17, 1877 on
the ship "Vaderland." The "Place of origin" of the ship was Germany,
and
the "Port of Departure" was Antwerp, Belgium. This listing shows Fred
at age 17. Age and year of immigration line up with census data for
Fred, so this is a likely match. The roster page from ship records
doesn't show any other Rutzen family members with Fred.
There is one other listing for Albert Rutzen in Elkton Villiage,
Brookings County, South Dakota in 1900. Albert was living alone in
1900, 55 years old, and shown as arriving in America in 1867. His
occupation is listed as "Machinery Dealer."
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Family friends:
The
LOMKER family:
Several of the photos in Elsa's collection were from, or of, the Lomker
family. Someone going through these pictures, perhaps with Elsa, noted
on the back of one picture of three lovely girls, "Lomker. Were
neighbors in Dakota - also lived in Mora." As with many of Fred and
Elsa's extended family members, the Lomker family was represented in
Elkton, South Dakota, Pipestone, Minnesota, and Kanabec township,
Kanabec County, Minnesota. The Thomas Lomker family lived in Elkton,
South Dakota on the 1910, 1920 and 1930 censuses. Thomas and Wife
Luella were close in age to Fred and Elsa. Over the three census
periods, we see their children Ralph, Stella and Elbia/Ebbie. Thomas
works as a carpenter for the City.
In Altona township, Pipestone County, Minnesota, The 1910 census shows
the William Lomker family, including wife Caroline and son Henry. In
1930, the census reports Caroline as "Carrie" and son Irwin has been
added to the family.
Also in Altona township, Pipestone County, Minnesota in 1910 is the
Fred Lomker family. With Fred is wife Amelia, and children Fred, Jr.,
Robert, Bertha and Lenard.
The Kanabec County, Minnesota Lomkers were Henry Lomker and wife
Phillimina. On the 1910 census, children are listed as William, Rene,
Thomas, Ida, Emma and Herbert. By 1930 the census listings show sons
William and Thomas now head of their own households. The Thomas Lomker
household includes his wife Grace, mother "Mina", now widowed, and
siblings Herbert, Walter and Anna.
It seems likely that the four Lomker men listed in the various cities
in 1910, Thomas, William, Fred and Henry were brothers. In 1910, Thomas
was 33 years old, William, 31, Fred 38, and Henry 42. All four list
being born in Kansas, with both parents born in Germany.
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