Mischkes, Schmolkes, Otrembas, Zenners and Kapsners

Here's an article that was published in the Buckman News column of the LFH a whole month after St Michael's church was dedicated.  There are some interesting facts in the article, as well as some major goofs.  There'd been a wonderful front page article the month before, but evidently some of the "local color" was left out.  If that pissed people off, this article didn't do much to make up for it.

BUT, there are interesting incidentals listed, too.  For instance, there are the origins of four movers and shakers in town (Frank Mischke, Math Zenner, John Kapsner and John Schmolke), and the fact that three of the four came from the same area the Otrembas came from (within 6 miles of Opole, Poland). Also, look who con-celebrated the mass at the dedication:  Bishop Trobec, of course, and about twenty five priests showed up to help, not to mention three local bands.  A priest we've mentioned before,  Fr. Bernard Richter, gave the sermon, so we know he did have an actual connection to St Michael's (see previous post, for one ☺).  I imagine there were another couple dozen townsfolk who "should have been mentioned"...

BTW, I corrected many of the typos and wrong info, but you can click the article to read it yourself, or go to the original copy on the Library of Congress website:

From the Little Falls Herald on October 2, 1903

BUCKMAN

"Sept 304--Tuesday was the greatest day in Buckman's history.
In spite of a very disagreeable and
heavy wind, which stirred up the dust
all day, several thousand people atten-­
ded the dedicatory services of the new
St. Michael's church. Bishop Trobec,
assisted by about twenty-five priests,
officiated. Father Richter of Melrose
preached the sermon, which was a

 scholarly and interesting address.

Visitors were present from all the
neighboring parishes and many from
Stearns and Benton counties. The
bands of Buckman, Pierz and Agram
rendered music throughout the day.
In the old church the ladies of the
parish served dinner, and for hours
the hungry throngs filled the tables.
The good things were plenty, how­
ever, and all were satisfied.

Bishop Trobec and several of the
clergy made short addresses, in all of
which the good work of the people
and their good pastor was highly com­
mended. The visitors expressed great
admiration at the sight of the immense
edifice the people of Buckman have
erected, a temple of God which will
stand long after the builders have
passed to their reward, and which will
be a lasting monument to the faith and
good will of the parish of Buckman,
and the energy and persistence of
their pastor. The day was a great one
for Father Lange and his people.

The earlier history of the settlement
of the village and town of Buckman,
is told by Frank Mischke, one of the
leading merchants of the village. Mr.
Mischke's father, Joseph Mischke,
was the first person to settle in the
town, going there in 1871.
Mr. Mischke Sr. was born in Shidlow, 
Falkenberg, Prussia. He was
married to Miss Mary Otremba on
September 15, 1861, and of that union
there were born six children, Frank,
John and Mary of whom are still
living. The Mischkes came to United
States soon after the Franco-Prussian
war and settled on the present home­
stead in the town of Buckman. At
that time there were no settlers be­
tween St. Cloud and the Mischke
homestead, except the Rices of the
present village of Rice. The family
endured great hardships during the
first few years they resided in Buckman

and for an entire year were un­able

to procure salt for any purpose.
About three years after C. B. Buckman, 
now member of congress, settled
on the present Brookdale farm.
The church building, which is re­
placed by the handsome edifice dedi­
cated Tuesday, was built in 1880. The
earlier history of the Buckman parish
is not clear, as in the earlier years of
life of the church the parish was or­
ganized as a mission and the records
are vague. Rev. Ignatius, O. S. B.,
who was in charge of the Pierz par­
ish, first ministered to the Buckman
organization and was succeeded by
Rev. Pankratz O. S. B. who was fol­
lowed by Rev. Maryhofer, who re­
mained eight years. Rev. Father
Lager, since deceased, followed, re­
maining one year, Rev. John Beck
was at the head of the parish two
years and was succeeded by Rev.
Father Lange, the present priest and
builder of the new church.
There are at present about one hun­
dred and fifty families connected with
the church, where only thirty-two
members existed at the time the old
church was built and the parish or­
ganized.
Matthew Zenner, one of the direc­tors
 of the church, was born on April
25th, [1857] in Luxembourg, and came to
America with his parents in 1860,
who settled in St. Wendell in Stearns
county. Mr. Zenner worked on a
farm and saved his money until he
was able to purchase a farm of 200
acres in the town of Buckman where
he now resides. He was married on
November 28, 1882, to Miss Mary
Maus of Luxemberg, Stearns county.
John Kapsner, who is a member of the
directors, was born February 8, 1857, in
Dambrau, Prussia, the eldest of 18
children. His parents came to America­
 in 1874 and settled near the village
of Pierz. Mr. Kapsner was married ­
November 7, 1882, to Miss Maria Kopka.

John Schmolke, president of the
village and member of the board of
directors of the church, was born May
8, 1863, at Shidlow, Prussia. He
came to America in 1871 with his parents,
who settled in Buckman. At
that time there was no church or
school at which Mr. Schmolke could
receive the benefits of an education
and he attended a night school, con­
ducted by Mr. Hepperly, for one 
month. Mr Schmolke opened the village 
blacksmithy and later engaged in
the mercantile business. He was 
married in 1887 to Miss Mary Kalnabe" [actually, Hedwig Peschel].

Even MORE vocations than we thought...

Frank Kapsner is Called by Creator

Pierz Man, One of Oldest in This Community Died Monday at Age of 98 ½ Years

Frank Kapsner died in St. Joseph's Home for the aged at St. Cloud early Monday morning, at the age of 98 years and six months, which is an age not often attained by human beings. Mr. Kapsner has been in good health all during his life, and was often seen walking about the old Kapsner farm close to this village in spite of his high age. A year ago he was admitted to the home for the aged at St. Cloud and about two months ago was taken ill with influenza from which he recovered. The past few weeks he was confined to bed by illness when his strength slowly faded away until death called him from this life only one year and one-half short of the century mark. His death was due to old age. He was born in Germany September 18, 1830.

Burial was held in the cemetery in this village yesterday preceded by Solemn Requiem Highmass at 9 o'clock. The celebrant, Rev. Leonard Kapsner O.S.B., a son, assisted by Rev. Xavier Kapsner O.S.B., as deacon of the mass, also a son, and the Reverend Celestine Kapsner O.S.B., and Roland Kapsner O.S.B., as sub-deacon and master of ceremonies respectively. The latter two and Father Oliver Kapsner, who with the pastor, Rev. J. Stiegler and Rev. James Mohm were present in the sanctuary, are grandsons of the deceased.

Mr. Kapsner, one of the oldest settlers in Pierz and Morrison county, came to this country in June 1874, directly to Pierz and purchased what was known as the Billig farm, the oldest farm in Pierz and he resided on that farm until about a year ago when he entered St. Joseph Home in St. Cloud. His wife preceded him in death by about 15 years.

The surviving children are: John of Buckman, August and Carl of Pierz, Rev. F. Leonard of Calloway, Rev. F. Xavier of Collegeville, and the following sisters of the Benedictine order: Sr. Cecilia and Sr. Loyola of St. Benedict's convent, Sr. Auxilia of St. Raphael's hospital at St. Cloud and Sr. Leonarda of Watkins, Minn. Another daughter who had also joined the Benedictine order, Sr. Bonaventure, died in 1886. Besides these children the deceased is survived by 35 grandchildren and 65 great grandchildren.

Pierz Journal, April 4, 1929

A Kapsner recap

...the puns'll probably stop, eventually ☺

In last week's episode of The Kapsner Family, I couldn't think of a way to add these next pics without tangling myself up royally.  (It would be so much easier if only ONE member of each family moved here and then married the ONE daughter of another family, and any kids would have unique-to-them names--but then, really, this wouldn't be a challenge at all.  Also, there would be way less potential for mistakes...but I'm fearless.  Mistakes are only an alternate reality).

So.  Here we have a photo, from 1850, of one Franz Kapsner, who wore an odd beard under his chin.  Wouldn't shaving that way be a huge challenge? Nevermind, it was distinctive. We'll appreciate that shortly.  Franz (Frank) Kapsner was born in May, 1831 in 'Germany', or Bohemia. In this 1850 photo, he looks about 20, so I think we have the right guy.  By 1875, he and his wife Theresa had 10 kids, one of whom was August.  I'm pretty sure the August in the photos below is Frank's son--they're similar in face shape, eyes, and the way he held his mouth, don't you agree ?

These pics are all from the Pictorial Atlases, of course, including these two of young August Kapsner.  I believe he was born in 1865, which means he was 15 in the oval portrait, and only 18 when he posed with August Janorshke, (a local family name I've found elsewhere in the atlases).  It was probably a buddy photo, cuz they were both named August and both buttoned their jackets funny.

Well, it looks like Frank kept that beard all his life.  It looked strange when he was young, but here, it fits--probably cuz there's more of it.  

 This was labeled "Four generations of the Kapsner family", but I can't name Frank's son or grandson, let alone the baby.  Isn't it an elegant photo tho?  Eventually, someone will ID these people, and then I'll add it here.

20 July 2015...Hooray, today we heard from David, who's the great nephew of one of the couples pictured here, and he knows who all of them were:
"The photo [is] Franz and Theresia (Tilsch) Kapsner. Standing left are his son Carl and his wife Mary Kopka.  Behind are his daughter Cecilia and her husband Henry Terhaar, holding their oldest child.  She only lived three years."   
Henry Terhaar was David's great uncle...David's grandpa was Nicholas Terhaar. Cool, huh?

THANK YOU, DAVID! ☺

The family with the most vocations wins

My sibs and I may have been one of the last generations to be badgered about joining the convent. Bruth was the only son dad had, so I think they left him alone, but spare sons and multiple daughters were always fair game.

  Evidently, someone got to the Frank Kapsner Sr. family of Morrison co. Four Benedictines and a priest?  Wow.  

We haven't done real research into this particular family, but the Kapsner name's familiar, for sure.  Again, it's from the Pictorial Atlas books.

   According to the 1880 Federal census, Frank and Theresia Kapsner were born in Germany in 1830 and 1834.  Their children were 

John (1857), Mary (1859), Anna (1862), August (1865), Eduard (1867), 

Johanna (1868), Karl (1870), Joseph (1871), Theresia (1873), 

Gertrude (1875) and Conrad (1879).  

If that's Conrad down front, then this photo was taken about 1900-1905.  Eldest son John would have been 43 or so by then, and papa would have been 70.  It fits.

I'd bet it was 1901, tho, cuz daughter Mary (Sr Cecilia Kapsner) became prioress at St Benedicts in 1901.  That would  account for the satisfied look on her mother's face ☺.  [BTW, I'm pretty sure we've found info about a son who became a priest. It's here somewhere. I'll add it when we find it again, ok?]
(January 2016--here it is ☺):

But look! We managed to find photos of all four Kapsner sisters at Minnesota Reflections.  If you're interested in more, click the link and search for "Kapsner".  There are lots more pics.

Sr Cecilia Kapsner

Sr Auxila Kapsner

Sr Bonaventure Kapsner,
1885

Sr Loyola Kapsner

Amazing how familiar and frightening this sorta 'look' is to me, 

still, almost 50 years later...shiver...

"But Sister, mongooses really ARE natural enemies of snakes!  

My sister P.T. read it in Colliers last night. Ya can ask her!"

Maus, Zenner and Kapsner connections

When a story or connection fascinates me and/or Larry, I just KNOW it'll tickle you too...cuz after all, you're here, right?  So if your coffee cup is empty right now, go get more--this might take awhile, and I don't want you to miss any of it!

I'll wait.

OK, last summer when I visited St Wendelin's Church cemetery in Luxemburg, Minnesota, I didn't go looking for relatives.  I was there with Shari, and we were looking for her Brauchs and Kraemers, so I was gobsmacked (Hi, Su ☺) when I found Zenners and Jansons there.  I took pictures of those monuments cuz I knew we'd eventually figure out who they were....but there was another, smaller homemade headstone that intrigued me, even if it was for someone I didn't know:  

 "HERE RESTS MARGARET MAUS  A Life Short But Precious"

That evening, Larry figured out who her parents were via census and Find a Grave records.  She was most likely the daughter of Henry and Margaret Maus.  That's all we knew, then. 

But the name Maus was familiar from Buckman, too, so it sorta stayed in my mind.  This last week, I found an obit for her brother, who died in 2010 at 81.  He was preceded in death by his parents, three adult sibs and "an infant sister, Margaret".  The obit also mentions their mother's maiden name--Kapsner. Hmm!

So, I went to Find a Grave looking for a Kaspner-Maus connection, and found this:

1864-1926

Buckman Lady Called to Rest

Mrs. Anna Zenner, aged 61 years, died at her home at Buckman at 5 o'clock P.M. Sunday, March 28. The deceased has been ailing for the past two years and diabetes has been given as the cause of her death.

Mrs. Anna Zenner, whose maiden name was Anna Maus, was born in Luxemburg, this state, on October 30, 1864. Until of age she was at the home of her parents at Luxemburg. Her marriage [to Mathias Zenner] took place at St. Wendel church at Luxemburg, November 28, 1882. From Luxemburg the Zenner family moved to Buckman, where they resided on a farm 2 miles south of that village until this day.

Mrs. Zenner was the mother of 13 children, 2 of which preceded her in death. The surviving are Mrs. John Dehler, Mrs. Frank Kapsner, John Zenner, Mrs. Ben Terhaar, of Buckman, Sr. Hildegard and Rosaria, of St. Paul, Sr. Julienne, St. Joseph, and Elizabeth, Aloyouis, Kilian and Leo at home. Four brothers and four sisters also mourn her death. They are John A. Maus of Watkins, Nick, Mrs. John Schillo and Mrs. A. G. Wistler of Golva, N.D., Miss Mary Maus of Minneapolis, Peter of Buckman, Henry of Luxemburg and Mrs. Elizabeth Koshial of St. Augusta.

Burial service were held in St. Michael's church at Buckman yesterday morning at 10 o'clock and the remains were interred in the Buckman cemetery. The funeral was one of the largest ever in the village of Buckman. Present at the funeral from out-of-town were….

Pierz Journal, April 1, 1926

SO, the Zenner graves I found in the Luxemburg cemetery...who were they?

There are other Zenner graves in Luxemburg, but Stephen and Margaretha here are the oldest one.
They were Mathias Zenner's parents, so Anna's in-laws.

Are ya still with me?  Good ☺!

So Anna Zenner's brother AND daughter married Kapsners.  Here's a photo from the Pictorial Atlas of Morrison County, Minnesota of the John Kapsner family--looks like the 1920s.

According to the 1895 and 1910 censuses, John and Marie Kapsner had 12 kids:  Cecilia, Frank, Mary, Edward, Charles, Joseph, Agnes, August, Conrad, Leonard, Leo and "Itelda", but they're probably not standing in order.

John Kapsner and Anna Zenner would have been contemporaries.  John's son Frank married Anna's daughter....and John's daughter Margaret married Henry Maus, and moved to Luxemburg.  At least, that's my version.  If you know different, email or comment and I'll change it.  

SO, the short and precious life of Margaret Maus was special to us, too.  Her little monument got me to figure out the connections between all these people.  Wow!

Two more quick facts, ok?

 Henry Maus' aunt Mary Maus was married to Michael Majerus, the man who magnanimously provided the St Michael statue in St Michael's church in Buckman. (Say that fast, out loud ☺).

And, no, this Cecilia Kapsner was born in 1883, so she couldn't have been mom's spelling rival in school.  I'd guess that one of those boys had a daughter he named Cecilia who could eventually spell almost as well as Linda Janson.