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Gengenbach has the only designated cemetery in that area. We searched it and found no Heitzmann graves. We learned that Gengenbach has a 25 year limit on the use of a burial plot. Each plot is rented for 25 years at a cost of $1200. If a family does not continue renting the plot, the headstone is removed and if any remains are found, they are reburied in an unmarked corner of the cemetery.
The old ?Heitzmann Hof? (farm) still exists to this day. The old home sits on 34 hectares (approximately 84 acres) of land in the rolling hills near Gengenbach. Today, it is primarily used for the raising of livestock for consumption and family gardens. The current owners are Bernhard Muller and his family. We visited Bernhard first on September 29, 1985 and had lunch at his home. He is the son of Bernhard Muller, Jr. who died in 1983, who was the son of Bernhard Muller who died in 1943, who was the son of Karl Muller who married Regina Heitzmann (bom 1826). Regina Heitzmann was the daughter of Michael Heitzmann (bom 1796) and Magdalena Schwarz . This Michael Heitzmann was a half-brother to our Ildephons Heitzmann with both sons bom to Michael Heitzmann (born 1748), but having different mothers. With him starts our line of common ancestors.
Bernhard Muller showed us a wooden piling holding up the home with ?Michael Heitzmann and Magdalena Schwarz - 1839? carved into it. He said this Michael Heitzmann was his great-great-grandfather. Michael's daughter, Regina and our Carl Heitzmann (1829) were first cousins. Bernhard also told us that the date 1839 was when the home was ?last renovated.? The home's wood and stone substructure has been at this location for 200 years before the 1839 renovation date. Below the home, there are stalls for the animals and farming equipment. There is also a very old ?Schnaps? (liquor) distillery made of copper. He makes cherry schnaps and sells it locally (legal) under his own label. He gave us two bottles to bring home.
Since our visit, Bernhard's wife, Maria, and one of his sons have died. The family is relatively poor, other than the value of their land. We were told by his family friend that after Bernhard dies, his heirs will most likely sell the land to developers who will probably tear down the old home to build new ones. We have taken numerous photos of the old home where our ancestors lived for generations.
It should be noted that there are no ?Heitzmanns? currently living in the Gengenbach area.
Because of the Revolution in Germany and the economic depression in the 1840s, many Germans were forced to leave their homes. Many immigrated around the world, with most ending up in ?North America.? The baptism record for our Carl Heitzmann has a note on it saying ?about 1850 immigrated to America.? This is the last record we have for him in Germany.
Carl Heitzmann was bom on February 28, 1829 in Schwaibach, Germany and baptized on March 1, 1829, legitimate son of Ildephons Heitzmann ?vinegrower? and Theresia Dold (entry #35, Book of Baptisms, St. Marien Catholic Church, Gengenbach, Germany). It should be noted that the name Heitzmann on some records is spelled with only one ?n? but it has a over it signifying it was actually spelled with two ?n's.? Some branches of our family have chosen to use only one ?n? in the spelling of their name. The name ?Carl" was the more common spelling prior to the 1900s. After that the common spelling became ?Karl.? Additionally, in the United States Carl/Karl often became ?Charles.? We find this same transition in our own Carl Heitzmann.
As mentioned earlier, Carl was bom in Schwaibach as listed on his baptism record, and he also listed this city as his place of birth on the ship register when he immigrated to America. While most of the Heitzmann records show they are from the neighboring small village of Dantersbach, Carl was from Schwaibach. This confusion could be due to a change in political lines or because Schwaibach was the political center of the surrounding small villages which were actually ?communities? with no true legal boundaries as discussed earlier.
From various records, we learned the Heitzmanns were farmers and grape producers. They were inhabitants of the community for generations and as landowners, they would have been
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