Wondering what the benefits are of getting a subscription to the Die Pommerschen Leute? Read all about society president Toni Perrone's research success using the Die Pommerschen Leute as a resource!
Research Methods:
1) Interview of family
members;
2) American record research;
3) View of Hamburg Passenger list (which
stated the family left from Zarrenthin, Kreis Demmin, Vor Pommern);
4) Placed known
family material in the Die Vorfahren section to the Die Pommerschen Leute (DPL)
Periodical;
5) Received an E mail from another DPL subscriber that he was going
to that area of Vor Pommern and would be willing to look at the church records in Jarmen. Kreis Demmin, Vor-Pommern) since it
was very near Zarrenthin and he had the same surname in his family there. (The
church records were never microfilmed and remain in the church there);
6)
received the following information from him:
Jarmen Church
book. Vol. V. page 201 entry # 46
Bertha Johanne
Wilhelmine Behrendt born July 19, 1863 at 10:30 in the morning baptized on September 9, 1863 in
Klein-Toitin, Kreis Demmin, Vor-Pommern; Father; The shepherd Johann Behrendt,
Mother: Wilehimine Blietz. Witnesses: Johann Heitmann, day
laborer; Wilhelm Schroeder, shepherd from Daberkow and Johanne Wilke.
Jarmen Church
book. Vol. V. page 167 entry # 29
Wilhelmine August
Frederike Behrendt, born on March 20, 1861 at 3 0”clock, baptized on April 8,
1861 in Klein Toitin. Father; the shepherd Johann Behrendt, Mother: Wilehimine
Blietz. Witnesses: Wilhelm Heyden,
day laborer; Friederike Behning, wife of the day laborer Heitman; Auguste
Ewald, wife of the day laborer Zell.
Jarmen Church
book. Vol. VI. page 11 entry # 61
Wilhelm Friedrich
Carl Behrendt, born on July 22, 1865 in Klein Toitin, Baptized on July 30, 1865
(this was an emergency baptism as he died the same day he was baptized.
Jarmen Church
book. Vol. VI. Page 29 entry # 51
Wilhelm Carl
Johann Behrendt, born on July 1, 1866 in Klein Toitin, Baptized on July 15,
1866
Jarmen Church
book. Vol. G. page 12 entry # 29
Johann Behrendt ,
shepherd in Klein Toitin, died on September 25, 1866 1AM from Cholera; Age 35
years 11 months, 30 days. Survivors: the
widow and four minor children.
Jarmen Church
book. Vol. C. entry # 167
Johann Carl
Martin Droberg and Wilhelmine Christine Dorothea Blietz from Klein Toitin were
married April 8, 1868 in Jarmen. Johann Carl Martin Droberg was born April 10,
1844 and Wilhelmine Christine Dorothea
Blietz Behrendt was born October 29,
1835.
If I had not
subscribed to Die Pommerschen Leute Periodical and placed my information in the
Die Vorfharen section I would never have received this material!
BERTHA JOHANNA Wilhelmina BEhReNDT was born on July
19, 1863 in Germany.
When Bertha was a
very little girl in Kreis Demmin she, along with other little girls in her
village, went to the home of the Baron and Baroness for instructions in crafts,
sewing, darning, and weaving. There were several spinning wheels in the home.
She, being the smallest at that time, learned on the littlest spinning wheel,
how to spin flax into fiber and sheep's wool into yarn. She was very intent on
learning to weave, and as she worked at it, the spinning wheel would move
forward a few inches. She would pull her chair to it again and get close to it.
Before she knew it everyone would start to laugh because she was moved clear
across the room and hadn't even noticed. She told her grandchildren later that
she was embarrassed but she soon learned how to spin very well.
She also learned
to darn wool socks to perfection. Her granddaughter said she had never seen
such close and even stitches as her grandmothers. Her
grandchildren tried very hard to do it the way Bertha did, but never
really succeeded. Of course no one darns stockings anymore, but Bertha
certainly perfected the art.
Life in the
Vor-Pommern for Bertha and her family and all the people in the village were
very hard. While the little girls were learning crafts the little boys were
taught to work in the fields at a very early age. Later the girls had to work
in the fields too.
They were very
poor. The only toys Bertha ever had were handmade ones. For Christmas they
usually got something in the clothing line and perhaps an orange or an apple.
The one big happy time in the year for all of the villagers was the Octoberfest
- the celebration of the harvest. At this time there would be dancing and
games. Otherwise, it was mostly work.
Bertha was 19
years old when she immigrated to the United States on the ship "SS
Gellert," under the direction of Captain Kueshlewein, from Hamburg leaving
March 4,1882 and arriving in New York April 19, 1882 with her Johann Droberg,
her mother Wilhelmina Bleitz, her natural
sister Minnie and step sister and step
brothers.
When Bertha
arrived in the United States she thought life was very beautiful here. The
family settled in Chicago and immediately joined the Social Turner Verein, (a
German social and athletic club). To think that she could go to a dance every
Saturday and dance until three in the morning and no one stopped her or made
her get back to work - that was to her, shear heaven.
Bertha met Heinrich (Henry) Claussen
at the Turner Verein. They fell in love and were united in
marriage on June 25, 1884 by Rev. William
Bertling, minister of the Gospel at the Evangelical Lutheran Church, 18 W.
Fremont Street, Chicago Illinois. Heinrich was the
son of Johann Hinrich Claussen and
Magdalena
Eichmeier
Henry was born
October 26, 1853 in Dörpling, Kreis Dithmarschen, Schleswig Holstein, Germany.
He learned to be a joiner, (a skilled workman who finishes inside woodwork for
houses), a trade he pursued throughout his life. Henry immigrated to the United
States from Hamburg, Schleswig Holstein, arriving in
New York, May 23, 1881. He came with his
brother Peter, sister Catharina
Dorothea (Dora) Claussen, and
his cousin's Katharine Claussen, Claus Boe , and Angenetha Catharina
(Antje) Boe. They traveled across the ocean on the ship "SS
Vandalia". The ship made one stop on the way in La Havre. They
continued on to Chicago, Illinois where Henry and Peter decided to
make their home while the rest of the family moved on to Iowa. Henry and Peter started
their own construction business in Chicago in 1893. The name of the business was Claussen Brothers Carpenters and Contractors and was located at 1025 Roscoe Street, Chicago,
Illinois.
Henry was an
active member in the Schleswig Holstein Verein and the Social Turner Verein in
Chicago, Illinois. The Social Turner Verein was a society that had the
philosophy of a sound mind and body that was practiced through physical
fitness. They had gymnastic classes for the children and adults alike. The
Social Turners were well known for passing down German heritage by offering
German Theater, meeting places, and supporting German libraries as well as
other cultural programs. Heinrich and Bertha attended several social functions
at the Social Turner Verein in Chicago after their marriage.
Within a year or
two of their marriage Henry and Bertha borrowed enough money to buy their own
house. After a few years they were able to add on two stories so that they
could rent out a flat. He later built his dream home at 2015 Addison Street,
Chicago Illinois after having saved lumber and extra doors and trim from some
of his contracting jobs. The house was one of the first houses on that block at
that time.
It is unknown how
much schooling Bertha had in Klein-Toitin, but she had a wide vocabulary,
mostly in German and was an avid reader. Bertha was always reading her
Abendpost in the evenings and keeping up with what was going on in the news.
She also loved to read romantic novels. Nothing pleased her more than to have a
German novel to read in the evenings. She never learned to read much English.
Her speech was mostly a mixture of German and English. Usually she spoke to her
grandchildren in German and they answered her in English, although her daughter
Frieda and son in law Albert were fluent in German and
often spoke German with her. Bertha was good in mathematics also and no one
could fool her in making change or in figuring the cost of anything.
Henry died young
at the age of 571/2 on February 7, 1911 in Chicago Illinois. He is buried in
the Social Turner Verein Section of Forest Home (Waldheim) Cemetery 863 S. Des
Plaines Avenue Forest Park, Illinois, 60130.
Bertha was now
left alone to face debts that she had not known about. She had no income what
so ever nor any insurance. It was then that her son in law sold a lot that had
been given to him as a wedding gift by his father. He took the money to buy the
house on Addison Street from Bertha. She then lived with her daughter and her
family.
Bertha knew a
great deal about farm work, all of it learned in Vor Pommern. She was the chief
gardener in the family. No one else could do it good enough to suit her. She
grew beautiful flowers as well as some vegetables. She worked hard outdoors,
even insisting upon mowing the lawn until the summer before her death. Her grand-daughter, remembers Bertha cleaning the
wallpaper even though she had a broken wrist.
Although Bertha
never returned to her homeland in Vor-Pommern. She did receive a visit from her
cousin Ernst Behrendt and his wife Emma who came from Germany to visit her
sometime between 1920-1925. Bertha's granddaughter remembers the visit. She
said he was a very stern man. He returned to Germany and was never heard from
again as far as we know.
Bertha died on
December 21, 1944 in Chicago, Illinois from a cerebral hemorrhage and carcinoma
of the right cervix. She was buried in December of 1944 in Graceland Cemetery,
Bellview Section, Lot 614, Chicago Illinois.
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