Tidbit #1: The Name Riedesel
The true origins of the name "Riedesel" will never be known, though there are
some interesting legends surrounding it. One is recounted in my paper on The Riedesel
Families in Wittgenstein. It tells of a knight being rewarded for service to the Kaiser
with as much land as he could encompass in a certain period while riding on a donkey (der
Esel). That is not how the Riedesels of Lauterbach acquired their domains! The root word
is clearly Esel, and the heraldly of the Riedesels of Lauterbach prominently features a
donkey's head. It seems most plausible that the rest of the name stems from some form of
the verb to ride (reiten in modern German). It is a donkey rider who is featured in the
legends. If you look at a dictionary, you will see the translation of "Ried" as
swamp or marsh. I feel strongly that there is no connection. If you need to tell someone
what the name means in English, "donkey rider" is as accurate as anything.
However, my brother was once told by a north German that he had heard the name used for a
kind of work table for drying reeds (not unlike a sawhorse). I have not been able to
confirm such usage with anyone else.
The donkey--hard working though a little stubborn. That sounds like many of the Riedesels we know!
Tidbit #2: The Riedesels Come to Wheatland
Wittgensteiners had been drifting away to America since the early 1700s, but the most
systematic emigration took place between 1844 and the early 1900s. Ludwig and Florentine
(Althaus) Riedesel from Haase Haus in Wunderthausen were settled in Crawford County, Ohio,
with their five adult children by 1845. We know little about their existence there, and
the old couple perished in an epidemic. In 1850, their oldest son, L. Henry and his
brother, George went west to look for land. They found land to purchase on the open
prairie of Clinton County near the Wapsipinicon River. Over the next several years,
all the siblings moved to Wheatland as did other Wunderthäuser then living near Galion.
The town itself was founded in 1858 when the Union Pacific railroad came through.
Prior to that, the families lived a frontier existence.
In the coming decades, a large number of Riedesels and other immigrants from Wunderthausen settled in or at least passed through Wheatland. L. Henry and J. Ludwig were founders of the Reformed Church, and they and other family members have been prominent in its leadership ever since. (The church is now St. Pauls United Church of Christ.)
Tidbit #3: Rule by Committee
Tidbit #4: Settling in Wheatland
The town of Wheatland, Iowa, was named after the estate of U.S. President James Buchanan who was much admired by the town's founder, John Bennett. Wheat was never an important crop. The town was platted and then incorporated in 1858 when the Union Pacific came through, but before this time, our German forebearers had begun pioneering a settlement.
In an oft-told story, the brothers L. Henry and George Riedesel walked out from Crawford County, Ohio, in 1850 to buy land. There was little but open prairie, the Indians having been displaced shortly before. Wheatland had Yankee and Irish settlers as well, but here is what your author knows about our German families. This first, closely-related group all came to Wheatland via Galion, Ohio.
Other members of the great Riedesel family arrived in the Wheatland area over the next half century. Some came directly from Germany, while others lived at least briefly in other American states. [Note: Until at least 1870, our immigrant ancestors would have described their nationality as Prussian, not German. Since 1815 or so, the Kingdom of Prussia had sovereignty over Wittgenstein. Prussia eventually absorbed most of the other German states into a new German Empire]. Other Riedesels who came to the Wheatland community included:
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Tidbit #5: Prince Charles Has Riedesel Ancestors
According to information in the authoritative genealogy of the
British monarchy compiled by Brian Tomsett, the current Prince of Wales'
great-great-great-great-great grandmother was born Maria Franziska Riedesel. More
precisely, this woman's father was a Riedesel but whether her parents were married is in
doubt. Based on the British genealogy just mentioned, information sent to me by Grant
Menzies, and the official records of the Riedesels Freiherrn zu Eisenbach, I offer the
following lineage.
Note that Mountbatten is the Anglicized version of Battenberg.
Tidbit #6: Some Riedesels Are Good Looking As Well As Accomplished
|
Tiffany Riedesel, a great-great-great-granddaughter of emigrant L. Henry Riedesel, represented the state of Colorado in the Miss 1992 World America competition, placing sixth among fifty-one contestants. She has held numerous other pageant titles. |
Tidbit #7: On to Wheatland
Tidbit #8: Some Radles Were Riedesels
I know of two Riedesels from Wunderthausen who were known by the name "Radle" in this country. Both lived at Oxford, New Jersey (Warren County) where several other Wunderthäuser also settled. (See my paper on the subject).
The older was born Johann Georg Riedesel in 1810 in the house called Seimes, but was apparently known as George Radle. Two of his nieces later came to Oxford, where they were married. Unfortunately I know little else. George was married and had at least five children, but as far as I know they went by "Radle."
The younger was born Johannes Riedesel in 1815 in the house, Försters am Lotzenberg. We don't know when he came to America, but he married in 1840. The eight known children were born in New Jersey, but by the 1860s they had moved to Wheatland. His wife, born (Maria) Catherine Repp, died there in 1869. Shortly afterwards, the family moved again to Cherokee, Iowa, where they put down more roots.
Tidbit #9: A Wunderthausen Riedesel in Milwaukee
I have known for some time of a John Riedesel who lived in Milwaukee in the late 1800s, though he was not in my 1980 book. Finally enough pieces have come together to identify his origins, and they lie in Wunderthausen. The largest number of Wunderthausen Riedesels settled in Wheatland, Iowa, but this fellow (known as John Riedesel) did not.
He was born Johannes Riedesel in 1842 in the house of Wunderthausen known as Känals. In 1867, he was one of several young adults from Wunderthausen on the same ship to New York. Though their destination was given as Illinois, he surfaced in St. Louis in 1869 when he married one of his shipmates, Maria Catherine Lauber from Hohmanns house in Wunderthausen. About 1880 they moved to Milwaukee. I have found evidence of six children, but their only son seems not to have married.
Tidbit #10: A French Connection
Thanks to Christiane Claeys of Brussels, Belgium, we now know more of the lineage of several American Riedesels whose roots were previously obscure. Three or possibly four siblings came to America around 1900 as did a step-brother. The latter went back to Europe, but one of his daughters returned to America in 1922. The hub of this story is the city now known as Thionville in the French province of Lorraine, but it was Diedenhofen in the German province of Lothringen at the time. They were ethnically German, but descendants of other family members who remained in Europe became French-speakers.
The trail actually begins in the German village of Leidenhofen near Marburg (now part of the town of Ebsdorfergrund). We know of a couple named Heinrich Riedesel and Dorothee Emmerich who were probably born there in the early 1820s. Their son, Peter, married twice. His first wife, Katherine Weidenmüller, died during or shortly after the birth of their son, Johannes, in Leidenhofen. Some time later he married Gertrud Jacob and wound up in Diedenhofen. They had at least four children. Peter died in 1891.
The son of the first marriage--Johannes--took his family to the Chicago area in 1899 for about four years. They then went back to Europe, but the daughter Louise (born 1898) returned to the U.S. in 1922 to marry Clifford Barr in North Dakota. In the mean time, Johannes' step-siblings were also moving to America. We know that:
Marie (born about 1881) married Adam Zehner and settled, eventually, in Tennessee
John Henry (born 1883) married Emma Jacobsen and settled, eventually, in the Westfield, NY, area
Peter (born 1886) arrived in 1904, fought for the Americans in World War I, married Elise Hesse, and settled, eventually, in Chehalis, WA
Click here for a listing of their families as I know them. A connection to the numerous Riedesels in Wittgenstein (near Marburg) is very likely, but yet to be proven.
Tidbit #11: Riedesel Knights Near Weimar
While it seems likely that the first recorded Riedesel was Ritter (Knight) Dietmar who lived in the 1200s. The Riedesels at Lauterbach (eventually elevated to Barons or Freiherren) represent one line of descent and the only ones who acquired heritable land and offices. It is likely that most of us descend from the family known as the Riedesels zu Josbach. However, traces of Riedesels show up in other places as well.
Thanks to Rüdiger Bier, I have been made aware of another line of Riedesel knights who had small holdings in the village of Neumark near the German city of Weimar. Like many others, the area was devastated during the 30 Years War (1618-1648).
In 1543, Johann Riedesel was the godfather to a child of Martin Luther according to a plaque in the church of Neumark. A Hans Heinrich "Ritesel" is buried in the church with his wife, though I do not have any dates ( a plaque; the grave marker).
I now find that the Riedesel Freiherren zu Eisenbach had possessions around Weimar, but have not been able to confirm whether the Riedesels mentioned in the Neumark records are of this family.
Tidbit #12: Earliest Documented Riedesel Arrivals in America
While we believe a few Riedesels came to America as early as 1796, the earliest document I have found is a passenger list from 1819. One Riedesel name is unambiguous; the transcribed spelling on another is probably wrong (what else is new?). They were almost certainly the brothers Johann Heinrich and Johann Ludwig who were born in Berleburg in the 1770s. One or both were involved with Pietism and/or separatism. Heinrich is known to have gone to Holland in the 1790s, but was back in Berleburg to be married in 1817. If his daughter Philippine (b.1818) survived the voyage--and she is not on the passenger list transcription--she would be the earliest and youngest emigrant.
Chances are the brothers faded into the German tapestry of Pennsylvania. If they left descendants, I have yet to find a provable trace.
Tidbit #13: A Riedesel in the Civil War
A Riedesel from Philadelphia fought and died in the American Civil War. His sad story is interesting, but leaves open the question of his roots. We really don't know.
John B. Riedesel appears to have been born in Philadelphia about 1830. In June of 1851 he was married to Amanda Ott, and they had their first child shortly thereafter. The little boy died the same year. John and Amanda had two other sons who lived to adulthood --John Henry and Jesse Ott Riedesel (b. 1852 and 1854). However, the marriage ended in divorce in 1859, which was highly unusual in those times. Women having no rights, it appears that Amanda's father, Jesse Ott, assumed legal responsibility for the boys. According to city directories, John's occupations included "trimmer" and undertaker.
In July, 1861, John volunteered for the 28th Pennsylvania Infantry Regiment. He died in action at the battle of Chancellorsville, VA, in May, 1863. His body was not recovered so he is officially listed as missing in action.
Both sons married and had children. I do not know of any living Riedesel descendants. The frustrating thing is that there are no records showing who John's parents were. I know of three German Riedesels born between 1769-1775 who came to America. It is highly likely that John descends from one of them. But if the Census enumerator talked with any of them between 1800-1840, the Riedesel name was not spelled correctly and no Census record can be found.
Tidibit #14: The Riedesel zu Eisenbach History
While I don't intend to boast, I couldn't be more pleased to have completed a collection of the definitive volumes history on the one branch of noble German Riedesels who have survived down to the present. That would be the Riedesel Freiherren (Barons) "zu Eisenbach." Other knightly lines died out. Another most likely sank into the common population of Wittgenstein (and begot all us American Riedesels).
The Eisenbach family has now been chronicled in a series of seven volumes, the first of which was published in 1923 and the latest just this year. I know of no other complete collection in North America. There is not a word to suggest any relation to us Americans, but the history is utterly thorough as only the Germans know how. And in the first chapter of Volume 1, the author notes that the family was never "von Riedesel" (all those histories of the General and his wife notwithstanding).
Tidbit #15: French Connections
Recent (2005) research and correspondence has finally established that the American Riedesels living around Westfield, NY, and the Pacific Northwest (and a few others) are in fact related to the rest of us. We knew that almost all other American Riedesels trace back to the small German counties of Wittgenstein, with a known common ancestor. In the early 1700s, a (Georg) Wilhelm Riedesel managed to leave the village of Girkhausen and married into a village near Marburg. His descendants still live in the area, but one of them went to seek his fortune in the province of Lothringen, Germany.
Lothringen was a mixed German-French area, and reverted to France after the First World War. You know it as "Lorraine." I know some of the Riedesel descendants in the European branch of that family, and they are now French-speakers. A longer (but not lengthy) paper is available by clicking here.
I am down to exactly two Riedesel emigrants to America whose European roots I have not been able to find.
Tidbit #16: The Head of the Line
A handful of documents from the early 1600s in Wittgenstein confirms the existence of the Riedesel we regard as the forefather of all of us in America and all but the living Riedesel zu Eisenbach line Germany. I have referred to him as Heinrich or Henrich in my writing, but this interpretation appears to be in error. A German archival researcher who I trust implicitly concludes that the faded writing is certainly not a variation of Henrich but of a different name, variously rendered as Herig, Heyderich, etc. It would come from an early German name in the Christian era of Heiderich; quite telling is that the received name of our man's homestead was "Herjes"-- another phonetic variation of Heiderich but not of Henrich. House names have survived for decades and centuries in oral tradition.
I cannot quickly amend every single document or paper on this site with a revised spelling, but will be working on it. Posted January 2008.
This page was last updated on 01/18/08.
