My lack of interest in why my ancestors immigrated to America remains constant. I have, however, begun to be curious about how they managed once they got here.
For no particular reason, I started with Gerd Heinrich Kuck, my 2x great-grandfather. I remember the response I got from my 1st cousin when I shared that image of him was, “Yikes.” He was a stern and somewhat forbidding looking fellow.
Gerd Heinrich Kuck (aka Henry) was born 22 Jul 1834 to unmarried parents (married in 1836), Ahlert Kuck and Anna Margarethe Cordes. Henry had a younger brother Herman, born 31 Jan 1839. On 10 Nov 1861, Henry married Helene Margarethe Catherine Winter who was born 14 Jan 1841. All in the general area of today’s Rastede north of Oldenburg. (Family records)
On 14 Mar 1871 the Deutschland arrived in New York City from Bremen, Germany, about a two week voyage. In steerage were Herman and wife Helene; Heinrich (Henry) and his wife Helene and their six children, Elise b. 1863, Heinrich b. 1864, Helene b. 1866, Johanna b. 1867, Henrike b. 1869 and Johann 2 months-old. (New York, U.S., Arriving Passenger and Crew Lists (including Castle Garden and Ellis Island), 1820-1957, ancestry) The easiest and fastest way to get to their destination, Atchison County in Missouri (directly north of Holt County) would have been by train, which would have taken another week to ten days. Sadly on 19 Apr 1872 Henry’s wife Helene died leaving Henry, aged 38, with a few children to raise.
Two and half years later, on 28 Feb 1875, Henry married the widow Katherine Borchers (b. 22 Jul 1833, Hanover) in Holt County, Missouri. (Missouri Synod, U.S., Lutheran Church records, 1851-1972, ancestry) Henry was 41 and Katherine was 42 and about 7 months pregnant with their daughter Helena, who died at 18 months. Four of Henry’s children survived to adulthood: Elise, Richard, Henrike and Johann. Katherine had five children survive: Rosa, Matilda, Louisa, Henry and Fred (aka Fritz).
Census records do not paint a clear picture of this blended family. Missing in 1876 are Henrike age 7 and Johann age 5 of Henry. Katherine’s oldest daughters Rosa and Matilda were married. Louisa age 15 and Henry age 11 were not enumerated. In 1880, still in Holt County, Elise is a servant in another household, Richard and Ricke are living with Henry and Katherine. Louisa, Fritz, and the now deceased Rosa’s children Anna and Henry are also in the household. Katherine’s son Henry is living in Fremont County, Iowa with his uncle, G.A.D. Schweer. Still no sign of Johann who would be 9.
I gave up trying to understand why various children weren’t enumerated and moved on to what level of financial success Henry might have enjoyed, not thinking for a moment that his ability to sustain his escape poverty would be tied to his second wife’s connections.
Katherine’s immigrant experience was significantly different from Henry’s. Her obituary gives an enlightening account of the journey.
At the age of eight years she, in the company of her mother and step-father, Andrew Buck, crossed the Atlantic and after a stormy voyage of eight weeks landed at New Orleans, from whence, by steamboat, they came up the Mississippi river to St. Louis and from there followed the Missouri up to Weston, Mo., where they purchased a farming outfit and by ox team came out into the wilderness, stopping at Hemme’s Landing near the present site of Corning, Holt county, Missouri. Here they pitched their tent on August 8th, 1841.
Holt County Sentinel, Fri, Jan 28, 1916, pg. 2
Unlike when Henry came to America on a steamship in two weeks, Katherine and her relations came to America under mast, specifically on a Barque in two months.
It isn’t abundantly obvious looking at this passenger list that Catha Danker age 7 is the right person. Based on the other individuals on the list, I’m now convinced this is the correct person. The date the ship left Hamburg lines up. All the people in that red box ended up in Holt County, Missouri. Heinrich Danker, age 5, died 20 Aug 1917 in Holt County. His death certificate names his father Henry Danker and his mother Rebecca Buck.
There is Andrew Buck living with his step-daughter Katherine, next door to his likely sister Rebecca Buck and her husband Henry and son Henry Jr. Katherine and Henry Jr. grew up together, sharing the immigrant and settler experience in tandem. That friendship would serve Katherine well throughout her lifetime.
Where that connection benefit my family was when Henry and Katherine financed a previous purchase of 60 (40 plus 20) acres in Holt County on March 1st, 1876 from Henry A Dankers Jr. for $1,400. (Holt County, Missouri Deed Book 29, page 381, familysearch) They used a type of financing called a Deed of Trust (similar to a mortgage), where the title to the property was held in trust by a third party until the loan was paid off. That third party was Diedrich Schweer, aka G.A.D. Schweer of Fremont County, Iowa…Katherine’s son-in-law.
Pay $23+ an acre for land and are cash poor? How better to secure funds for livestock, feed, equipment, etc. than to borrow it from your wife’s well-off childhood friend using the land as collateral held in trust by your wife’s son-in-law? Revisiting the 1876 census, the family had five horses, 18 head of cattle, 31 hogs, 2000 bushels of wheat and 200 bushels of oats. Not too shabby for someone who had only been in this country for five years. The loan was paid off by 2 Dec 1887 and the land was released from trust. (Holt County, Missouri Deed Book 61 pg. 102)
The Lazy Genealogist 