On to genealogy!
Having been researching diligently on Ancestry.com for the past few months, I have come across some interesting spelling variations on what seems to be the Lenzendorf name . The first finding lists a Charles Lanzendorfer arriving in New York, New York on June 29, 1846 on the ship "Norman". He departed from Le Havre France. This is most likely our ancestor. I cannot find any information On Charles in Boscobel before he got married to Louisa...so I assume it is the correct person.
The second lists a Charles Lensendoffer in the 1850 New York Census Rolls. I have not found any other records proving that "our Charles" ever lived in New York. But it is possible that he stayed there for a short time before moving on to Wisconsin.
Finally, very close to home, in Germantown, Juneau County, Wisconsin...a Charles Langendorf is listed in the 1860 census as living with a woman (sister/wife?) and two children. This man listed his occupation as a tailor and said he was born in Hesse-Darmstadt, Germany. Our Charles was only married once to our knowledge. But he was a tailor.
There are similarities to our Charles Lenzendorf with each of these entries, but I am not yet willing to concede that this is indeed our forefather. Hopefully further evidence will make things clearer. Stay tuned!
Welcome! This web page is dedicated entirely to the history of the Lenzendorf name. I have been able to trace the Lenzendorf name back to East Prussia where our ancestors immigrated from. Most of the German records were destroyed in the Allied bombings in World War II, so it doesn't look as thought we can go back much further on the Lenzendorf name overseas, but we can go back almost a thousand years on a few other branches.
Small groups of French fur traders came to the Green Bay and Prairie du Chien areas (of what is now Wisconsin) in the 1700s. They were followed by lead miners from the Southern states who settled near the Galena diggings on the Illinois border in the 1820s. Substantial immigration from the northeastern states began in the 1830s. Later, American-born settlers were usually from New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Vermont.
Between 1840 and 1860, hundreds of thousands of immigrants came from Europe. Most of them came by way of the Erie Canal and the Great Lakes to the port of Milwaukee, or they came up the Mississippi and Wisconsin Rivers and then by the railroads, which crossed the area soon after Wisconsin statehood.
The most numerous of the foreign-born immigrants were from Germany or Prussia as it was known. They came from the Catholic provinces of southern Germany and from Protestant eastern Germany.
Before the Civil War, the Irish were the second largest immigrant group in Wisconsin. There was also considerable emigration from England, Scotland, Wales, and British North America.
At the beginning of World War I in 1914, the majority of Wisconsin residents were of German origin or descent, but this had declined to 40 percent by 1930.
Passenger lists are not available for Milwaukee (the main port), or any of the other Wisconsin ports. Most immigrants from overseas landed at east-coast ports, primarily New York City, before heading toward Wisconsin. And the names were Phoenetically spelled, so Lenzendorf may well have been spelled differently in Germany.
The Lenzendorf name translates as "spring village". Actually there was once a town called Lenzendorf in East Prussia in the 1800s.
The name of the town was changed in 1939 to Kaleczyny and it is now located in Poland. I am not sure if this is where any of our ancestors came from. But I will keep researching it! What you see on this website is a portion of the information I have gathered to date. If you are truly interested in our ancestors, I can send you a CD-ROM of our entire family tree. Some branches date back to 1000 A.D. and earlier.
I hope you will enjoy this information as much as have enjoyed sharing the Lenzendorf Legacy!
Where to begin? That is a very good question...as obviously everyone who will be looking at this page has different parents. So to make things easier lets begin with a central figure in our branch of the family: Robert Lenzendorf Senior. He was the father of 13 children so it sounds like the logical starting point, right? If you are not sure how Robert Senior is related to you, ask your parents and they should be able to help. For instance, Robert Senior was my grandfather but he died before I was born. And I am one of his younger grandchildren. If you are younger than 50 he is probably at least your grandfather. Unless you are visiting this site from Germany. Then it gets more complicated! E-mail me if you have any questions.
Robert & Amy Lenzendorf
Robert Arthur Lenzendorf Senior-born April 24, 1903 in Boscobel, Wisconsin to Lewis and Sophrona Lenzendorf. He married Amy Esther Watters (she was born October 31, 1905 in Steuben, Wisconsin) on June 13, 1922 in Boscobel, WI.They were blessed with 13 children. 7 sons and 6 daughters. Their children were born in this order:
Lyle-born July 24, 1922
Earl-born Dec 18, 1923
Robert-born June 28, 1925
Fay-born March 1, 1927
Lloyd-born Aug 22, 1928
Harold-born Feb 22, 1930
LeRoy-born Sept 18, 1932
Helen-born June 13, 1934
Shirley-born Oct 10, 1935
Jean-born Feb 13, 1937
Evelyn-born Nov 1938
Carol-born Sept 12, 1940
Darlene-born Aug 28, 1942
Robert and Amy Lenzendorf have 55 grandchildren, 119 great grandchildren and 42 great great grandchildren (at last count). That's 229 direct descendants.
Lewis & Sophrona Lenzendorf
Lulu S. Lenzendorf born Jan 21 1895 died May 19 1980
Charley Lenzendorf born Dec 2 1898 died Dec 4 1898
Herman L. Lenzendorf born Nov 26 1899 died Dec 31 1985
Robert A. Lenzendorf born April 24 1903 died April 6 1963
Zenetta E. (Midge) Lenzendorf born July 22 1905
James H. Lenzendorf born April 2 1908
Frona E. Lenzendorf born Jan 1 1911 died January 31, 1978
Lewis B. Lenzendorf born Oct 14 1912
Emma I. Lenzendorf born April 7 1915
Charles Lenzendorf
Charles Lenzendorf was born in August 1834 in East Prussia to John and Johanna Lenzendorf. Charles immigrated to America before his 27th birthday and joined the Union Army in the Civil War on July 10, 1861 in Madison, Wisconsin. At age 28 Charles was 5 foot tall, had blue eyes, light hair and light complexion. He resided in Madison. Charles was mustered out of service December 3, 1864 in Milwaukee when his term expired. The following is a detailed description of his enlistment:
The Ninth Wisconsin Infantry was organized at Camp Sigel, Milwaukee, WI, and mustered into the service of the United States October 26, 1861, it left the state on January 22, 1862, and proceeded to Fort Leavenworth, KS, which was reached on the 29th of the same month. On the 2nd of March the regiment, together with other portions of the Army in that territory, participated in various movements on the frontier until the 30th of September, when the Ninth was engaged in the battle at Newtonia, MO. On the 27th of November the division of which the Ninth was a part, advanced into Arkansas and was a part of the Union force present, but not actively engaged, at the battle of Prairie Grove, December 7, 1862. The Ninth participated in numerous expeditions during 1863 and 1864 in Arkansas, including the Camden Expedition March 23-May 3, 1864, under General Steele, taking part in the battle of Jenkins Ferry, AR, April 30, 1864, and a large number of minor engagements. The service of the regiment was chiefly rendered in Arkansas and Missouri, which included skirmishes, guarding of railways and frequent long and arduous marches and expeditions in various directions.
After the war, Charles settled in tiny Boscobel, Wisconsin where he met and married Louisa Smith, another German immigrant, on June 3, 1866. They had one child, Lewis Earnest Lenzendorf, born on March 8, 1867.
Louisa died on May 30, 1869 at the age of 24. She is buried in Boscobel Cemetery. Located in gate 5 section 5. Her gravestone has her last name spelled "Lanzandorfer". The plot she was buried on was purchased by a Mr. John Craeger. I am unsure if he was related to Louisa.
Following the death of Louisa, it was decided that her parents, Henry and Louisa Smith would raise young Lewis. The Smiths lived on a Grant County farm near Werley, Wisconsin. A railroad train ran through Werley and connected with Boscobel, so Lewis likely saw his father quite a lot. The Smith farmhouse is no longer standing, but the cemetery where the Smiths and most of their children were buried is still cared for, high on top of a ridge, overlooking the valley. It is called Crown Hill Cemetery, which is also near Werley.
In 1870, Charles owned real estate in Boscobel valued at $300. He owned a small house in the Watkins Addition. Charles remained in the Boscobel area for several years before moving to South Dakota around 1892 for unknown reasons.
In records I obtained from the National Archives, I learned that Charles suffered from rhumatism in his right shoulder, disease of the heart & eyes as well as general disability in the latter part of his life.
On the 1880 Federal Census, Charles was listed as a border in the house of Fredrick Rieger in Boscobel. The 1890 Census had him as a border in the Reuben Ricks house in Boscobel. Rueben Ricks was the great-uncle of Sophrona MCCORD, Charles' daughter-in-law. He began receiving a pension of eight dollars per month beginning on July 16, 1890. That is equal to about $180 in today's economy. For his inability to earn a living by manual labor, his pension was increased to twelve dollars per month on May 15, 1895. That is the equivalent of 276 dollars today.
In 1896 Charles returned to Boscobel, probably because of his failing health. He later was admitted to the Old Soldier's Home in Milwaukee for treatment. He likely remained there until his death on May 15, 1907 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He was laid to rest at Wood National Cemetery in Milwaukee on May 20, 1907. He is buried in section 16 grave 11.