Willhelm SCHWARZENHOLZ & Pauline PLOEFKA
Father: Willhelm SCHWARZENHOLZ, (son of (Private)), b. May 1860, Prussia Germany, d. AFT 1932
On the 1900 Census Douglas County KS, William lists his immigration year as 1883. and Pauline says she came to US in 1882, later in 1910 Census those years are amended to 1884 and 1883 respectively. But they are very clear in that they did not come together. The two of them marry in Douglas County KS in Oct of 1886. The license reads the 25th of Oct. By 1888 or 1889 when little Henry is born , they are in Colorado as all census put his birth firmly in Colorado. In 1890 William and Pauline must make a trip back to Germany, whether there was an illness or death or just a visit, they re-enter the US on April 26 1890 with little 11 month old Henry and according to ships manifest two pieces of luggage between them at Castlegarden immigration station.The best clue to the origin of this family is when Wilhelm's brother Heinrich comes over he says he comes from his residence in Brandenburg. Lisa Schwarzenholz a descendant however thought that the family legend was that they were from Stolpe. which she understood to be in Poland. However, . My understanding of German geography is not good but it appears that Stolpe is in Brandenburg. province and borders Polish cities. . Brandenburg is and was a large province. in Germany. Stolpe was in East Germany after the War, however now that Germany is reunited it is just in the Republic of Germany. Silesia(once a part of East Prussia Germany) where his wife Pauline is from, is in Poland proper after the World War II. Perhaps this is where the story comes from which details ancestors from the area which is now Poland. Whatever the case, this family was of definite Germanic origin. In 1892 William Schwarzenholz is in the Denver City directory listed as a labourer near Willow , Colfax and Main . By 1900 he and Pauline have returned to KS to Douglas County. He states his parents are born in Germany and his occupation is a landlord. He is living with wife Pauline and two children in Douglas County, Lawrence Township in 1900. While he gives his birth year as 1860 it could be as early as 1858 as on ship in 1890 he lists his age as 32. They are living on Massachusetts Street and Henry is 11 and little Ernest is 3. Also in 1900 they have a 23year old servant living in their house an Anna Borleiding. By 1910 the family is living in Wyandotte County on Osage St. William states his occupation and income source as own money and both boys are listed as jewelers. even though Ernest is only 11. Apparently these were the only two children born to this couple according to 1900 Census where Pauline states she has given birth to two children In 1920 this family minus Henry is living on Osage in Wyandotte County.. They couple now report they were both naturalized in 1900. And Wilhelm or William as he is listed in most census's is retired . Death date for Wilhem is based on a family story below told to Paul Schwarzenholz who was born in 1932. So this means if the story was told directly to him and he remembered his grandpa, Wilhelm must have lived past 1932 when Paul was born. And indeed on an index that I was able to view there are the names William and Pauline Schwarzenholz in Wyandotte County Census 1930/ So they are both still lving as of 1930.
Re-entry in US info reads as follows. from Castlegarden port NY 1890 Wilh. Schwarzenholz Farmer 32 M 26 Apr 1890 Prussia Augusta Victoria Pauline Schwarzenholz Wife 27 F 26 Apr 1890 Prussia Augusta Victoria Henry Schwarzenholz Infant 11 m M 26 Apr 1890 Prussia Augusta Victoria
Pauline, Wilheim and Henry Occupation Wife Age 27 Sex F Literacy U Arrived 26 Apr 1890 Origin Prussia Port Hamburg & Southampton Last Residence U Destination USA Plan Unknown Ship Augusta Victoria Passage Unknown Occupation Farmer Age 32 Sex M Literacy U Arrived 26 Apr 1890 Origin Prussia Port Hamburg & Southampton Last Residence U Destination USA Plan Unknown Ship Augusta Victoria Passage Unknown
COMPARATIVE DATA This feature is currently under construction
Occupation Infant Age 11 months Sex M Literacy U Arrived 26 Apr 1890 Origin Prussia Port Hamburg & Southampton Last Residence U Destination USA Plan Unknown Ship Augusta Victoria Passage Unknown
From Lisa Schwarzenholz great granddaughter of Wilhem and Pauline Schwarzenholz.“Wilhelm had a couple of brothers and I believe one of them was named Heinrich and I think he immigrated to Iowa someplace. He had one brother who settled in Rich Hill, MO. He had another brother named Robert who never left Prussia. They were from a town called Stolpe in East Prussia and the town is now called Stupsk and is in Poland, about 50-100 miles from Gdansk”. I had completely forgotten about August (my notes probably a cousin of WilhemSchwarzenholz)He, and I believe a brother or cousin, came to the US and were soldiers in the Civil War on the Union side. They were in the same unit. My Great grandfather, Willhelm, told my dad(Paul Schwarzenholz) a story about the two brothers or cousins. (One was always referred to as Auggie. Fritz seems to ring a bell as the other one but I could be remembering that one wrong). They were always bickering and fighting with each other. At one (apparently) small skirmish, Fritz kept laying his rifle close to Auggies face when they were on the ground and firing at the enemy. Auggie told him to stop it or he would beat the crap out of him. Fritz did it one more time and Auggie threw down his gun and the two of them had a fist fight on the battle field. Both the Union and Confederate soldiers stopped shooting at each other and cheered on the fight. When it was over, when it was over, the battle resumed. I hadnt thought about that in years. Also, I know that Wilhelm and Pauline did move to Denver and I know they had a son who died. Their son, Heinreich, my grandfathers brother, was born there, I believe. Where Wilhelm is listed on the city director lab. is an abbreviation for laborer, which would make sense. Not sure why they went back to Prussia. Never heard that story. At some point, they moved to Lawrence and my grandfather, Ernest, was born there in 1898 or 1899. They owned a dairy or a restaurant of some kind and they lived in a bldg in Massachesetts Street, directly down from the Edlridge house hotel. The bldg is still there and is now a tea and spice shop. The floor above used to be a Vorvorein Hall a meeting place for German immigrants. I know they had a servant named Anna Guffler, who acted as the nanny. I believe her husbands name was Joe or Joseph. I accidentally found their tombstones in a Lawrence cemetery once. I was there with a friend who was placing flowers on her sisters grave and I turned around and saw the Gufflers headstones. It was very eerie. Grandpa was very fond of the Gufflers and I think they kept in contact for much of their lives.About the Prussians, I know that Willhelm was in the Prussian army when he was a young man and, although I dont know for sure, he may have deserted and come to America shortly thereafter. He had nothing but disdain and hatred for the Prussian Army and Germans in general. (I have some stories about that) And now that you mention it, I do remember that he and Pauline came here separately. It seems to me that Pauline came with her mother and brother. Pauline was engaged to, or sweet on a Prussian soldier and I believe he died before she left
Mother: Pauline PLOEFKA, b. Feb 1862, Silesia Germany, d. AFT 1930
Paulines maiden name was Pliefke however it may have been Ploefka as it reads on her marriage certificate. I have used that spelling. . Her family was from a region called Silesia which was at that time considered German but now it is in Poland. They may have been from the town of Breslau (now Wroclaw) but not sure. She had a sister named Caroline who was married to a guy named Fred Jung or Young. I think they settled in Baldwin, KS. . Pauline came to the US either in 1882 or 1883 with her mother and her sister according to Lisa Schwarzenholz. Whatever the year she makes it clear on both census's 1900 and 1910 that she came one year before her husband. They married in Lawrence KS, Douglas County All info from Lisa Schwarzenholz great granddaughter of Pauline See husbands notes for how death dates were arrived at.
Married 25 Oct 1886, Douglas County KS
Children:
- Henry SCHWARZENHOLZ, b. Sep 1888, Colorado
- Ernest SCHWARZENHOLZ, b. Nov 1897, Kansas, d. Mar 1968