2 January 2012

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Rev. Heinrich Rudolph Fiegenbaum

1837 — 1908

Biographical Material & Chronology

Rev. H. R. Fiegenbaum was born in St. Charles Co., Mo., Jan. 2, 1837.  He was a son of Adolph and Christina (Johnson 1 ) Fiegenbaum, natives of Westphalia, Germany, who emigrated to America in 1834 with a family of five children and located at St. Charles, Mo.  He was a carpenter by trade which he followed in connection with farming.  In the spring of 1850 he removed to Louisa Co., Iowa.  Here Mrs. Fiegenbaum died. 2   Mr. Fiegenbaum afterward came to Garner where he died in 1876. 3   Mr. and Mrs. Fiegenbaum were members of the M. E. Church and four of his sons became itinerant preachers, three of which are in regular work.  H. R. Fiegenbaum, the subject of this sketch, was reared on a farm and received his early education in common schools.  He afterward attended the M. E. College at Quincy, Ill.  He was ordained as deacon of the Church at Davenport, Iowa, in 1863.  In 1865 he was ordained elder by Bishop Ames of Milwaukee, Wis.  He was married in 1860 to Elizabeth Krumpel of Delaware Co., Iowa.  By this union there are three living children - Emma L., Charles H. and Arthur F.  In 1877 Mrs. Fiegenbaum died. 4   In 1878 he was again married to Elizabeth, a daughter of Rev. Peter Helwig, now of Hancock county.  Three children blessed this union - Luella, Adelaide, and Elsie A. 5   In 1873 Mr. Fiegenbaum came to Hancock county, where he has since resided.

Source: History of Kossuth, Hancock, and Winnebago Counties, Iowa: Together with Sketches of Their Cities, Villages, and Townships, Educational, Civil, Military, and Political History; Portraits of Prominent Persons, and Biographies of Representative Citizens. History of Iowa, Embracing Accounts of the Prehistoric Races, and a Brief Review of its Civil and Military History (Springfield Illinois: Union Publishing Company, 1884); page 681.

Notes to 1884 Biographical Sketch

  1. Christine Elisabeth's maiden name was not Johnson, as stated in this document. The surname was Peterjohann.

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  2. Some family researchers report that Christine died in 1871 (in either January or September) at Colesburg, Delaware County, Iowa, and was buried there. Upon her husband's death in 1877, she was re-interred next to Adolph in Concord Cemetery, at Garner, Hancock County, Iowa.

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  3. Adolph died on the evening of 11 January 1877.

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  4. Elizabeth Ann (Krümpel) Fiegenbaum died on 23 September 1877 at Garner, Hancock County, Iowa and was buried there in Concord Cemetery.

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  5. The second wife was Mary Elizabeth Hellwig (the spelling of the family name in published accounts varies). As far as we know, four children were born to this marriage (see the brief genealogy, below; or, consult our database).

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H. R. Fiegenbaum

Henry Rudolf Fiegenbaum wurde geboren am 2. Januar 1837 in Warren County, Mo.  In seiner Jugend wurde er auch allda bekehrt und vereinigte sich mit der Kirche.  Seine Ausbildung genoü er auf unserer damaligen Schule in Quincy, Ill.  Am 28. Januar 1860 trat er in den heiligen Ehestand mit Elisabeth Krümpel, welche Ehe mit sechs Kindern gesegnet wurde, von denen noch drei leben, nämlich:  Emma Allen von Denver, Colo., Charles H. von Dubuque, Iowa, und Arthur F. von Spokane, Wash.  Er war der jüngste von vier Brüdern:  Heinrich, Wilhelm, und Friedrich, welche all hervorrangende Prediger unserer Kirche waren.  Er schloü sich 1861 der Upper Iowa Konferenz an und als im Jahre 1864 die deutschen Konferenzen formiert wurden, trat er in die Nordwest Deutsche Konferenz über.

photographic portrait of Rev. Heinrich Rudolph Fiegenbaum

Seine erste Gattin starb im Jahre 1877 und in 1878 verehelichte er sich wieder mit seiner jetzt trauernden Gattin, Elisabeth Hellweg, eine Tochter des alten Pionierpredigers Peter Hellweg.  Vier Kinder entsprossen dieser Ehe, von denen die älteste Tochter in ihrem 16. Jahre voranging in de Ewigkeit.  Die noch lebenden Kinder sind:  Frau Fr. Vetsch von Soux City, Iowa, Frau Aaron Eaton von Mesa, Wash, und Rudolf von Wendell, Idaho.  Bruder Fiegenbaum bediente als Prediger nacheinander folgende Arbeitsfelder:  Lansing, Iowa; Lena und Yellow Creek, Ill.; Colesburg, Iowa; Platteville, Wis.; Charles City, Iowa; Giard, Iowa.  Dann nahm er eine superannuierte Stellung ein und zog nach Colesburg, Iowa, für ein Jahr und reiste als Finanz-Agent für die Galena-Schule.  Dann zog er nach Garner, Iowa, wo er acht Jahre lang wohnte und bediente darauf für ein Jahr La Crosse, Wis., und müßte dann wieder wegen geschwächter Gesundheit nach Garner zurückkehren für zwei weitere Jahre.  Heirauf wohnte und wirkte er für ein Jahr in Atchinson [sic], Kans., in den Grenzen der Westlichen Deutschen Konferenz, nahm aber im folgenden Jahre wieder Arbeit in der Nordwest Deutschen Konferenz und bediente folgende Felder:  Dubuque, Iowa, bis 1887; Colesburg 1887-92; Ft. Dodge 1892-1894; Flood Creek 1894-97; Sioux City 1897-98.  Ruhte dann für ein Jahr und schloü darauf seine Wirksamkeit als Reiseprediger in Garner 1899-1901.  Im Jahre 1901 zog er mit seiner Familie nach Connell, Wash., auf ein Landgut.

Eben war er im Begriff, von Washington nach Idaho zu übersiedeln, als der Herr seinen treuen Knecht zur ewigen Ruhe rief.  Er entschlief selig in Herrn am 11. Sptember [sic] 1908 in Gooding, Idaho, und ereichte ein Alter von 71 Jahren, 8 Monaten und 9 Tagen.  Seine Ueberreste wurden nach Garner, Iowa, gesandt und wurden auf dem Concord Friedhofe bei Garner zur Ruhe gebettet.  Ein entsprechender Gedächtnis-Gottesdienst wurde in unserer Kirche in Garner am 15. September abgehalten.  Distrikts-Superintendent W. H. Rolfing hielt die Predigt und die Brüder A. Dulitz and F. H. Wellemeyer beteiligten sich durch kurze Ansprachen.

Gott hatte Bruder Fiegenbaum gesegnet mit mancherlei Gaben und diese versuchte er treulich zu gebrauchen zu Gottes Ehre und um Sünder zu Jesu zu führen.  An anhaltenden Versammlungen und Lagerversammlungen fand er stets groüe Freude.  Sein Lieblingsthema was das Blut der Versähnung.  Von ihm kann in Wahrheit gesagt werden, daü er Gott und der Kirche diente.  Manche Kirchen hat er gebaut und Gemeinden organisiert.  Nun ist seine Arbeit getan: er ist zu seiner Ruhe eingegangen und daheim bei dem Herrn.

A translation of the above biographical sketch.

H. R. Fiegenbaum

Henry Rudolf Fiegenbaum was born on the 2nd of January 1837 in Warren County, Mo. 1   It was there in his youth that he was converted and joined the church.  His education took advantage of our school, then at Quincy, Ill.  On the 28th of January 1860 he entered into holy matrimony with Elisabeth Krümpel, which marriage was blessed with six children, 2  of whom three are yet living, namely:  Emma Allen of Denver, Colo., Charles H. of Dubuque, Iowa, and Arthur F. of Spokane, Wash.  He was the youngest of four brothers:  Heinrich, Wilhelm and Friedrich, all of whom were prominent preachers in our church.  In 1861, he joined the Upper Iowa Conference and when in 1864 the German Conferences were formed, he transferred to the Northwest German Conference.

His first wife died in 1877 and in 1878 he remarried, to his still grieving wife, Elisabeth Hellweg, a daughter of the old pioneer preacher Peter Hellweg.  Four children came forth from this marriage, of which the eldest daughter led the way to eternity at the age of sixteen.  Those children still living are:  Mrs. Fr. Vetsch of Sioux City, Iowa, Mrs. Aaron Eaton of Mesa, Wash, and Rudolf of Wendell, Idaho.  Brother Fiegenbaum served as preacher in the following fields of labor:  Lansing, Iowa; Lena and Yellow Creek, Ill.; Colesburg, Iowa; Platteville, Wis.; Charles City, Iowa; Giard, Iowa.  Then he accepted a superannuated position and relocated to Colesburg, Iowa for one year and traveled as financial agent of the Galena School.  He then moved to Garner, Iowa where he lived for eight years and served thereafter for one year in La Crosse, Wis., and then had to return to Garner for two more years because of failing health.  After that he lived and worked for a year in Atchinson [sic], Kans., on the frontiers of the Western German Conference, but in the following year returned to the Northwest German Conference and served the following fields:  Dubuque, Iowa, until 1887; Colesburg 1887-92; Ft. Dodge 1892-1894; Flood Creek 1894-97; Sioux City 1897-98.  Rested then for a year and closed out his mission as a circuit preacher in Garner 1899-1901.  In 1901, he moved with his family to a country home in Connell, Wash.

Even as he was considering leaving Washington to settle in Idaho, the Lord called his loyal servant to his eternal rest.  He passed away blest in the Lord on the 11th Sptember [sic] 1908 in Gooding, Idaho and reached an age of 71 years, 8 months and 9 days.  His mortal remains were sent to Garner, Iowa and were laid to rest in the Concord Cemetery in Garner. 3   A fitting memorial service was held in our church in Garner on the 15th of September.  District Senior Minister W. H. Rolfing gave the sermon and Brothers A. Dulitz and F. H. Wellemeyer gave short addresses.

God blessed Brother Fiegenbaum with many talents and he strove faithfully to use these for God's glory and to lead sinners to Jesus.  At continuous conventions and camp meetings he always found great pleasure.  His favorite theme was the blood of atonement.  One can truthfully say of him that he served God and the church.  Many are the churches he built and congregations he organized.  Now is his work done; he has gone to his rest and is at home with the Lord.

Source: E. W. Henke, W. H. Rolfing, Friedrich Schaub, L. J. Brenner, and J. F. Hartke Die Nordwest Deutsche Konferenz der Bischöflichen Methodistenkirche: Geschichtlich, Sachlich und Biographisch Geschildert (Charles City, Iowa: The Conference, 1913); pages 97-99. Transcription and translation by J. Mark Fiegenbaum.

Notes to the 1913 Biographical Sketch

  1. It is not know exactly where the family was living at the time of Heinrich Rudolph's birth in 1837. Although Heinrich's birth and baptism were recorded in the baptismal register of the Evangelical Church at Femme Osage, St. Charles County, Missouri, there were so few churches in the area that the pastor of this congregation also served German immigrant families living in neighboring Warren County. In 1840, Heinrich's father purchased 40 acres of U.S. government land east of the village of Femme Osage. In 1844, Adolph again purchased government land - 80 acres in Warren County, near Hopewell, just north of Holstein.

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  2. At this time, family researchers know of only five children born to this marriage to Elizabeth Ann Krümpel, Heinrich Rudolph's first wife.

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  3. Heinrich was buried next to his first wife, Elizabeth Ann (Krümpel) Fiegenbaum.

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The following selection about the relocation of Hein and Anna Cathrina (Nuehs) Klindworth from Nokomis, Illinois to Connell, Washington in 1902 mentions that Rudolph Fiegenbaum played a role in the purchase of their new homestead.

As members of the German Methodist Church, Hein and Katie were regular readers of their Church paper "Der Christliche Apologete."  In this paper there appeared an advertisement from the town of Connell in the State of Washington, in which there was described an opportunity for settlers in a drier and more healthful climate.  After reading the advertisement it was decided that Hein should make the trip to Washington to see for himself.  As a result he purchased the relinquishment on a homestead situated nearly two miles south of the town of Connell.  One of my earliest recollections was to see him walking down the road as he came home from that trip.

The next step was to sell the farm in Illinois and a sale was readily effected to a neighbor, Henry Krummell, at $75 per acre making a total of $3,000.  As I remember there was a mortgage of $900, which gave a total of $2,100 in net proceeds.  Another one of my early recollections is the auction sale held on the farm at which the livestock and farm implements, including such items as furniture, were sold.  A modest gravestone was purchased for Walter's grave in the South Fork Cemetery near Nokomis and ownership of the cemetery lot was conveyed to a neighbor, Albert Reineke, on condition that the Reineke family would care for the little grave.

Thus it came about that the little family consisting of Father and Mother together with three children, took the long train journey from Nokomis, Illinois to Connell, Washington in September 1902.  We traveled to St. Louis, Missouri in the late afternoon and evening and spent the night there in a hotel directly across the street from the Union Station.  I still remember this vividly because it was my first experience with electric lights, which seemed to me as a five year old boy to make the night as light as day.  The next morning we boarded a chair car on which we were able to travel without change to Connell, where we arrived on a Saturday morning.  There we were met by a bearded gentleman by the name of Rudolph Fiegenbaum, a retired German Methodist minister who was farming southeast of Connell and who at the same time was the part time real estate agent through whom Father had purchased the relinquishment.  We stayed at the Fiegenbaum home for a few days, after which we moved to our new home on the homestead.

Source: Edward Claus Klindworth, The Life of Hein and Katie Klindworth (S.l.: s.n., 1956); pages 12-13.

A PDF file of the memoir was accessed online in May 2008 from the Family History Collections at the Harold B. Lee Library of Brigham Young University. Since then the digital copy available has become corrupted at page 7 of the PDF document.

Downloadable Files

Chronology

The nature of Heinrich Rudolph Fiegenbaum's work as a circuit preacher in the German Methodist Episcopal Church has made it difficult to create an accurate chronology of his and his family's life. The emerging picture looks something like this:

19 December 1793
Heinrich Rudolph's father, Adolph Heinrich Fiegenbaum, was born at Ladbergen, Grafschaft Tecklenburg (in northwestern Germany).
5 March 1797
Heinrich Rudolph's mother, Christine Elisabeth Peterjohann, was born. The year of birth may also have been 1795 or 1796. The exact place is not known; either Ladbergen or Lengerich, Grafschaft Tecklenburg, (in northwestern Germany).
25 October 1820
Adolph Heinrich Fiegenbaum and Christine Elisabeth Peterjohann were married in the evangelical church at Ladbergen, Province of Westphalia, Kingdom of Prussia. It appears that they settled in the Hohne section of nearby Lengerich, Christine's home town. 1 
1834

Heinrich Rudolph's father (age 40), his mother (age 37), and five siblings (ages 13 years to about 9 months) emigrated from Lengerich, Kingdom of Prussia. In 1898, brother Hermann Wilhelm recalled the event:

When our mother and father and their five children – Rudolph had not been born then – landed at New Orleans, we were penniless.  Henry, the oldest, was 12 years old, and Minnie, the youngest, was only a baby.

The family is reported to have disembarked at New Orleans, Louisiana in late June 1834 and to have traveled up the Mississippi by steamboat in nine days, arriving at St. Louis, Missouri about 3 or 4 July. 2 

The family appears to have settled initially in Femme Osage Township, St. Charles County, Missouri, however, the possibility that they lived just over the line in Charrette Township, Warren County can not be ruled out.

2 January 1837
Heinrich Rudolph Fiegenbaum, the sixth and last child of Adolph & Christine (Peterjohann) Fiegenbaum, was born in St. Charles County, Missouri. The birth and his baptism on 5 February 1837 were recorded in the baptismal register of the German evangelical church at Femme Osage, Missouri (founded in 1833 as the deutsche evangelische Kirchegemeinde and known since 1957 as Femme Osage United Church of Christ). As an adult, he was often known as H. R. or Rudolph; and occasionally as Henry (as was his brother).
4 June 1837
Elizabeth Ann Krümpel was born in the Kingdom of Hannover.
2 April 1838

In St. Charles County Circuit Court, the father, Adolph Fiegenbaum declared his intention to become a citizen of the USA. He also declared that he was a native of Latbergen [sic], Kingdom of Prussia,

that I am a Carpenter by profession, and that I am married to Cristina Peterjohan, and that I have six Children, that I landed in New Orleans in June 1834 and that I intend to settle in the State of Missouri.

June 1840

The federal census of 1840 illustrates the difficulty of establishing where the Fiegenbaum-Peterjohann family resided during their early years in Missouri. The census provides the name of only the head of each household and then a count of the number of people of each sex in the household who fall into a range of ages. For example, the number of males less than 5 years of age; the number of males 5 years to less than 10 years of age; the number of males 10 years to less than 15 years of age; etc.

The census enumerated eight people living in the "A. Frigenbottom" household in Femme Osage Township, St. Charles County, Missouri.

The census also enumerated eight people living in the "Rudolph Feigenbaum" household in Charrette Township, Warren County, Missouri (in a St. Louis Post-Dispatch article published in 1898, Herman Wilhelm Fiegenbaum referred to his father as Rudolph. As far as I know, this is the only instace of such a reference).

In each enumeration, the total number of male and female members of the households was what would be expected based on information provided by other genealogical sources, but the distribution among age groups raises questions which have not yet been answered.

1 October 1840
Adolph Fiegenbaum obtained a federal land patent in St. Louis, Missouri for 40 acres of land in St. Charles County, east of the village of Femme Osage.
1841
The extended family of one of Heinrich Rudolph's uncles (his father's elder brother), Johann Heinrich Fiegenbaum, numbering a group of at least 13 people, emigrated from Ladbergen, Province of Westphalia, Kingdom of Prussia. They landed at Baltimore, Maryland on 28 June 1841 and settled in the area of Hopewell and Holstein, in neighboring Warren County, Missouri (see the passenger list of the bark, Leontine).
1 August 1844
Heinrich Rudolph's father obtained a federal land patent in St. Louis, Missouri for 81.47 acres of land in the area of Hopewell and Holstein, in neighboring Warren County, where his uncle's family had settled.
1844

An article about the family in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch in 1898 quoted a brother, Rev. Hermann Wilhelm Fiegenbaum:

Mother had in former years admonished us against the doctrine of the Methodists, but this preacher changed her mind.  She embraced the creed, as did all of us, in brief time.  That was in 1844....

1850
The 1850 U.S. Census found the Fiegenbaum-Peterjohann family living in Wapello Township, Louisa County, Iowa. According to the enumeration, the household was composed of Adolph, age 57, a farmer; Christine, age 54; Frederick, age 21, a day laborer; and, Rudolph, age 14.
1851
Mary Elizabeth Hellweg, a daughter of Rev. Peter Hellweg and Martha Danker, was born at Lake Creek, Benton County, Missouri.
1859 – 1862
Heinrich Rudolph possibly served the French Creek Church in the Lansing, Iowa, Mission.
28 January 1860
Heinrich Rudolph Fiegenbaum and Elisabeth Ann Krümpel were married at Colesburg, Delaware County, Iowa. Five children were born between 1861 and 1871 to this marriage.
July 1860
According to the 1860 U.S. census, Rudolph (age 23) and Elisabeth "Feigenbaum" (age 23 or 26), who had been married within the census year, were living in the household of Adolph (age 67) and Christina "Feigenbaum" (age 63) in Wapello Township, Louisa County, Iowa.
1861
Heinrich Rudolph joined the Upper Iowa Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church.
26 November 1861
A daughter, Anna Amelia C., was born.
1862 – 1865
Heinrich Rudolph served the Colesburg, Iowa, District. A new church was built for the Zion Congregation in 1864.
20 April 1863
A daughter, Emma Lorena, was born in Iowa.
June 1863
Heinrich Rudolph, identified as a married minister residing in Colony Township, Delaware County, Iowa, was enumerated in a Civil War draft registration conducted in the Third Congressional District of Iowa.
1864
Heinrich Rudolph joined the Northwest German Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church.
1865 – 1867
Heinrich Rudolph served at Platteville, Grant County, Wisconsin. A new church was built in 1866. 3 
1865 – 1866
Heinrich Rudolph possibly served in Stitzer, Grant County, Wisconsin (however, this may have been his brother, Heinrich Hermann Fiegenbaum, also identified in church literature as Rev. Henry Fiegenbaum).
1867 – 1870
Heinrich Rudolph was appointed to Charles City, Floyd County, Iowa. The circuit also involved serving: Albert Lea and Blue Earth, in Minnesota; Esterville, Spirit Lake, Peterson, Fort Dodge, Eagle Grove, Forest City, Webster City, Alden, Iowa Falls, Hampton, Waterloo, and Decorah, in Iowa. The Flood Creek congregation was also part of this appointment until 1869, when it was separated from Charles City and joined with the Shell Rock Mission.
19 March 1867
A son, William Henry, was born in Iowa.
22 October 1869
A son, Charles Herman, was born in Iowa.
1870 – 1872
Heinrich Rudolph served in Giard, Clayton County, Iowa.
August 1870

According to the 1870 U.S. census, the Fiegenbaum-Krümpel family was living at Charles City, Floyd County, Iowa. The household consisted of Henry R. Fiegenbum [sic], age 33; born in Missouri; a clergyman; Anna E. Fiegenbum, age 33, born in Hanover, keeping house; Emma S. Fiegenbum, age 6, born in Iowa, attending school; William H. Fiegenbum, age 3, born in Iowa; and Charles H. Fiegenbum, age 9 months, born in October in Iowa. Also in the household was Martha J. Evans, age 16, born in Iowa, attending school.

For some unknown reason, Heinrich and Elizabeth (Krümpel) Fiegenbaum's eldest child, Anna Amelia C. Fiegenbaum, is not in the enumeration.

10 July 1871
A son, Arthur Frederick, was born in Iowa.
Spring 1872 – ?
Heinrich Rudolph served as financial agent for Charles City College (Floyd County, Iowa).
9 July 1873
Anna Amelia C., a daughter of Heinrich Rudolph and his first wife, Elizabeth Ann Krümpel, died and was buried in Zion Cemetery, in Colony Township, Delaware County, Iowa.
1872? – 1880?
Heinrich Rudolph returned to Garner, Hancock County, Iowa (for 8 years?) during which he served one year at La Crosse, La Crosse County, Wisconsin.
17 June 1874
William Henry, a son of Heinrich Rudolph and his first wife, Elizabeth Ann Krümpel, died and was buried in Concord Cemetery at Garner, Hancock County, Iowa.
23 September 1877
Heinrich Rudolph's 1st wife, Elizabeth Ann Krümpel, died. She was buried in Concord Cemetery at Garner, Hancock County, Iowa.
27 January 1878
Heinrich Rudolph married his 2nd wife, Mary Elizabeth Hellweg, a daughter of Rev. Peter Hellweg and Martha Danker, at Charles City, Floyd County, Iowa. Four children were born between 1878 and 1885 to this marriage.
Fall 1878 – 1880
Heinrich Rudolph served the First German Methodist Episcopal Church at La Crosse, La Crosse County, Wisconsin. The church building was either built or remodeled at this time. 4 
26 November 1878
A daughter, Luella Annetta, was born in Wisconsin.
14 May 1880
A daughter, Adelaide Katherine, was born at La Crosse, La Crosse County, Wisconsin.
June 1880
According to the 1880 U.S. census, the Fiegenbaum-Hellweg family was living on Ferry Street, at La Crosse, La Crosse County, Wisconsin. The household consisted of Henry Fiegenbaum, head of household, age 43, born in Missouri, married, a Methodist pastor; "Hellwig" Fiegenbaum, wife, age 28, born in Missouri, married, keeping house; Emma Fiegenbaum, daughter, age 16, born in Iowa, single, who had attended school in the census year; Charles Fiegenbaum, son, age 10, born in Iowa, single, who had attended school in the census year; Arthur Fiegenbaum, son, age 7, born in Iowa, single, who had attended school in the census year; "Lulea" Fiegenbaum, daughter, age 1, born in Wisconsin, single; "Adelina" Fiegenbaum, daughter, age 1 month, born in May 1880 in Wisconsin; "Edward Hellberg," male, age 20, born in Illinois, a boarder; single; and Henriette Hellwig, female, age 24, born in Missouri, a servant, single.
1880? – 1882?
Heinrich Rudolph returned to Garner, Hancock County, Iowa (for 2 years?).
16 July 1882
A daughter, Elsie Arnbella, was born.
1884
Heinrich Rudolph opened a mission at Atchison, Atchison County, Kansas.
9 February 1885
A son, Rudolph Edward Dwight (known as R. D.), was born at Atchison, Atchison County, Kansas.
1885 – 1887/88
Heinrich Rudolph served Dubuque, Dubuque County, Iowa. The "present" [i.e., 1913] parsonage was built at that time.
September 1887
Daughter Emma Lorena Fiegenbaum and John D. Allen were married.
1887 – 1892
Heinrich Rudolph served the Colesburg (Delaware County) Iowa, District. A new church for the Zion Congregation was built in 1889.
1887 – 1889
Heinrich Rudolph served the Wood Congregation (near Colesburg, Iowa).
1892 – 1894
Heinrich Rudolph served at Ft. Dodge, Webster County, Iowa.
15 December 1894
Luella Annetta, a son of Heinrich Rudolph and his second wife, Mary Elizabeth Hellweg, died at Garner, Hancock County, Iowa.
1894 – 1897
Heinrich Rudolph served again at Flood Creek, Iowa.
22 July 1897
Son Charles Herman Fiegenbaum and Pauline Nehls were married at Platteville, Grant County, Wisconsin.
1899 – 1901
Heinrich Rudolph served at Garner, Hancock County, Iowa.
June 1900

According to the 1900 U.S. census, the Fiegenbaum-Hellweg family was living at Garner, Hancock County, Iowa. The household consisted of Henry R. Fiegenbaum, head of the household, born January 1840 in Missouri, age 60, married, for 22 years, a minister in the German Methodist Episcopal Church; Mary E. Fiegenbaum, wife, born October 1862 in Missouri, age 47; married for 22 years, the mother of 4 children (3 still living); Elsie A. Fiegenbaum, daughter, born July 1882 in Iowa, age 17, attending school; and Rudolph E. D. Fiegenbaum, son, born February 1885 in Kansas, age 15, attending school. Also in the household was Catherine Schneider, a boarder, born February 1873 in Iowa, age 27, single, a dry goods saleswoman.

According to information from many other sources, Henry and Mary appear younger in this enumeration than they really were.

1901
Heinrich Rudolph moved to Connell, Franklin County, Washington. Here, he was also engaged in farming and selling real estate.
25 January 1905
Daughter Elsie Arnbella Fiegenbaum and Aaron L. Eaton were married in Franklin County, Washington.
1906
Heinrich and Mary (Hellweg) Fiegenbaum were living at Connell, Franklin County, Washington.
11 September 1908
Heinrich Rudolph died at Gooding, Gooding County, Idaho. He was buried in Concord Cemetery at Garner, Hancock County, Iowa.
17 January 1914
Son Rudolph Edward Dwight Fiegenbaum and Bertha Amanda Preas were married at Fruitvale, Lincoln County, Oregon.
October 1924
Mary Elizabeth (Hellweg) Fiegenbaum died at Wendell, Gooding County, Idaho. She was buried in Wendell Cemetery.

Notes to Chronology

(Click on a note number to return to that footnote, above.)

1.  Many U.S. sources report that Adolph Heinrich Fiegenbaum and Christine Elisabeth Peterjohann's children were born at the village of Ladbergen. Researchers of church records in Germany state that the birth places were at nearby Lengerich. They note that Adolph was born and raised at Ladbergen, but following his marriage to Christine the couple moved to Lengerich, his wife's home town. The couple's first five children were born at Lengerich. The sixth and last child, Heinrich Rudolph, was born after the entire family had emigrated to Missouri.

2.  See More Resources, below, for documentation. Of particular note: Adolph's Declaration of Intention, a biographical sketch of Heinrich Hermann Fiegenbaum, Friedrich W. Fiegenbaum's autobiographical statement, and recollections from Hermann Wilhelm Fiegenbaum in an article in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch in 1898.

3.  In additon to the biographical sketch, above, see "German Methodist Church Hold Their Last Meeting," in the Platteville (Wisconsin) Journal, 16 August 1916, (page unknown). The present church was built in 1866, during the pastorate of H. F. [sic] Fiegenbaum, who moved from here to Charles City, Iowa, where he baptized as an infant, the present pastor.

Accessed October 2005 at the Wisconsin Historical Society, Wisconsin Local History and Biography Articles at:

<http://www.wisconsinhistory.org/wlhba/articleView.asp?pg=1&id=10622&pn=0>.

4.  In additon to the biographical sketch, above, see "The First German M. E. Church" in Methodism in La Crosse From 1849 to 1904 (La Crosse, Wisconsin?: S.l.: s.n., 1904), page [9?]. In 1879 the society [i.e., the German Methodist Episcopal Society of La Crosse] remodeled this property [on Jay Street], the pastor at that time being Rev. H. R. Fiegenbaum.

This booklet accessed on 28 September 2005 at La Crosse Public Library Digital Library Collections at <http://lacrosselibrary.org/digital/methodism/contents.htm>.

The article on the First German Methodist Episcopal Church (later known as Salzer, and then Asbury United Methodist Church) begins at <.../methodism/00110011.htm>.

See also, Consul Willshire Butterfield, History of La Crosse County, Wisconsin: Containing an Account of its Settlement, Growth, Development and Resources: etc., etc. (Chicago: Western Historical Company, 1881), pages 569-570. In the fall of 1878, the Conference appointed Rev. H. R. Fiegenbaum, who labored with much energy and built the present beautiful church.  Owing to ill health, he felt unable to continue as Pastor, and was succeeded by the Rev. George Holger.

Brief Genealogy

Heinrich Rudolph Fiegenbaum's family

Elizabeth Ann Krümpel's family

Fiegenbaum - Krümpel family

Heinrich Rudolph Fiegenbaum's 1st marriage

Mary Elizabeth Hellweg's family

Fiegenbaum - Hellweg family

Heinrich Rudolph Fiegenbaum's 2nd marriage

More Resources