CEDAR COUNTY, NEBRASKA - HERMAN WITTE FAMILY GROUP SHEET
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This file was submitted by: Carol Tramp
<catramp@esu1.org>
Posted: February 2006
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Herman and Gertrude Rupiper Witte
Johann Heinrich Witte was born in Lotswoldorf, Germany, and died
1854 in Cincinnati, OH. He married Anna Marie Gerbert Before 1824 in
Germany. Anna was baptized March 4, 1801, daughter of John Herman and Anna
C. Feldman Gerbert. After their marriage the family used the last name
Gerbert until the family decided to immigrate to America and used the name
Johann’s name Witte. Johann immigrated to Cincinnati, Ohio in 1844 with
their oldest son John Heinrich or Henry Witte born 1924. The following year
Anna and children Bernard b. 1832, Herman born February 8, 1838, and daughter
Theresa immigrated also. Theresa died during the journey and was buried
overboard. The family lost eight other children who died young in Germany.
When Herman was twelve, his mother died and he did the housekeeping
and cooking for his family until he was eighteen and his father died. Herman
left for St. Louis, MO., Where he spent the civil war years driving a beer
truck.
Both of his brothers enlisted in the army. One brother was a tailor,
the other a butcher. Bernard, never married died later at an old soldier’s
home. Henry married a Magdalena Becker, contracted yellow fever while of
prisoner of war and died later leaving five children behind. Magdalena died
young and the five children were left orphans. The couple is buried at Mount
Ridge, Ohio.
Herman traveled on to New Vienna or NuVena, IA close to Three
Crosses, Ia where worked in a wool factory. He met and married Gertrude
Rupiper, daughter of Henry and Katharina Hoefner (Hoevener) Rupiper on April
05, 1864. She was born February 18, 1843 in Munsterland Dadeln Germany. When
Gertrude was two years old her family came to America settling near Dubuque,
Iowa.
The couple decided to homestead in Nebraska in 1868, and taking the
train they traveled with four of Gertrude’s sisters; Antointte (William)
Riesburg, and Clara (Henry) Backman and Elizabeth Nabor; and Frances
Schumacher; and two brothers William (Mary Ann Riesburg) and John and
(Elizabeth Lammers) Rupiper by train across Iowa. When they arrived in Wiley,
near Carroll, Iowa the Riesburg and William Rupiper family decided to stay
there.
Sisters Elizabeth Nabor and husband, and Frances Rupiper (Henry Schumacher),
dropped off at Bancroft, NE.
The rest of the family continued on to Sioux City, Iowa and bought wagon
and teams to travel to St. Helena, NE where they decided to homestead one and
half miles east of Menominee.
John and Elizabeth Rupiper went on Butte or Naper Ne in 1882 and stayed
for several years till a hail storm forced them to return to Crofton, Ne. This
couple was killed in a tornado May 18, 1918. Three of their daughters were badly
hurt in the storm, one dying from her injuries. The couple is buried in
Constance, NE cemetery. This place is the current Marnie Shieffer home today
east of Crofton.
The couple had twelve children:
Herman Henry b.15-1-1865 Iowa d. 10-3-1865 Iowa, show died young,
Mary b.14 -1-1844 Iowa d. 1882 Nebraska, died at seventeen.
Bernard b. 28-2-1870 Nebraska d. 2-12-1940 married Elizabeth Hoesing,
William b. 25-1-1871 NE married Anna B Bauer.
Herman b. 22-3-1872 NE,d. 28-9-1944 married Minnie Kleeman.
Kate b. 10-12-1873 Ne. d. 5-11- 1918 died from the flu, married 11-9-1894, Henry Roth.
Anna b. 2l-1-1876 Ne. d. 17-3-1941 SD married Frank Tramp 9-5-1895.
Gertrude b. 9-6-1881 died b. 2-1-1963 married Peter Kleinschmidt.
Henry b. 1883 Ne. d. 1908 SD, who died from appendix, married Josephine Haller.
Agatha b. 5-2-1885 Ne. d. 25-4-1959, married Charles Holzbower.
Peter b. 9-11-1887 Ne- d. 31-5-1966 married Frances Schmidt
John b. 11-2-1879 d. Ne. 18-5-1957 married Mabel Loury
Herman Witte was dedicated to building St. Boniface (Catholic) Church
built and helping rebuild each time disaster struck. In 1871, The St. Boniface
congregation asked him to go back to Dubuque, Iowa to collect money for the
building of the church. The St. Boniface Church there donated $245 to help raise
the Menominee church. Herman was one on the carpenters helping build the church.
Gertrude worked as a midwife in the area and was well known for her
ability to work with the sick.
After retiring from farming, they moved into the town of Menominee, and
resided in the old school upstairs before the new school was built. Later the
school was moved farther south in town and became the store for the community.
Mrs. Witte died of stomach cancer in the upstairs of the building where they
lived one year after the couple celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary, March 29,
1915. Granddaughters Rose Tramp Lockman, Isabel Tramp Hoesing, Lavina Kleinschmit
Lange and Theresa Kleinschmit Lange often helped care for their ailing grandmother
before she died.
Herman later lived with two daughters, Anna, Mrs, Frank Tramp, in the
winter because they had a furnace to heat their home and in the warmer months of
the year he lived with Gertrude, Mrs. Peter Kleinschmit.
Herman, was small in stature, around five feet and 1-1/2 inches tall, One
oddity about his physical appearance was the big shoes he wore (size 10), so large
for so little of a man. His shoes bought too large for more comfort because of
crowbar toes.
Herman “Grandpa Witte” died January 12, 1929 at the age of 90 years and his
funeral was conducted out of the Menominee St. Boniface church. He was buried beside
his wife in the parish cemetery.