Biographies beginning with "H"

Scott County, Minnesota

The Early Settlers of St. John's Parish at Union Hill in 1867
By Victorin J. Ruhland June 1967

The Hauers

The Hauer family of 1867 included five brothers, four of them civil war veterans. They were Andrew, Jacob, Matthias, Nicholas (Klaus) and Nicholas (Nick).

Only Jacob and Mattias Hauer are included in the list of 44 families who were in the parish a century ago. However, land ownership records tend to indicate that the five brothers were in the community at that time. It is possible that the other members of the Hauer family belonged to the parish at Heidelberg in 1867, or it is possible that the original list of 44 families was not complete.

Only Mathias and Nicholas (Klaus) remained in this area after 1867. Andrew moved to Fort Dodge, Iowa; Jacob settled near Montgomery; and Nicholas (Nick) lived in several areas including Iowa, Ellsworth, and Belle Plaine. In later years, he lived with his niece in Union Hill.

The Hauers were among the first of the original settlers of this community to come to this country. In 1850 Nicholas and Eva Schlinker Hauer brought their family from Trier, Germany and settled in Michigan. They did not find Michigan to their liking and moved to St. Paul. In the late 1850's they came to this area. Mrs. Hauer died during the civil war when her sons were away from home serving in the army. The elder Hauer always felt that they should never have left St. Paul for the frontier life in this community following the death of his wife according to the story that is told. In addition to the five sons, the family included Mrs. Nicholas Wilwerding (Margaret).

The Hauer family included two sons with the name Nicholas. The older Nicholas went by the name Klaus and the younger was called Nick.

 

Matthias Hauer

The military life of the Civil War attracted Matt partly because of the better wages that could be earned. In August, 1861, he along with his brothers, Jacob and Andrew, enlisted and served with the Minnesota Second Infantry Regiment. He was discharged with the regiment at the end of the war. In 1865 he was married to Mary Peters of St. Benedict. They were the first couple to be married in St. John's. They made their home in Section 14 of Derrynane Township. Although their romance developed in this community, both famlies knew each other well. The Peters and Hausers were neighbors in their homeland near Trier.

The Haurers had a family of 13 children. They included Nicholas and Mrs. Anna Renneberg (Theresia) of Union Hill; John of Fort Dodge, Iowa; Mrs Andrew Giesen of St. Paul; Peter, Mrs Matt Nickalay, Joseph and Mrs Peter Thomas, New Prague; and Matt and Henry of Heidelberg. Three died in their youth. Mrs. Renneberg and Mrs. Thomas are still active today. The Matt Hauers later joined the parish in Heidelberg and both are buried in the cemetary located there.

The Early Settlers of St. John's Parish at Union Hill in 1867
By Victorin J. Ruhland June 1967
 

Nicholas Hauer

Nicholas (Klaus) Hauer lived a long life to the grand age of 96. Klaus came with the rest of the family to this area. He received ownership of 160 acres of land in Section 25 of Belle Plaine Township from the United States Government. Later , he and Leonard Rech traded farms and on this second farm in Derrynane Township he made his home the rest of his life.

On June 10, 1863, Klaus was married to Gertrude Renneberg in a home in Shakopee. Gertrude was born in Hoegen, Germany, to Anton and Johanna Spaetgens Renneberg. The Rennebergs came to this country and to this area in 1863, the same year Gertrude was married.

Klaus joined his brothers as soldiers in the Civil War. In June, 1864, he was drafted and served in the Minnesota Fourth Infantry Regiment. He was discharged with the rest of his regiment. Neither he nor his three brothers suffered an injury during the war years.

The Hauers had a family of eight sons and two daughters. They were Mrs. Margaret Mahowald of New Market; Mrs. Henry Barten (Mary), Dominic, and Frank of Union Hill; Anton of Hector; Peter of Heidelberg; Nicholas of Leofeld, Canada; Henry of St. Paul; John of Belle Plaine; and Matt of Washington State.

The Early Settlers of St. John's Parish at Union Hill in 1867
By Victorin J. Ruhland June 1967
 

Anton Heinen

Anton Heinen brought his wife and family from Waxweiler, Germany, directly to this area in the early 1860's. They settled on an 80 acre farm about three miles north of Union Hill. Several years later they bought another 80 acres that laid just south of their farm.

Anton was born in 1821 and died in 1892. His wife, Katherine Heinen was born in 1820 and died in 1904. Both are buried in Union Hill.

The children of the Anton Heinens include Mrs. William Unzen and Mrs. John Gansen of Union Hill and Michael Heinen of Minneota, Minnesota. After Mrs. Unzen's death, William moved to St. Leo with his family and later to the state of Oklahoma.

The Early Settlers of St. John's Parish at Union Hill in 1867
By Victorin J. Ruhland June 1967
 

William Hoffman

The William Hoffmanns were among the first settlers to this part of the country. They arrived in 1853 directly from Dollendorf, Germany. Along with them came the Schneiders; the two wives were sisters. The Hoffmans settled on 160 acres in Section 35 of Belle Plaine Township and made their home on it for the rest of their lives. The farm was obtained directly from the US Government.

William was born in 1799. For awhile he had been driver and caretaker of the horses of Count Beisel of Cologne.

William and Sybilla's (Klinkhammer) family included Mrs. John Giesen later Mrs. Carl Witt (Helena) and Joseph of Union Hill, and Margaret who married John Peter Mamer of New Prague. The family also included a daughter who died in Wisconsin while the family was coming to Union Hill and another daughter who stayed in Germany.

The Early Settlers of St. John's Parish at Union Hill in 1867
By Victorin J. Ruhland June 1967
 

John Huss

John Huss and his family came to Union Hill in 1863 in a covered wagon and settled on a farm one mile north of the community. His single brother, Stephen, had come to this area two years earlier. Within ten years the two brothers owned 360 acres of land. In later years, John opened a store in Union Hill. This was the first store in Union Hill.

John Huss and his brother Stephen were born in Fliesheim, Germany and came to Kenosha, Wisconsin in 1854. In 1857, John married Elizabeth Niesen in Kenosha, Wisconsin. Elizabeth was born in Wallersheim, Germany to Joe and Katherine Schneider Niesen. She immigrated to this country in 1853 and settled in the Kenosha area.

The John Huss family included sons: Stephen, Matt and John, and daughters: Mrs Frank Giesen (Katherine), and Mrs. Matt Michael (Anna). A son Nick died in infancy. All the children spent their lives in the Union Hill area.

The Early Settlers of St. John's Parish at Union Hill in 1867
By Victorin J. Ruhland June 1967
 

John Hinderscheit

It is believed that John Hinderscheit lived in the Union Hill area about a year and a half  before moving on. He later settled in St. Paul, married and raised a family there. He was a cousin to John Hinderscheit of Heidelberg, the later which has descendants living in Union Hill today.

The John Hinderscheit in Union Hill in 1867 must have come with friends or relatives from his birthplace of Waxweiler, Germany to the Union Hill area as he was only fifteen years at the time. The story is told that he was more interested in adventure in the new land than in supporting the military ambitions of the rulers of his homeland. Land ownership records show him owning 40 acres about a half mile southwest of Union Hill in 1866 and 1867. He then sold the farm and moved on.

In 1868, John was married to Mary Peters in St. Paul. They had six children; namely Emma, Joseph, Margaret, Henry, Mary and Anna. John held the position of teamster with the Bruggemann Brew Company for many years. The Hinderscheit name came originally from Luxembourg. Shortly after 1700 one of the Hinderscheits married into a famliy in Waxweiler and remained there. He, no doubt, was the ancestor of John.

The Early Settlers of St. John's Parish at Union Hill in 1867
By Victorin J. Ruhland June 1967

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