Adam Dewald (b. February 14, 1810, d. October 07, 1876)
Adam Dewald (son of ? Dewald and Eliesabeth Katherine ?) was born February 14, 1810 in his mothers home, and died October 07, 1876 in Lembach. He married Elisabeth Hartmann on March 11, 1835 in A small village near Lembach.
Notes for Adam Dewald: Adam never saw his father. He was born in his mother's home. When his mother remarried, young Adam was raised in the Saar District as a Fieger (or Vicher). He was never legally adopted by his step-father, so when he became of military age his true family name came to light.
In the middle 1800's, Adam moved his family to Lembach, acquired a rock quarry, and contracted with the French government to maintain highways (chaussee). He used crushed rock, sand, and water, with a horse or ox-drawn roller, wagons, etc. Adam was assisted by his sons.
The family was deeply religious. Frederic became active in evangelistic work from the early 1860's with the Strasbourg Evangelistic Society (also known as the Pietists), holding Sunday meetings regularly in various surrounding towns. His brother, John Adam, attended St. Chrischona Seminary of the Basel Evangelical Missionary Society in Basel, Switzerland. Upon graduating in 1872, he accepted a call as minister in New York State, thereby becoming the first of the three brothers to emigrate to the United States.
In 1870, as the Franco-Prussian War approached, French troops bivouacked at Lembach. The Dewalds were impressed into service to furnish wagon transportation. When the Prussian advanced, the French fell back and fought one of the first battles of the war near the village of Worth. Subsequent battles were fought around nearby Weissenburg and Freoschwiller. When the French were driven back, the Dewalds were impressed by the Prussians for the same type of work -- transporting baggage and supplies to the front, and wounded to the rear. Frederic came home from some of these trips covered with blood from the wounded. Madelaine, perhaps the only trained nurse in Lembach, cared for several high-ranking officers of both sides in the Dewald home while they recovered from their wounds. Some remained in the home for a considerable length of time before they could be moved. Frederic commented lather that the Prussians were fair in redeeming vouchers given for services rendered or supplies taken. The French were driven back so fast that they did not have time to settle their debts.
After the war Lembach, as part of the Alsace, became German territory. The Germans had a compulsory military training requirement for young men which was unpopular in the Lembach area. In 1874, Louis Dewald emigrated to the United States through France to escape this training, and settled eventually in northeast Nebraska. Henry and Louis Dillmann, half-brothers of Madelaine, emigrated separately in the same manner and for the same reason.
In 1883, Frederic decided to move his family to America. He was bothered by a throat condition aggravated by dust from the quarry. His doctor advised a move. He also did not want his sons to become "cannon fodder" for the next war, the coming of which was already a generally accepted fact. They took the train for LeHavre, a ship to New York, visited briefly with the John Adam Dewalds in New Jersey, then proceeded by water to Galveston, Texas. They settled eventually at Copperas Cove.
*Lissett married John Schaeffer. They remained in Lembach where they took over the family quarry business when Frederic left. Later John was killed in a quarry explosion mishap. Lissett subsequently married George Werner.
*Matilda came to the United States after her brothers John Adam and Louis, but before Frederic. She lived in New York as a housekeeper or governess for a prominent family. After Frederic moved to Copperas Cove, Texas, he built a small house for her near his own. She lived there for a year or two in the early 1890s until she died of stomach cancer.
Adam and Elisabeth Dewald lived our their days in Lembach. Elisabeth died on November 6, 1876 and Adam on October 7, 1886. Their daughter Lissett died there on July 3, 1889.
*The names of the sisters in these two paragraphs have been switched from Henry Adam's recollections. This change is based on vital statistics found recorded in the Lembach "village-hall".
More About Adam Dewald and Elisabeth Hartmann: Marriage: March 11, 1835, A small village near Lembach.
Children of Adam Dewald and Elisabeth Hartmann are:
+Frederic Dewald, b. March 20, 1839, "Glashutte" manor house at Mattstall, near Lembach in the Alsace, d. August 23, 1901, Copperas Cove, Texas.
Louise Dewald, b. January 13, 1847, date could also be January 19, d. date unknown.
Adam Dewald (b. February 14, 1810, d. October 07, 1876)
Notes for Adam Dewald: