| The first Van Twistern we know of in the United States was Henry William Van Twistern. There are both Van Twisterns and von Twisterns in the United States but it is unknown if the Vans and vons are descended from Heinrich Wilhelm (Henry William). No individual within my family is certain of Henry William's background, or exactly when he came to the United States. There is a story in our branch of the family that he changed his name because he didn't want to be associated with those in power in Germany during the 1800's. He was also said to be an engineer and worked on or did some design work on the 3rd Avenue Elevated Rail in NYC. What we know of him is that he was born sometime around 1832, arrived in the United States sometime in the mid-late 1800's, married Mary Neisinger and had 8 children: Anna, Etta, Henry, Louise, Mary, Richard Alexander, Theodore, and William Henry. Information regarding the von Twisterns came to me from a von Twistern from Germany now living in the United States. From the research this individual's family was said to have done, the von Twistern family was thought to be landowners with property near or around the city of Kassel (Germany). A town in the area or just outside of Kassel is named Twiste-tal. The little information I have found regarding von Twisterns coming to the U.S. were on the web sites of The Institute of Germany Aristocratic Research (http://home.foni.net/~adelsforschung/index5.htm) I have also found reference to both von Twistern and Van Twistern on the Ellis Island web site. More recently Klaus, living in Poland, but originally from Bremen, contacted me. Klaus is married to a von Twistern and seems to have done extensive research on the von Twistern family conducted through die maus Bremen (http://www.genealogienetz.de/vereine/maus/index_e.htm). First, Klaus specifies that there are no records of von Twistern [that he could find] in the "old Adel," Adel being the aristocracy in Germany, or Adelsfamilien. Therefore it is unlikely that von Twistern has its basis in geography, as in from Twistern. Further, the prefix von was also often conferred on a person for good works or brave deeds; this is more likely the case with the Twistern family. As to origins based on first name, Heinrich and Wilhelm are names typically found in Northern Germany. It wasn't until the late 1800s that there was a united Germany. From 1815 through 1866, a loose confederation of 39 states formed the German Union and from 1867 through 1870 there was the Northern German Confederation. This did not include Bavaria, Württemberg, Baden, and the southern parts of the Grand Duchy of Hesse where Kassel is located. Heinrich Wilhelm is “preussische” as was the Kaiser in Berlin. Kassel cooperated with England, as did Hannover. This makes it even more likely that Heinrich Wilhelm's origins are Northern German. The earliest record Klaus found of a von Twistern comes from "Das Bremer Kaufmanns-Akzise-Rechnungsbuch von 1617," In this tax book, entry No. 1509, there is a record dated 21.August 1617 of a Hans von Twistern paying 3 Grote as sales-tax for selling 1 Barrel of fish (Matjeshering). This book is a rare find as many records were lost in the 30 year war (1618 - 1648). When Heinrich Wilhelm came to the United States, it was unlikely that many common men, even those from families who had honorific titles awarded them, attended university. Families were large and typically, only the first son stayed home, and with little industrialization at the time in Germany, all other sons had to find their fortunes elsewhere. Because Prussia was at war with Denmark and then Austria from 1860 to 1866, millions of soldiers were needed in Europe. Based on these social and political conditions, it may be that Heinrich Wilhelm was a Prussian soldier, and with the end of the Austro-Prussian War and accumulated pay, he emigrated to the U.S. |
The Van Twistern or von Twistern Family Information Search
Updated April 8, 2010 |
David Van Twistern |
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