2. | Bernard WEIDERT was born on 13 Mar 1794 in Tuntange, Mersch, LUXEMBOURG (son of Theodore WEIDERT and Anna Maria BROSIUS); died on 21 Aug 1855 in Rasselas, Elk, PA; was buried in Holy Cross Cemetery, Rasselas, Elk, PA. Other Events and Attributes:
- Birth: 12 May 1793, Tuntange, Mersch, LUXEMBOURG
- Immigratn: 30 May 1847
- Immigratn: 2 Aug 1847
- Census: 6 Aug 1850, Jones Township, Elk, PA
Notes:
Note:
The locality of Tuntange (French suffix for village is -ange, while German is -ingen) is also recorded Tuntingen and Tintingen. Their oldest daughter was married to a Johann Metz on February 11, 1846. They preceded the rest of the family over to the US. Bill does not know if they were scouting things out, but probably so. The family left Luxembourg in 1847. They travelled to the French port of Le Harve and boarded the S.S. Monterey. They arrived in New York City on August 1, 1847. Bill writes: Bernard was a carpenter by trade, which is revealing. Aside from Luxembourg being a poor country at the time, the family land over the generations had been divided up into smaller and smaller plots. Assuming that Bernard was not the first born male, he may have had no land, which would have put him a notch down on the economic ladder. Makes you wonder how he managed to feed that crowd. He and his wife probably moved to provide opportunity for their children. I see that Bernard only lived a few years after arriving here. He obviously had some money, though, or they could not have made the trip. Amazing that no one died on the journey. I do not recall the name of the church in Tuntange. It is a very small village with no commercial area. All farming from what I could see on a 2 hour visit. Patton's 3rd Army steamrollered through there on the way north to stop the last German offensive in the Battle of the Bulge. I visited the American cemetery in Hamm where Patton is buried. He is where he would want to be - at the head of his troops. The Weidert family is mentioned in the note for George Markert 2nd, in connection with the location of the school in Rasselas, PA. The settlers built Holy Cross Catholic Church in Rasselas, but this project was undertaken shortly after the death of Bernard Weidert in 1855. Dennis Brown 1/21/02
Immigratn:
When Bernard was born Luxembourg had been incorporated into France as the Department of Forests. In 1813 he was conscripted into the French Army. After Napoleon's defeat he was discharged in the spring of 1814 by the Allies. He and wife Marie decided to emigrate to the US with their 12 children in 1847. They sailed from Le Havre, France on the S.S. Monterey, landing in New York in August of 1847. With anti-Catholic sentiment on the East Coast they moved inland and settled in Elk County, PA with other emigrants, primarily from Germany. He worked as a tanner in Smithport, PA where thousands of buffalo hides were processed from the Great Plains for decades until the herds were destroyed finally in the 1880's. He died at age 61 of unknown causes.
Immigratn:
Bernard and Marie arrived at the Port of New York on August 2, 1847 having set sail from Le Havre, France. The passenger list includes: Bernard, 52 and Marie, 49 and their 11 children: Mary, 24; Barbara, 23; Catherine, 21; Michael, 19; Peter, 17; John, 14; Elizabeth, 11; Magdelaine, 9; Marie, 6; William, 3; Madelaine, 1.
Census:
1850 census at Jones Township, Elk, PA shows: Bernard Weidert (indexed as Wedart) 56, farmer, b. GERMANY; Mary, 52, b. GERMANY; children b. GERMANY: Peter 18, laborer; John 15, laborer; Lucy, 14; Lena, 12; Mary, 10; William, 8; Lany, 4. Also enumerated is , John Myers, 34, teamster, b. GERMANY; Mary, 27, b. GERMANY; children b. PA: Peter, 2, Barbara 1.
Buried:
Find A Grave e-Memorial
Bernard married Maria BODEVIN on 19 Feb 1821. Maria (daughter of Johann BODEVIN and Magdalena HOFFMAN) was born on 1 Nov 1798 in Tuntange, Mersch, LUXEMBOURG; died on 12 Oct 1884 in Rasselas, Elk, PA; was buried in Holy Cross Cemetery, Rasselas, Elk, PA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]
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