SKETCH CV
THE GERMAN SETTLEMENT IN MIDDLETON
Throughout these sketches frequent reference is made to the superior moral characteristics of the pioneer heads of Norfolk’s old families. This moral excellence on the part of the old foundation-builders accounts for the superior moral worth of the citizenship of “Glorious Old Norfolk” to-day. As to nationality our grand ancestors came from everywhere, and the best blood of all civilized Christian nations is incorporated in their posterity. Through the intermarriage of the descendants of the old pioneers the original elements have become blended, and thus we have a composite type of citizenship that makes us the most highly-developed people in the world. We sometimes speak of this or that element in our population as a “foreign” element; but if this means anything, it is that the element in question, having been added to the mixture at a more recent date, has not yet become incorporated in the common mass. It will lose its identity in a generation or two, however, and although the feature of distinctiveness will be lost forever, the fusion will add tone and vigor to the composite whole. There are elements of population which would lower the common standard, but thanks to the divinity that makes and unmakes nations, such elements have never fastened themselves upon the soil of Norfolk. The man who built the first permanent white man’s home in Norfolk wilderness was a Pennsylvania Dutchman, and from that first settlement down to the present time, men and women through whose veins coursed the blood of some old Dutch or German family, have played an important part in making the country what it is.
But it is those hardy German families that came to us at the close of the first half of the present century and settled in the pine forests of Middleton that form the special subject of this sketch.[1] These German pioneers have performed a most difficult task. They have converted a dark forbidding forest into fruitful farms, and the enjoyment which they derive from good, comfortable homes in their old age, is a just and fitting recompense for the hardships and privations suffered during the first ten or twelve years of Middleton bush life. Being natives mostly, of the old kingdom of Wurtemberg, they received a fundamental education, and were trained to habits of industry and frugal economy. Born in humble peasant homes, their lot was the common lot of the peasantry in all old European countries—a life devoid of luxury and devoted to slavish toil, and utterly hopeless as to future prospects of promotion or of acquiring homes for themselves. Notwithstanding this fact the sons and daughters of old Wurtemberg have reason to feel proud of their “Faterland.” It is a small country—being only a little larger then the western peninsula of Ontario—and yet it has a wonderful history, extending all the way back to the decline of the Roman Empire. It has a fine climate, and is rich in natural resources. The educational institutions of Wurtemberg are not excelled by those of any country in the world, having so limited an area. The land that gave birth to the larger number of these Middleton pioneers, gave the world such men as Schiller, Uhland, Brentz, Baur, Strauss, Kepler, Stiefel, and Gatners, Schonbein, Wachter, Hetch and the famous Dannecker. To show the industrial status of this little kingdom with its population of only 1,818,539, it is only necessary to state that, in 1871, the total value of land, houses, railroads, movables, etc., was estimated at 2,710,000,000 florins, and the income of the people at 276,000,000 florins.
The old fathers and mothers who made up the vanguard in the Middleton settlement were boys and girls in old “Faterland” when the good King William I. succeeded his father—Duke Frederick II.—as king of Wurtemberg, and began his long prosperous reign over the newly-made kingdom. About the year 1840 these boys and girls had become men and women. The kingdom had prospered under the new reign as it had never before, and many a young peasant in Wurtemberg and the adjoining States of Bavaria and Baden was seized with a determination to raise above their inherited environments, and become lords of their own manors. But they could not do this in their native land, and so they resolved to migrate to the new world. There was no sacrifice of ancestral homes and distinguishing social positions when these old German pioneers bade their fellow-laborers farewell and turned their faces towards the new land. They came not with money to buy lands, but with stout hearts, clear consciences and willing hands. They knew that in Upper Canada work was plentiful, wages good and lands cheap; and that these were sure and certain stepping-stones to the acquisition of homes of their own. They had been reared in the religious faith of their fathers, and they knew that in the new British province there were no domineering creeds or titled aristocracy; and they had the intelligence to understand that British institutions in the new world guaranteed to every man the fullest possible measure of civil and religious liberty, without being subjected to the danger of social upheavals and periodical political disruptions that follow in the wake of republicanism.
Not being able to speak the English language, and being compelled to engage at farm work for wages, they sought out homes among those who were able to speak—in a measure at least—their own language. On the Twenty-mile Creek, near St. Catharines, there was at this time a Pennsylvania Dutch settlement; and the old settlers being then alive and in comfortable circumstances, were able to communicate in a German dialect. It was here where many of the original German pioneers of Middleton found employment. Here they worked on farms for two, three or four years, earning the money that made up the first payments on their Middleton lands.
The original German settlement in Middleton was confined to a section bounded on the east by Big Creek, south by Charlotteville, west by the Bartlett sideroad, and north by Talbot Street. Of course, this territory was not all occupied by German settlers, but the original settlement was nearly all included within the boundaries mentioned. The most of this territory was a dense, uninhabited pine forest previous to the coming of the Germans. To the Beck family belongs the honor of establishing the first German home in the settlement. It is said that Jacob Beck had some means when he left Wurtemberg—at least he was sufficiently forehanded to rent a farm on what was called the Fifteen-mile Creek, which he worked for several years previous to his Middleton settlement, which was effected somewhere about the year 1845. The Becks were prominent among their fellow countrymen, and it might be truthfully said that it was through their influence and leadership the settlement was founded. The next family to effect a settlement was, probably, that of Jacob Kohl. Others followed in quick succession, and in 1854 we find the settlement well established, and consisting of the Beck, Kohl, Gehring, Demuth, Fluher, Hanselmann, Veit, Voigt, Glenk, Beyer, Arn, Armbrust, Reuter, Immel, Hoerber, Jauss, Fick and Loewenstein families. It is quite possible that other families had come in previous to this time, and, if so, their names are unintentionally omitted in this sketch. Since 1854 many new families have come in, and these, with the increase of the old families, have extended the settlement in all directions.
The old settlers were adherents of the Lutheran Church; and as early as 1848 the little settlement was visited by Lutheran ministers, who preached to the settlers in their homes. The little congregation thus organized met at regular intervals at the home of some settler, and listened to the reading of the Holy Scriptures by Matthias Voigt. In 1851 a certain pulpit adventurer, by the name of Wert, came to the settlement, and after he had succeeded in collecting some funds he took his departure. Shortly after this the Rev. A. Ernst, an American Lutheran clergyman, came up from Rainham, where he had been laboring, and organized a Lutheran Church. He preached his first sermon February 28th, 1854, and, on the following 3rd day of April, founded the new church with eighteen or twenty families. In the following June the church joined the Synod. During this same year John Veit donated four acres of land for church and cemetery purposes, and on November 26th it was dedicated. In January, 1855, Rev. E. Roder, a foreign Indian missionary, was called to the settlement. He was the first regular pastor, the services being held in the public school-house. On the 27th day of February following the parsonage was completed, and a month later the first church edifice was completed. It was a log structure, 22 feet wide and 32 feet long, and was dedicated on the 14th day of April. In December, 1860, Rev. E. Roder was called away, and Rev. Sprangler succeeded him. About this time the need of a more commodious church edifice was felt, and as the settlement had grown to the northward, the present site was decided upon. A new parsonage was built, and in 1863 the present neat and tasty church edifice was dedicated.
According to Lutheran church statistics for 1896, the Lutheran population in the settlement is put down at 325 souls, and the total number of communicants at about the same number. There are sixty-four voting members, and as these are represented by heads of families, mostly, the number of Lutheran families cannot be very much short of that given for voting members. The church is included in the Canada District of the Missouri Synod. There is a Parochial School in connection with the church, having a list of thirty-eight pupils. The present pastor is the Rev. R. Kretzmann, a scholarly gentleman of most pleasing manners.
A post-office is located near the church, which bears the old country appellation of Rhineland. It is served by-weekly from Delhi, and is kept at present by Philip Ullman.
The names of the constituent members of the church are as follows: Matthias Voigt, Leonhard Demuth, Jahann Armbrust, Leonhard Veit, Friedrich Veit, Georg Beck, Leonhard Schott, Georg Jauss, Georg Immel, Leonhard Voigt, Mikolaus Mueller, Leonhard Glenk, Jahann Veit, Michael Hoerber, Heinrich Immel, Wilhelm Zimmer, Thomas Jauss, Christoph Loewenstein, Jacob Koehler, Georg Schuessler and Martin Jauss.
Previous to 1845 a few German families had settled on the east side of Big Creek, and the nucleus of a Methodist Society had made its appearance among them. In 1848 Jahann Hanselmann came to the settlement, and in 1857 a Methodist church edifice was erected on the west side, on land donated by Mr. Hanselmann. The Rev. Stephen Morley was the first pastor. The constituent members of the society were the following: Gotlieb Staib, Conrad Stuertzinger, Jahann Loehl, Leonhard Hanselmann, Jahann Hanselmann, Jahann Gehring, Michael Fluher, Heinrich Beier, Matthias Geiger, Wilhelm Shaefer and Daniel Munz. Of these pioneer members Mr. Shaefer is the only one living.
The old Hanselmann farm is one of the finest in the settlement, and is at present occupied by Jahann (John), son of the old pioneer. When Leonhard Hanselmann settled in the Middleton pine forest, the boards needed as a covering for his pioneer log cabin were carried up the steep bank of Big Creek by himself and wife.
Jacob Beck, the original settler, had two sons—George and Michael. George Beck was not only prominent among his countrymen, but he was a prominent citizen of Middleton, having served his adopted township as a councillor for several years. Father and both sons are dead.
Jacob Kohl was a son of old Wurtemberg. As before stated, he built the second log cabin in the settlement. He had five sons—John, George, Conrad, Michael and William; and a number of daughters. The Kohl family were related to the Becks, and have always been held in high esteem by their fellow countrymen.
Mr. Gehring had three sons—John, George and Andrew. The latter succeeded to the old homestead.
Leonhard Demuth came from Bavaria, near the Wurtemberg line. He had one son, Leonhard, and four or five daughters.
Michael Fluher had one son, John, and a number of daughters. Mr. Fluher established one of the most popular homes in the settlement, and his children married into leading families.
Leonhard Hanselmann had one son, Matthias, and one daughter, who married Henry Ryder.
Leonhard Veit and his brothers came from Wurtemburg. Leonhard had one daughter, Margaret, who became the wife of Michael Veit, one of the best known citizens in the settlement at the present time.
Jahann Veit had three daughters. He was prominent in the original movement for organizing a church, and donated the land on which the first church edifice was erected. He was a weaver by trade, and the proceeds of his loom gave him a good start.
Matthias Voigt was also a prominent character in pioneer church matters, and exerted himself in keeping together the little congregation before the church was organized. He came from old Wurtemberg, and had three sons—Frederick, John and Matthias. The latter succeeded to the old homestead.
Leonhard Glenk, in the early days of the settlement, was left a widower with an only daughter. Subsequently he married again and moved to Rainham, where he raised a family.
Heinrich Beier was born in the old Grand-duchy of Baden. He had three sons—John, Henry and Ely; and a number of daughters.
Cornelius Arn came also from Baden. He had four sons—Cornelius, Ely, John and Charles; and a number of daughters, one of whom, Phoebe, married David Staib.
Jahann Armbrust was a leading figure in the settlement and a prominent member of his church. In common with all the pioneer settlers, Mr. Armbrust saw pretty tough times in the Middleton woods. When he had chopped and burned off his first little fallow he was too poor to buy an ox team or tools too work with. His nearest neighbor was a mile away. He borrowed an ox team of one neighbor and a plough of another—carrying it on his shoulder a mile through the woods—when he turned the first furrow on his land. During the early years of the settlement he and his neighbors lessened the pinch of privation as much as possible by seeking harvest work and other kinds of employment on the older farms in the outlying districts. One season he and John Veit worked in Norwich during harvest time, and they returned with three hogs taken as part pay for their services. They were fourteen miles from home, and after completing their last day’s work, set out on their long walk, driving the hogs before them. A good share of the way led through the woods and the night was very dark. Before reaching home they were caught in a terrific thunder storm, which made it so dark they could not see their hands before them, and had it not been for the rapid flashing of the lightning procedure would have been impossible. A few days after this experience the hogs strayed away and returned to the home of their former owner. It was during a time of great hardship, and while Mr. Armbrust bewailed his prospective loss, Mrs. Armbrust said she didn’t blame the hogs a bit for running away from such a place. Mr. Armbrust had two sons—George and Charles; and one daughter, Catherine.
The Reuter brothers, Jahann and Heinrich, were natives of Wurtemberg. Jahann settled east of Big Creek, and raised three sons—John, Henry and Gideon; and a number of daughters. Heinrich settled within the boundaries of the original settlement, and had one son, John, and two or three daughters.
The Immel brothers were also natives of old Wurtemberg. They settled on Lot 34, in the 2nd concession. Heinrich Immel had one son, Leonard, and one daughter, Eliza. Georg Immel was a shoemaker by trade. He left the old country in 1846, and after living three years in Buffalo, worked at his trade five years in the Twenty-mile Creek settlement before he came to Middleton. While clearing his first fallow he cut out and skidded up one hundred select pine logs. The logs were clear and averaged nearly three feet in diameter, yet the most he could get for them was a York shilling a log. He had two sons—Jacob and John, the latter of whom occupies the old homestead.
Christoph Loewenstein worked on farms in the Twenty-mile Creek settlement four years, during which time he saved $400 dollars of the wages earned. With this money he came up to Middleton in 1851, and made a part payment on Lot 29, 3rd concession, which he purchased and settled upon. Mrs. Loewenstein had been employed in the city of Buffalo previous to her marriage, and when she came into the pine forest of Middleton the awful solitude of her surroundings and the nightly howling of the wolves nearly frightened her to death. For her it was a terrible experience, and she persuaded her husband to sell a part of his land so that she might have a neighbor. Mr. Loewenstein had three sons—John, George and Jacob; and three daughters. John occupies the old homestead. The old people are both living.
The Jauss brothers—Georg, Thomas and Martin—settled on Talbot Street. All three are dead. Thomas Jauss succeeded George Beck as German representative in the Middleton Council. He was popular among his fellow-countrymen, and left a good public record behind him. His son, George, occupies the homestead, and is a member of the Township Council at present.
As before stated, many families have come to the settlement since 1854, and they have added moral worth to the general community. It was a fortunate day for the township of Middleton, and the county at large for that matter, when Jacob Beck and his sons built their log cabin on the west bank of Big Creek. It heralded the addition to our population of an element that will make it better. Being assimilative, its most beneficial effects will be realized when future generations tread our streets and till our lands. Our German citizens are models of patient industry, moral uprightness of character and sterling honesty; and the evidences of thrift everywhere abounding in the settlement, prove that they are also adepts in the practice of good wholesome economy.
This sketch would not be complete without mention of a man who left his Wurtemberg home when but a boy, and came to America to seek his fortune. He was only nineteen years old when he applied for work at the farm of John Kitchen, Esq., in the spring of 1854. He could hardly speak a word of English, and had nothing to rely upon but his hands; and yet this man built up a comfortable home of his own, and occupied a seat in the Middleton Council for about twelve years, refusing the Reeveship on one occasion. This man’s name was William Armbrust, a nephew of John Armbrust.
“Billy” used to relate a very funny thing that happened during the first summer he worked on Deacon Kitchen’s farm. The Deacon was called away on business one day, and before leaving home he set “Billy” at cultivating corn. The cultivator was new, and the Deacon told him he would hang him if he ran against anything and broke it. There was only one stump in the field, and when Billy came to it he ran against it and broke the cultivator. He did not fully understand what the Deacon had said, and about the only thing he could make out as to what was to be done in case he broke the cultivator, was the word “hang,” and as he couldn’t hang the horse, and not having been in the country long enough to have a desire to hang himself, he concluded to hang the cultivator. Accordingly, he unhitched the horse and carried the cultivator to the bush near by, where he accomplished his purpose by bending over a stout sapling. He then put out the horse and strolled into the village to await further orders when the Deacon came home.
Billy saved his earnings in true German style, and after he was married, settled on Talbot Street, where he kept a hotel for fifteen years. After Thomas Jauss met with the sad accident which terminated his life, Mr. Armbrust was elected to a seat in the township Council, which, with the exception of one year, he held up to the time of his death, which occurred quite recently. His farm, lying on the south side of Talbot Street, just above the site of the old hotel, consists of 140 acres, and is nicely situated. In Mr. Armbrust’s family were two sons and seven daughters.
The old German names have become Anglicized, and in some cases they have quite lost their identity. Jauss has become Youse; Kohl (the German word for cabbage) has become Cole, and Jahann Reuter, removed one generation, becomes John Ryder. In another generation or two our German element will have no remaining characteristics to distinguish it from the general mass of our citizenship.
[1] The early beginnings of the German settlement in Middleton Township may be seen on pages 59 and 63 of the 1852 Census. This included George Beck, Henry Ruiter, Mathias Voigt, Leonhardt Glenk, Leonhard Veit, Michael Harbour, Henry Roger, John Veit, Fritz Veit, Leonhard Hanselman, Cornelius Earn, George Stanvot and Conrad Rhole. The birthplaces of the children indicate that the families came to Canada in the 1845-1846 period. The Middleton Settlement was along present Regional Road 16 southwest of the Town of Delhi, and north of Regional Road 1.