History of the Henry and Barbara Vogelsang Family


Excerpted from the History of the Hoelker, Vogelsang, Peine, Wientraut Families

by Florentine Hoelker, Treasurer, Franklin County, 1937


Henry Vogelsang Born1808 died 1889 Barbara Saurland Vogelsang born 1806 died 1881

As mentioned in a foregoing chapter Henry and Barbara Vogelsang purchased a farm between Oldenburg and Peppertown. Henry was quite a character, a good and quiet man minding his own business, old-timers who remembered him said he was tall slender man always coming to town on horseback. Like all these old pioneers when in town loved to patronize all of the many saloon keepers and, of course, Henry did not want to slight any of them. Sometimes he was unable to mount his horse, so his friends lifted him on, untied his horse and send him homeward. He was considered the best of riders under any condition, he sat straight as a candle in that saddle, never once did he ever fall off drunk or sober.

Henry's occupation in Germany was government Forrester. Only these Forresters were allowed to shoot excess squirrels, etc. He brought his long double-barreled muzzle loader shotgun with him. He willed it to his eldest son, Tony, who in turn gave it to his nephew, William Hoelker, he gave it to his eldest son, Florentine, at his 21st birthday. So I shall pass it on to the next generation of Hoelker's. (He gave it to his nephew, Edmund Hoelker Jr., who gave it to his son Edmund Hoelker lll in the 1990’s. EdH Jr)

Henry and Barbara had four children, two sons and two daughters. Sophia married Frantz Joseph Holker. The other daughter (whose name I cannot trace) married Mr. Schmitt. They had two sons, George, a tinner, and Charlie, a professional soldier and Spanish War veteran. Their son Anthony, shoemaker, married late in life, had no children, was located most of his life at Milroy, Indiana. His wife was a widow with children and was called Aunt Nan. Tony is buried in Oldenburg cemetery on the Holker lot. Ben married an Oldenburg girl, Theresa Macke, who lived on an adjoining farm. They had three children. Henry Jr. a railroad engineer located in Houston, Texas. Theresa was married to William Hammerle, Batesville, Indiana. Joseph, a farmer, remained single. Ben was stricken with sunstroke while making hay which resulted in an incurable case of insanity. He died an inmate of State hospital for the insane at Madison, Indiana. George, the tinner, was killed when he fell from the roof of a four-story convent building.

The Vogelsang name has died off. The only descendents are Mrs. Theresa Hammerle, her son, Robert, and daughter Edna Bedel. They branch off from Ben Vogelsang who was Mrs. Hammerle's father. The Schmitts branch off from Barbara. Anthony (Tone) Vogelsang had stepchildren but none of his own. One stepdaughter married a Mr. Shine of Batesville. They now live in Florida and occasionally stop in at the store.



Addenda

During a visit in the late 1990’s Louis Hoelker and Ed Hoelker Jr went to the graveyard in Oldenburg, IN. While looking up family grave sites we saw on Barbara’s tombstone that her maiden name was Haverkamp not Saurland as Florentine states in his Vogelsang history above.
We also found on the tombstones that Henry was born February 11, 1808 and died December 7, 1882 and that Barbara was born December 4, 1806 and died February 8, 1881.