John Wagner (b. 1845)

John Wagner (1845-1925)

In 1873 in Philadelphia, John Wagner married Elizabeth Kroemer. They were both German immigrants, coming to Philadelphia with their German-born parents along with their sisters and brothers.

In this post we will talk about John. We'll call him and Elizabeth Generation 1.

He was born on September 4, 1844 in Karlsruhe, Germany, a relatively new town by German standards near the Black Forest in southwest Germany, close to the French border. Although a new settlement by German standards (it was settled in 1715) it claims a visit by Thomas Jefferson in the 18th century, and the unusual layout of the streets (in a starburst wagon wheel pattern) is said to have inspired Jefferson in his influence of the layout of Washington DC by L'Enfant. Today Karlsruhe is a bustling tech town and commands quite a tourist trade and music festivals in addition to its economic success. More about life in Karlsruhe and emigration in another post.

John's parents were John Wagner (b. 1822) and Louisa Steiner (b. 1818), both born and raised in Karlsruhe. (They would be Generation 0.)

John's family brought him to the new world in 1849 (age 5) along with his older sister Caroline (b. 1842). John (1822) was a stone mason. After their arrival, the family had two more children, Amanda  (B. 1851) and Charles (b. 1857).

John (1844) became a wagon maker, or wheelright, and remained so for all of his working life. He was 60 by the time the horseless carriage made his profession obsolete to the general public, so he probably was saved the indignities of his work evaporating. John became a naturalized citizen at age 25, and three years later he married Elizabeth Kroemer, a German immigrant like himself. She arrived in the US in 1854 with her parents and siblings. John and Elizabeth remained in Philadelphia all of their lives.

Where they Lived

The family made its home in the Strawberry Mansion part of the city in the early years on N. 29th Street. Those original row homes are gone and replaced with row homes built in the 1920's. In the 1880's I assume that they were also row houses, perhaps less well-built. The family moved from time to time but John and Elizabeth stayed in North Philadelphia throughout their lives. They lived on N 31st Street and later Woodstock Street. By 1920 they owned their own home in West Oak Lane. John died on Woodstock Street in 1925 (age 80). John's wife Elizabeth died two years later in 1927. They are both buried in Ivy Hill Cemetery in Philadelphia along with some of their children and grandchildren.

Family Life

In the years between 1874 and 1884 the couple bore 4 children:

• ·        John Harry (1874); a lawyer
• ·        Louis (1876); painter and paper hanger
• ·        August (1881); a realtor and property manager and
• ·        Amelia Elizabeth (1884); she raised her family and states no other occupation

Following is a photo of the John Wagner family dating from approx. 1910:

Standing from left: August and his new wife Alice Rubrecht, Louis, two women (assuming Louis' wife Grace, and Harry's wife Annie). Seated Amelia, parents John and Elizabeth, and son Harry. Children are probably Harry's oldest son and three daughters, and Louis' oldest son.

I am dating the photo from the third daughter who was born in 1907. If the photo dates from 1910, August and Alice had married (1908) and lost their first child, a son John, in 1909 who lived for just a week. Their second child Richard was born in 1911. Daughter Amelia married in 1911.

We'll talk about the family members in future posts. Many more grandchildren were to follow.

John lived a long life for the time. He was 80 when he died. He left 16 grandchildren (15 living at the time of his death) and four living children and their spouses. Today, we are building the 6th generation from John. Most of the 4th generation is still living. Many of the families still live in the Philadelphia area, but some moved with the western expansion south and west.

In future posts, I'll fill in gaps with historical perspective during their lives. In the next post, I'll detail John's wife Elizabeth and her family. Down the road, we have fairly detailed information about the lives of John's parents and siblings. And the push/pull factors contributing to German-American immigration are fascinating and timely.