Our Dageförde Ancestors

On the trail of the Dageförde Family

In the early 1980's,  I received a letter from my father asking me to look into our family’s roots. Since I was living in Germany, this was a reasonable request and I intended to pursue the matter. Unfortunately I did not achieve much progress at first for one reason or another. Over the next few years I did gather some bits of information - the most important of which I got from Manfred (Pete) Mueller when he sent me copies of some family information he had collected. In his introduction he mentioned a book about the history of the Dageförde family, published in 1915 in Hannover Germany. Through German friends (Sigrid and Heinz Schuchmann) I was able to obtain this book from the state library in Hannover.

Geschichte der Dageförde
von
Bernhard Dageförde
Lehrer in Wilhelmsburg (Elbe)

Als Handschrift gedruckt
1915

Finally I had no more excuses and decided to get serious about it. I spent many hours reading the book and establishing the connections of my great-grandmother, Dorothee Dageförde to the places and people outlined in this book. I was able to locate the village of Dageförde on a detailed map and also the birthplace of Dorothee in the village of Müden. In April of 1992, I took off to Northern Germany in search of more information. I started the search in the village of Dageförde (just a very large farm really). There are no more Dagefördes living in Dageförde but I was looking for (and found) the inscription on the beam as mentioned in the Dageförde book. I then proceeded to follow the trail of our forefathers to the village of Bleckmar. Hinrich Dageförde from Dageförde married Anna Evers in Bleckmar in 1689. She inherited her father’s farm „Meirn Hof“. This farm is still in Dageförde hands and is now a large turkey farm. Hinrich’s grandson Hans Heinrich married Ilsabe Katharine Brammer in Hagen. She inherited her father’s farm „Gaazen Hof“. Hans Heinrich’s son Heinrich married Marie Dorothea Bockelmann from Müden who inherited her father’s farm. This farm is still owned by the decendants of Marie and Hans and is known as „Bockelmanns Hof“. My great-grandmother’s father, Heinrich Christoph Dageförde was born and raised here.

It was in the town of Müden that I hit paydirt. I found the farm located in the middle of the village across from a beautiful „Heidenkirche“ (Moor Church - a special old style of church construction of this area). The present structure was built in the 14^th century and has since been added to. I then proceeded to the pastor’s house for more information. He told me there are many Dageförde families living in Müden and the person who could help me the most would be Heinrich who lives in the next village, Poitzen.

Heinrich was a wonderful source of information. He is a direct decendant of our great-great-grandfather Heinrich Christoph’s brother, see Table VIII (111). He and his wife run a Pension (Bed & Breakfast) where we stayed during our trip in 1994. When I introduced myself, he told me about some other Americans that had come by a few years ago. I have since contacted Kathy and Neil Dageförde and they are responsible for most of this translation. 

I received the translation of the tables and charts and some of the introductory information on 2 computer disks and have added and translated bits here and there. The whole thing makes for fascinating reading and I only wish I had the time and energy to translate the whole book (the original book has over 200 pages). Perhaps this would be a good project for my later years...

In any case, I hope you all enjoy my efforts - and those of Kathy and Neil - on the trail of the Dageförde family.

Tracing our line back to 1300
* = dates mentioned in official documents

Wernerus van Dageförde PLACE
(Table I-1) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Saxony
________________________|______________
Johann *1300-1339 Dider *1330-1340Werner *1339
(Table I-3) (Table I-4) (Table I-5)
_________|__________________________
Johann *1355-1358 Otto *1360Elisabeth *1400
(Table I-6)                       (Table I-7)           (Table I-8)
      ____|______________________________________________
Daniel *1405 Johann *1395-1407 Drude *1399 Hildegund *1399
(Table I-9)                 (Table I-10)                           (Table I-11)              (Table I-12)
___|___________________________________
  Hinrich *1446-1470       Lambertus *1446       Werner *1450
(Table I-13)                       (Table I-14)                      (Table I-15)
______|____________________________________________________
Hinrich *1470-1506     Werner * 1470-1504     Lambertus *1478-1493     Otto *1479-1494
(Table I-16)                           (Table I-17)                     (Table I-18)                                  (Table I-19)
_______________________|____________________________
Hinrich *1508-1528  Werner *1517-1528     Cord *1518-1528      Lambert *1528
(Table I-20)                     (Table I-21)                     (Table I-22)                    (Table I-23)
CONT. Table II -- - - -- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -Dageförde
___________|_________________
                  Cord von Dageförde d.1584 (1st farm owner)
                                                               md Anna Siedenstickers
(Table II-1)
___________________|___________________________________
Cord zum Dageförde *1584, d. 1585      Hans *1 584     Carsten *1584    Anna *1584
(Table II-2)                                                         (Table II-3)       (Table II-4)            (Table II-5)
_______|__________
Cord zum Dageförde *1610
(Table II-6)
_______|______________________
Cord zum Dageförde b1612 d 8 Aug 1664
wife b 1619 d 22 Jul 1665
lived through 30 years war and several
                 invasions from Sweden
(Table II-9)
__________|__________________________________
Curd  b1646        Carsten b1653     Hans           Hinrich b1659 d 21 Apr 1722
(Table II-10)             (Table II-11)          (Table II-12)      md Anna Evers d 8 Apr 1695
She inherited the farm
Meiern Hof in Bleckmar
md Elisabeth Ripked 24 Jan 1742
                                                                                                               (Table II-13)
CONT. Table VII      - - -- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -Bleckmar
____________________________|________________
Hans Jürgen        Hans Jürgen b18 Apr 1697          Peter b 1702
(Table VI-1)  md Anna Marie Meierhof   (Table VI-3)
(Table VII-2)   
__________________|_____________________
Hans Heinrich b10 Mar 1728          Ilsabe Margret b 1731
  md Ilsabe Katharine Brammer  (Table VII-4) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Hagen
She inherited the farm
Gaazen Hof in Hagen 
(Table VII-3)
_____________________|_____________________________________________________
Ilsabe Marie b 1758      Johann Heinrich b 1760     Heinrich b12 Feb 1764 d 17 May 1836        Hans Jürgen b 1767
(Table VII-5)     (Table VII-6)  md Marie Dorothea Bockelmann (Table VII-8)
bDec 1759 d 2 May 1816
                                                                            She inherited the farm
                                                                            Bockelsmans Hof in Müden
(Table VII-7)
CONT Table VIII  - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Müden
________________________________________|________________________________________
Katharine Dorothee     Christoph Heinrich    Johann Christoph        Anna Margarete Magdalene      Marie Margarete Dorothee
(Table VIII-2)     (Table VIII-3)    b11 Jul 1798 (Table VIII-5)   (Table VIII-6)
d6 Apr 1847
(Table VIII-4) 

1st wife Dorothee Margarete Laars from Meinholz d28 Aug 1826

1) Christoph Heinrich b 1814 Christoph Heinrich was the only one of the 8 surviving children who stayed in Germany.He became the owner of the farm in Müden (Bockelmanns Hof). The line continued as follows:

Christoph Heinrich b 1840
______ |__________
Christoph Heinrich b 1864
______|____________________________________
Heinrich (died young)      Wilhelmine          Hermann (7 children)
__________|___________
                                             Hermann d 1993           Heinrich
|
                                            Cord (present owner of the farm)

2) Marie Dorothee b 1820 died young
3) Marie Dorothee b 1823 md Kohlmeyer -->America

2nd wife Anna Margarete Dorothee Behrens from Baven b3 Oct 1792 d 22 Nov 1860

4) Heinrich Wilhelm Christoph b 1827 d 1 day old
5) Heinrich Christoph b 7 May 1829 -->America *SEE NOTES BELOW*
md Anna Marie Mohwinkel from Barmborstel
1-Dorothee Marie b 22 Apr 1850 d 6 Jun 1921
md Heinrich Julius Müller *SEE MUELLER LINE*
2-Sophia d 3 years old
3-Marie Sophia b July 7, 1861
6) Peter Heinrich Christoph b 1831 d 1832
7) Anna Marie Dorothee b 1833 m Tewes -->America (Paolo, Kansas)
8) Katharina Marie Dorothee b 1835 m Bergmann -->America (Milwaukee)
9) Heinrich Wilhelm b 1837 -->America (Paolo, Kansas)
10) Katharine Dorothee b 1830 d 1840
11) Anna Dorothea b 1841 m Schulenberg -->America (Chicago)
12) Marie Dorothea b 1844 m Besserdich -->America (Chicago)

*NOTES on Heinrich Christoph Dageförde (Table VIII-11)
Heinrich Christoph was a shepard in Müden and Munster and then in Hermannsburg. Then he rented and ran a farm (Ahrnscher Hof) in Bornstorf. He  was accepted to the missionary school in Hermannsburg for preparations for the mission in America on May 2, 1866. One of his fellow students was Heinrich Julius Müller who would later marry his daughter Dorothee. They left for America in August 1869 and lived in Wisconsin and Minnesota. Heinrich is my ancestor and his line continues below.

Heinrich Christoph Dageförde, Table VIII-11

Heinrich Dageförde was born May 7, 1829 in Müden. He became acquainted with Heinrich Julius Müller *See Mueller Line* at the Missionary School in Hermannsburg who later married his daughter Dorothee.  He had an older brother and therefore had no chance of inheriting the family farm. When visiting the Missionary School in Hermannsburg, I had the good fortune to speak with a very knowleable gentleman who made copies of Heinrich's handwritten "Lebenslauf" (Life History) and the only letter he wrote to the Mission after arriving in America. The originals are in the archives at the Mission in Hermannsburg. I am grateful to Norbert and Brigitte Fischer, Maria Kalbe und Karin Hübner for their help in reading the old German scripts.

Lebenslauf - Life History for Heinrich Christoph Dageförde of Müden

I was born in the year of our Lord 1829 on May 7 in the morning at 6 o'clock in Müden on the Oertze. My departed father was the land owner Johann Christoph Dageförde in Müden; my mother is Anna Dorothee, born Behrens from Layen. On the 3rd day I received holy baptism by Pastor Schwenke in Müden.

The Lord gave me health in body, soul and spirit. My father sent me early to school and church so I could learn to spell, read, write, add and obtain religious knowledge.

At the proper age I was confirmed with 12 other children by Pastor Schneider. After this time I served as shepherd in Müden, then in the community of Munster and finally in the community of Hermannsburg.

I loved church, school and God's word since I was a child. When I left school, I was very much enticed by the world and I went this way for 7 long years but I did not have peace in my heart. Then I came to our dear Father Harms; he had words of eternal life for me and the Lord had mercy on me, for his words were a scent of the way to live life. So I went through the narrow portals of repentance and onto the narrow path of belief. I have followed this way, through God's mercy, for 16 years.

In 1850 in March, I married Marie Dorothee Mohwinkel from Barmborstel. In this marriage were born to me 3 daughters of which 2 are living. One has fallen asleep. The last 4 years I have leased the Ahrnscher Hof in Bornstorf. I have always had a wonderful love for our mission. It was a jewel on Mount Zion for me. God our Lord grant that it remain so to the end of my life.

The Lord finally called me to the missionary service and I followed with joy. In the year 1866 on May 2, I was initiated with the other brothers and may the Lord now please help further. To God alone the glory.

Heinrich Christoph Dageförde
14 May 1866

In the Hermannsburger Missionsblatt of May 1866, there is a list of the 30 new "disciples", among them: Dageförde aus Müden and Müller aus Teyendorf.

In the mission publication of October 1869, there is the following paragraph:

"On the 13th of August the following brothers were delegated to go to America and become German preachers there: Their names are: Bösche, Dageförde, Dammann, Franke, Haack, Isten, Kleinhans, Lembke, Michels, Müller, Prost, Pröhl, Rathien, Töwe, Zuberbier, Weseloh. One of them went to Canada, the other to the Synods Missouri, Wisconsin and Ohio. They arrived well in America. God bless their work."

Heinrich travelled on the ship "Saxonia" from Hamburg with his wife Marie and daughters Dora and Marie. They arrived in New York on 02 Sept. 1869. Heinrich Julius Mueller was on the same ship.

Heinrich Dageförde, after arrival in America

The following is a translation of the only letter Heinrich sent back to the Mission:

Leeds, 24 December 1870

Dear Inspektor,

I received your dear letter a few days ago and was heartily pleased that you have not forgotten your lesser pupil. I am sure it will please you to get a short annual report as follows:

In great and small things, I have to thank the Lord for all mercy and compassion he has shown to me and mine and also to my congregation as He has given us health, work and also bread. To my service He has given many blessings and success. As far as I can tell, the congregation has grown in their belief; the numbers have also increased. Many more families have joined so the church is almost too small. The Lord granted that I baptized 41 children this year, confirmed 12 and married 5 pairs, all, as far as I can tell, live happily. Eight have died, all of which, praise God, have, I believe, gone to their heavenly home and 6 were children. One old man, just before his end - as far as people could see and hear - turned to God. The old women had already had the Lord Jesus in her heart since she was young and so for the burial text I could use the words of the Apostle Paul: "I fought the good fight". 

Now I must bemoan that not all is going as I would wish it in my head because you know that I am a "Hermannsburger" in body and soul and a friend of the mission and still have not been able to do anything for Hermannsburg. Our College in Watertown is so very weak that one must do what one can to stop the great need. I have collected money two times and invested well. In the fall I sent 40 bushels of wheat, 2 sacks of potatoes, some coal, 7 pounds of coffee, 10 new sacks and 1 dollar and 5 cents amoung other items to Columbus. Further, students come to me and "knock" for example my brother from Michigan who wants to build a church. So there was nothing to do but to again collect money on the 2nd day of Christmas which brought 7 dollars. So I must say: If I forget you, there is a reason. My first love is the Lord Jesus and his mission, this should also be my last

How much the German folk here have forgotten can best be shown with a few examples. About 14 days ago a man came to me and asked if I would baptize his boys. I answered: "With joy, my dear Brabänder" (the place the man was from). When I got there, the man had 6 boys from 3 to 15 years old and they followed one after the other like the pipes of an organ. I spoke to the father and said: "You must also promise me that you will send these children to the German school so they can learn God's word and Luther's Catechism." He said they should go for 2 winters. Now there was little or no more consideration, they must be baptized. Yesterday I baptized 3 more children whose parents do not yet belong to the congregation. That is how it is in America, one is pastor and at the same time missionary.

The Lord help me that the scattered children of Zion be gathered together so that one may soon sing: One herd and one shepherd.

Now dear Inspector, a thousand thanks for your true instruction; it will serve me well my whole life having been your pupil. The Lord bless your further work and reward you richly. In closing I ask you to please forgive me that I have given you so much to read. I allow myself just this: How is your dear wife? How are the children? Are they all well and healthy? Finally, please hold us in your thoughts, with heartfelt greetings to you and yours, the disciples and mission members.

Your pupil, H. Dageförde, Pastor

You probably have heard that Dr. Dammann died in St. Louis a short time ago from emaciation, God rest his soul.

Heinrich's daughter Dorothea Marie Dageförde married Heinrich Julius Mueller in Madison, Wisconsin on Oct. 9, 1872. Go to *MUELLER* for more on their family.

Do you have information about this line?
Do you have corrections or additions?
I would love hearing from you!

Peggy McKenzie

Last update April 6, 2006