Maria Elisabetha Willy and Johann Reichert Apresch

Maria Elisabetha Willy and Johann Reichert Apresch married in Freinsheim 12 Feb 1782. She was the daughter of Anna Catharina Fuhrmann and Johann Peter Willy christened in Freinsheim 24 Sep 1753. He was the son of Anna Catharina Hohl and Johann Reichert Apresch born 21 Feb 1757 and christened in Freinsheim 23 Feb 1757.

Maria Elisabetha and Johann Reichert - or Reichard, as his name was spelled in the christening records - had three children christened in Freinsheim. One of them died the day after he was born:

• Christina born 03 Mar 1783, christened the same day;
• Anna Maria born 23 Feb 1785, christened 25 Feb 1785; and
• Johann Adam born 18 Sep 1787, christened and died 19 Sep 1787.

Catharina Raab and Johann Reichert Apresch

Five years after the birth and death of Maria Elisabetha's youngest child, a man named Reichard Abresch married Catharina Raab in Weisenheim am Sand on 07 Oct 1792. The groom may or may not have been Maria Elisabetha's widower. The bride was the daughter of Maria Barbara Gelbach and Heinrich Raab born 01 Jan 1766 and christened in Weisenheim am Sand 05 Jun 1766. The couple then returned to Freinsheim to raise their children.

I have records for four children christened in Freinsheim before the records gap, as well as one more child born during the gap:

• Anna Barbara born 21 Jul 1793, christened 22 Jul 1793;
• Heinrich born 24 Jun 1795, christened 26 Jun 1795;
• Adam born 25 May 1797, christened 27 May 1797;
• Jacob born 18 Jun 1798, christened 19 Jun 1798; and
• Catharina, who married Friedrich Spielmann in Freinsheim 02 Feb 1854. Friedrich was born in 1811, so Catharina couldn't have been born more than five or so years before that and was more likely born after, although not after 1816 when her mother turned 50.

I know that Johann Reichert was still alive as of October 1828 because of three legal notices included in volume 11 of the Intelligenzblatt des Rheinkreises. The first was published 11 Jun 1828. Moritz Kaufmann, a merchant living in Neuleiningen, had foreclosed on debts owed to him by Reichard Abresch, a farmer in Freinsheim. An auction was to be held 22 Sep 1828 at 2 PM at the city hall in Freinsheim.

The notice lists 17 "articles," pieces of real estate to be auctioned off. Articles 1-12 are properties which the debtor (Reichard) owns himself, worth a total of 658 florins. Articles 13-16 are properties "besessen" by Joseph Kaufmann, a merchant in Freinsheim. In modern German "besessen" is the past participle of besitzen, to own, possess or have. "To occupy" is a different verb, besetzen. However, in Bavarian legal documents from the first half of the 19th century, it seems to refer to property occupied by or used by a tenant. (See the discussion re: property "besessen" by Jacob Werner.) The properties possessed/occupied by Joseph Kaufmann are worth a total of 115 florins. Finally, articles 17-19, worth 65 florins, are possessed/occupied by Jacob Abresch (adult) and Catharine Abresch (minor), both of them single and without professions, their father being Reichard Abresch.

Reichard, Moritz, Joseph, Jacob and Catharina were all invited to a meeting at the auction commissar's office on 09 Jul 1828 at 8 AM to discuss any objections any of them might have to these arrangements.

Not surprisingly, Joseph Kaufmann had objections. A second notice published 04 Oct 1848 appears to discuss these and then sets 03 Nov 1828 as the new date for the auction. Only articles 1-12 are listed as the properties to be auctioned off. This was somewhat in error. A correction published two weeks later on 18 Oct 1848 adds articles 17-19, possessed/occupied by Jacob and Catharina Abresch, children of the debtor, back to the list.

After the Records Gap

After 1798, there are no more children christened in Freinsheim under the names Apresch or Abresch - not even after the records gap ends in 1816.

Jacob married Susanna Margaretha Bayer in Freinsheim 25 Nov 1841. She was the daughter of Susanna Herrmann and Friedrich Bayer born 13 Apr 1794 and christened 14 Apr 1794. Jacob died and was buried in Freinsheim 29 Nov 1855. Susanna Margaretha then apparently remained a widow for several years before remarrying at the age of 74. She married Johann Lorenz Mayer, 73, in Freinsheim 09 Jul 1868.

As I mentioned above, Catharina married Friedrich Spielmann in Freinsheim 02 Feb 1854. He was the son of Philippina Kissel and Joseph Spielmann. Catharina died and was buried in Freinsheim 16 Dec 1861. 15 months later, Friedrich remarried. He married Philippine Catharina Kochendörfer in Herxheim 31 Mar 1863. The Herxheim marriage gives his age as 52, indicating that he was born in 1811. The bride was 26.

There's evidence for one more 19th century Abresch couple in Freinsheim. Philip Besch married Sophia Harm in Freinsheim 25 Sep 1856. His parents were Christina Abresch and Jakob I Besch. This could easily have been Christina born 03 Mar 1783 to Maria Elisabetha Willy and Johann Reichert Apresch. For Protestant marriages, the records gap spans from July 1802 to December 1815. Christina would have been 19-32 during this period. She could easily have born a son who would have been 41-54 in 1856.

Sophia Harm and Philip Besch had two sons. Christoph was christened in Freinsheim 20 Dec 1857. Philipp was christened 21 Oct 1859 but then died within a few days. He was buried in Freinsheim 25 Oct 1859.