Maria Katherina Butz and Christoph Daniel Engel

Most of my information on this couple comes from the Verbandsgemeinde Freinsheim - and a good thing, too, because Christoph Daniel traveled far to find his bride. The Freinsheim church records don't record where she was from.

Christoph Daniel was the son of Anna Margaretha Sohn and Johann Jakob Engel. He was born 30 Dec 1750 and christened in Freinsheim 01 Jan 1751.

Maria Katherina, on the other hand, was born in about 1746 in "Brening/Bornheim, Rheinland." I'm fairly sure that the place referred to is Brenig, now a district in the municipality of Bornheim near Bonn. It's 190 km northwest of Freinsheim. Maria Katherina married Christoph Daniel there on 21 Jan 1772.

Apparently Christoph Daniel brought Maria Katherina back to Freinsheim soon after the marriage, as all six of the couple's children were born there:

• Anna Margaretha born 03 Jan 1773, christened 04 Jan 1773;
• Anna Philippine Maria born 16 Dec 1774, christened 17 Dec 1774. Married a weaver named Johannes Machenheimer in Freinsheim 28 Mar 1798. Judging by the marriage and burial records, they seem to have had at least four, possibly five children. Anna Philippine Maria died and was buried in Freinsheim 30 Jul 1838. Johannes was buried in Freinsheim 06 Jul 1841;
• Johann Jakob born 30 Nov 1777, christened 01 Dec 1777. Married Maria Elisabetha Hohl in Freinsheim 04 Feb 1799;
• Johann Ludwig born 19 Mar 1780, christened 20 Mar 1780. Died and was buried in Freinsheim 04 Jan 1784;
• Susanne Katherina born 28 Jul 1782, christened 29 Jul 1782. Married a farmer named Johann Heinrich Aull, later Johann Heinrich I Aull, in Freinsheim on 17 Sep 1803. I have birth records only for three of their children born 1819-1822 - there were undoubtedly earlier children. Susanne Katherina died and was buried in Freinsheim 29 Jun 1832. Johann Heinrich was buried in Freinsheim 21 Jun 1848; and
• Anna Maria Elisabetha born 03 Jan 1787, christened 06 Jan 1787.

Anna Maria Elisabetha born in 1787 is one of two possibilities for the Anna Maria Engel who married Johann Georg I Weilbrenner. However, I think she's the less likely possibility. The records I have from the Verbandsgemeinde Freinsheim list the marriages of three of her older siblings, so I would think that they would have included hers as well if she married in Freinsheim.

Maria Katherina Butz died and was buried in Freinsheim 05 Mar 1807. Christoph Daniel Engel died and was buried in Freinsheim 07 Sep 1828.

Note: Most of the information I have on the Werner, Engel and Sohn families in Freinsheim from the late 17th to the mid 19th centuries came to me in 2004 courtesy of Siegfried Barth, archivist with the Verbandsgemeinde Freinsheim (Freinsheim Community Association). Where possible I've supplemented it with church records available at FamilySearch.org. Many thanks to Herr Barth and also to my late granduncle Robert Werner, who made the first contact and then recruited my help because he and Herr Barth had no languages in common.