October 2014

Ancestral Newsletter # 33

Hello Folks, In this newsletter I will introduce you to two new families: the Joseph M. Nachreiner family and the Joseph F. Haas family. We'll start with a chart of the Nachreiners.

Barbara Babl and Adam Hutter | Eva Margaretha Wutz and Johann Hutter | Maria Barbara Bindl and Johann Evangelist Hutter Ana Maria Liegl and Johann Baptist Hutter

| | Ludwig Bettinger and Augustina Hutter Baptiste Brechtl and Anna Hutter | | Mary A. Bettinger and Joseph M, Nachreiner Margaret Brechtl and Georg M. Haas | Marie H. Nachreiner -------married----------Joseph F. Haas | Children of Marie and Joseph Haas Joseph Haas Gene Haas Richard Haas Rosalyn Haas

Margaret Brechtl Haas was the daughter of Anna Hutter and Baptiste Brechtl (newsletter #30). Her husband, Georg M. Haas, was Joseph F. Haas's uncle. Georg sponsored his nephew's immigration to the USA in 1922.

Marie H. Nachreiner's great grandfather, Johann Evangelist Hutter was the brother of the music teacher and composer Johann Baptist Hutter (newsletters #4 and #12). Johann Baptist's wife was Ana Maria Liegl. I mention this because there may be a connection to the Haas family through the Liegl ancestors as well as the Hutters.

The time period in which Marie Nachreiner and Joseph F. Haas lived was a socially conscious period. They were born smack in the middle of the Progressive Era (1890-1920) when many important changes were taking place. One of the issues of that time, prohibition, had a direct impact on Joseph's uncles and, as a trickle down effect, it affected Joseph as well. Woman's suffrage was another issue during the Progressive Era. The 19th Amendment, giving women the right to vote, was ratified in 1920, when Marie was 10 years old. A third issue came about accidentally through the efforts of the socialist party. Muckraker Upton Sinclair wrote the book The Jungle in an effort to expose the harsh conditions of the working class. The story is about an immigrant who finds employment working at the meat packing plant at the stockyards of Chicago. The book had the unintended result of causing an uproar over the unsanitary conditions of food production which led to the passage of the Federal Meat Inspection Act and, in part, the Pure Food and Drug Act of 1907. Medicinal drugs, at that time, often contained alcohol and other dangerous ingredients such as formaldehyde. The new law required truthful labeling of product ingredients.

Marie Hilda Nachreiner

Marie Nachreiner was born on May 10, 1910 to Mary A. Bettinger and Joseph M. Nachreiner. She was the second born of four children, however the two youngest, Katherine and Joseph died as infants. Marie's older sister, Alma was born in November of 1903.

Marie The Nachreiner Family Nachreiner Home In Plain

Marie's great grandparents came to America in 1854. The following is from The History of Plain, Wisconsin, which was written by Hildegarde Thering:

Marie's father Joseph M. Nachreiner was born in 1873. His parents were Katherine “Theresa” Brickl and Joseph X. Nachreiner. Joseph M. lived on the family farm up until the age of 26. In 1899, Joseph took a job at the Lins and Hood Company, a hardware and implement store in Spring Green. Later, he partnered with John Beck in the general merchandise business in Plain. The center section of the Beck and Nachreiner Store was built by Alois Hutter in 1883 (newsletter #14) and was nicknamed the “Farmer's Rest.” By the early 1900's the Nachreiner name was well known in Plain. Besides the Nachreiner and Beck general store there was also the Reuschlein & Nachreiner store and the Nachreiner and Kraemer Hardware Store.

Joseph M. Nachreiner was also an undertaker and embalmer. In the early days, funerals were held in the family home. Friends and neighbors would pitch in by taking over the farm chores and householdduties including food preparation for the funeral. The local cabinet maker would be employed to make the casket. And it was up to family members to wash and dress the body of the deceased. The body

would be laid out, usually in the parlor, for viewing and for the service. Although many people still preferred to have the funeral in their family home, by the 1870's , the funeral parlor (or funeral home) came into greater use. This change came about because of the Civil War. The bodies of dead soldiers were embalmed before they were sent home. Then, after President Lincoln had been assassinated, hisbody had also been preserved through embalming. A funeral train carrying the deceased president traveled across the nation allowing the public to pay their last respects. Acceptance of the embalming procedure became widespread after the Civil War and that led to greater use of funeral homes.

Joseph M. Nachreiner's horse drawn hearse

Marie's mother, Mary Bettinger, was born in Plain in 1881. She was the daughter of Augustina Hutter and Ludwig Bettinger. Mary Bettinger married Joseph Nachreiner in 1902. The Nachreiners were members of St. Luke's Church and Marie's father was one of the organizersof the St. Luke's High School which was founded in 1920. Marie's sister Alma, along with Hildegarde Thering, were the first and the only two graduates of the new high school in 1923. After her own high school experience, Marie attended Normal School (a school for training teachers). Marie's grandparents, Augustina and Ludwig Bettinger, had farmed in Plain up until 1911, the year after Marie was born. They then moved to Spring Green, after retiring from farming. Marie was 8 yearsold when her grandmother, Augustina died. Her grandfather, Ludwig, lived another 10 years. Neither lived long enough to see their granddaughter's marriage to Joseph Haas on March 27, 1932. Gene Haas, son of Marie and Joseph, shared some memories of his mother: “Our mother, Marie Hilda Nachreiner Haas was awonderful woman. She was very subdued...evensomewhat of an introvert but extremely talented. [Shewas] a musician (piano), baker, cook, historian,extremelyreligious and loved to travel.” “She loved to entertain when the Weitzers, Brecthls, Rieders and Norb and Hank Haas came over to playsheepshead...and discuss the values of life.” “She attended Normal School after high school andwas a teacher until marriage to dad...then became ahomemaker, housewife and mother.”

Marie and Joseph's Wedding Day

Corralling the Haas's

Anna Liegl and Georg Haas Sr.

Rose Ring and Josef “Sepp” Haas Sr.

Marie Nachreiner and Joseph F. Haas

Margaret Brechtl and Georg M. Haas Jr.

Children

1) John2) Katherine3) Barbara4)Georg M. --------------5) Josef (died at 2)6)Josef --------------------

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-------Rose (Ring) Haas ChildrenJoseph Francis------------FranzRoseAnnaJohnLudwigname unknownname unknown

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---Marie (Nachreiner) Children1) Joseph H. (Fr. Joe)2)Eugene3) Richard4)Rosalyn

Anna &Baptiste Brechtl Children1)Anna2)Maria3)Kathryn4)Margaret (Brechtl) Haas5)Clara6)John B.7)Cecelia8)Alois 9)Grace10)Herman

My mother once wrote to Mabel Haas Weitzer, the wife of George Weitzer Jr. also known as “Buddy”, (newsletter #16). Mom asked Mabel if the Haas's of Spring Green (from this newsletter) were related to Phillip and Annie (Weitzer) Haas (Newsletter #20). Mabel replied “Yes. They were distant cousins.” Unfortunately, she didn't know exactly how they were connected.

Georg and Anna (Liegl) Haas married on February 24, 1873 and they lived in Spielberg, Bavaria, Germany. They had 6 children: John, Katherine, Barbara, Georg M., Josef (died at 2), and Josef “Sepp”(the father of Joseph Francis). The two oldest sons John and Georg M. emigrated to America and settled in Spring Green. Everyone else from the family remained in Germany and Josef, the youngest inthe family, became the only son still living there. Since itwas a German custom that a son, rather than a daughter,would receive the family home, Josef “Sepp” eventuallybecame the owner of the ancestral property. Josef “Sepp” married Rose Ring, the daughter of Johnand Mary Ring. Rose gave birth to 8 children: Joseph F.,Franz, Rose, Anna, John, Ludwig and two more whosenames I do not know.

The Haas Ancestral Home in Spielberg, Germany

Joseph Francis Haas

Joseph Francis Haas was born on February 6, 1908 in Spielberg, Germany. He was the first born child of Rose (Ring) and Josef “Sepp” Haas, (“Sepp” was a common nickname with origins from the Biblical “Yozef”). WWI had ended when Joseph F. was 10 years old. Four years later, in 1922, Joseph emigrated from his homeland leaving behind his entire family. That alone seems like a very difficult feat for someone so young but even more amazing is the fact that he traveled from Germany, made his way through Ellis Island, then traveled almost 1,000 miles to Spring Green, Wisconsin all by himself. At age 14, Joseph F. Haas was the youngest person to ever immigrate to America all alone and that interesting fact is documented at Ellis Island. Joseph's uncle, Georg M. Haas, sponsored him, so Joe had a place waiting for him in the states. He stayed with his Uncle Georg and Aunt Margaret (Brecthl) Haas at their home in Spring Green. Margaret died in 1925 at the age of 45. Six years later, Uncle Georg married Annie Fronk and Joseph stayed with them for awhile as well. Annie Fronk's sister was Gisela, wife of Ed Kraemer, the building contractor in Plain.

Joseph F. Haas Prohibition Joseph's uncles, Georg and John owned a saloon together on Lexington St. in Spring Green in the early 1900's, but the two brothers did not always see eye-to-eye and the partnership was somewhat strained. Perhaps fate intervened when along came prohibition and dried up the business. Prohibition began on January 17, 1920 when the Eighteenth Amendment went into effect but anti-alcohol sentiment had been fermenting since the time of the Pilgrims. Some religious groups considered drinking a sin. They would sing and pray in front of saloons in hopes of reaching and reforming the offenders. Although not originally a woman's issue, women eventually became it's biggest supporter. The Woman's Christian Temperance Union called for prohibition as a solution to abusive alcoholic husbands. Since women tended to to support prohibition, temperance organizations returned the favor by supporting woman's suffrage. Many saloons offered a free, albeit heavily salted lunch, which kept the patrons drinking and spending their money. Some anti-alcohol groups considered saloons, especially those in cities with large immigrant populations, to be vehicles for political corruption. Politicians would “buy” immigrant

votes by offering favors such as job offers, legal assistance, financial help and union memberships. The medical profession was divided on the issue of prohibition. Alcohol was the main ingredient in many medicinal products and sometimes the doctor might just suggest to a patient, “take a shot of brandy.” Pharmacists wrote prescriptionsfor medicinal alcohol and, in 1921, Congress held hearings on the medical value of beer. Prohibition banned the sale, production, importation and transportation of alcoholic beverages however, private ownership and consumption was legal under federal law. Many people, anticipating the new law, had stockpiled liquor. This wasespecially true for the rich. A Washington Post story of 1930

estimated that 80% of congressmen and senators drank even though they were the ones passing the drylaws. Alcohol was legal in Canada, Mexico and the Caribbean and the liquor flowed illegally across the borders...or people crossed borders as this Canadian/American ditty suggests: Four and twenty Yankees, feeling very dry, Went across the border to get a drink of rye, When the rye was opened, the Yanks began to sing, “God bless America, but God save the King!” A lot of people must have found religion at that time because the production of sacramental wine tobe used for Mass increased by hundreds of thousands of gallons. Prohibition did have both positive and negative results. Alcohol consumption was cut in half and cirrhosis of the liver dropped nearly two thirds, yet for many people during the Roaring Twenties, speakeasies, rum runners, organized crime, moonshine and bathtub gin became a way of life. Prohibition was repealed in 1933 with the ratification of the 21st Amendment.

Joseph's uncles, Georg and John closed their saloon with the onset of prohibition which then led Georg to find a new occupation. He opened a butcher shop on Lexington St. in Spring Green across thestreet from where the saloon stood. He then sponsored his nephew's immigration to America and together they ran the Haas and Haas Meat Market. Their slaughterhouse, with cow pens behind the building, sat in the High Banks area west of the Wisconsin River. Spring Green had become something of a cattle town after the railroad line built a station there. The cattle came from farms around the area and consolidated in Spring Green where they were herded onto cattle cars bound for the meat packing plants of Milwaukee. Georg and Joseph's business was doing well and they hired extra help some of whom were relatives. Their own relationship had become very close, almost like father and son, and their partnership lasted many years. On March 27, 1932, Joseph married Marie Nachreiner.They traveled to Germany on their honeymoon, so Mariecould meet the family. It was the first time Joseph had beenback home since he left ten years earlier. Just 3 years later,Joseph's father died in a motorcycle accident on his way homefrom attending Sunday morning Mass. Josef “Sepp” Haaswas 52 years old. Back in Spring Green, Joseph and Marie built a home (byEd Kraemer) and began a family. Their three sons, Joseph H.,Eugene and Richard were born in Spring Green. Uncle Georgand Joseph F. had been in business for about 20 years whenmeat rationing went into effect during WWII. Georg thenfound employment working as a stone cutter for Frank L.Wright at Taliesin. Haas home in Spring Green The Haas family in Germany suffered terrible loss during the war. Fr. Joe and Gene Haas (Josephand Marie's sons), described the situation: “ Dad had 3 of his brothers killed in the German Army in Russia (also two brothers-in-law) in the Second World War. He tried to get two of his younger brothers over here but, due to immigration problems, that never happened. As he always said, 'my family was hard hit'. We moved to Milwaukee in 1943/44 so that Dad could get a 'war job' and stay out of the draft. The person who helped Dad get the job was Al Brechtl.” ----------Fr. Joe

Gene adds, “The Joseph Haas family moved to Milwaukeeto hopefully avoid the draft when the U.S.A. elevated the draftage limit to 35... so he wouldn't have to fight against his brothers.He needed a defense job in order to gain additional defermentfrom the military. Al Brechtl assisted him in getting a job with theAllis-Chalmers Supercharger plant in West Milw.”

The Haas Home in West Allis

<--Unknown, Frieda Klaus, Marie & Rosie Haas

The family lived in West Allis and in 1945, Rosalyn “Rosie”, Joseph and Marie's only daughter, was born. Rosie eventually took on the exasperating job of babysitting for my brother, sister and me. Inlater life she went on to work in Stuttgart, Germany for the Allen Bradley Company. Joseph and Marie's eldest son, Joseph H., went to St. Francis Seminary and became Father Joe when he was ordained in 1959. Their second son, Gene, was the executive secretary of the Golf Association of Wisconsin. He is also an author and has just finished his 3rd book, A Look Back.And their son, Richard, worked as an assistant stone mason to his Uncle Georg at Taliesin for two summers as a young man, then became a well known artist creating architectural illusion wall murals. Joseph F. and Marie loved to travel. Gene says of his parents, “They were a great pair when it came to traveling or discussing religious values...on the same wavelength. Unfortunately she died young (62) of a mysterious disease (Jakob-Cruezfeld), similar to ALS.” Joseph married twice more, first to a Lisowski; she lived only five years. He then married Lorraine Haberer Koch. In 1983, Joseph Haas and family members were interviewed for a PBS program called 300 Years in a New Land. The story is about German immigration to America. Joseph died on June 9, 1990.

Joseph and bro. Franz, Fr. Joe, Rosie and Marie Eugene Haas