The 2nd Wave 19th Century Hacker Emigrants from Rußheim to America

Kris Hocker on 22 May 2015

Although Adam Hacker was the first Hacker family member from Rußheim, Baden-Durlach (now Baden-Württemberg), Germany to immigrate to North America, he wasn’t the last. A little over a hundred years later, his first cousin three times removed, Johann Christoph Hacker, emigrated from Rußheim to the United States.

On 11 Jan 1854, Christoph1 and his family—wife Christina (Siegel) Hacker, and children Friedrich, Friederike, August, Luise, Wilhelm, Philippine, and Ferdinand—arrived in New York City from Havre on the ship Zurich.2 According the Rußheim records, they left the village in 1853.3

I was able to locate the family in the 1860 U.S. census, living in Perkins Township, Erie County, Ohio.4 At that time, the household included: Christoph, Christina (his wife), Frederick, August, William and Christine.

Ten years later, the family can be found in Margaretta Township, Erie County.5 The household included Christoph, his son August and August’s wife Helen. By this time, Christoph’s wife had apparently died and the other children—if still alive—moved out to start their own families. At this time, I haven’t located them in 1870 census records.

Christoph most likely died prior to 1 Jun 1880.6 Both Frederick and August were living in Margaretta Township in 1880. Frederick and his wife Christina were living in Cold Creek with their seven sons and one daughter.7 Frederick was a laborer. August was a widowed farmer with five children under the age of 10, including three sons and two daughters.8

Frederick and August remained in Margaretta Township. Both are found in the 1900 census enumeration of the township. Frederick, aged 67, was a carpet weaver living with his wife next door to their son William.9 His brother August was 72 (should be 63) and still enumerated as a farmer.10 He was living with his second wife Kate and their six children.

August died 20 Apr 1903 and was buried in Sandhill Cemetery; Frederick died in 1914 and was buried in Castalia Cemetery. Many of their descendants can be found in Erie County through the 1940 census.

Johann Christoph and Christina (Siegel) Hacker had the following children:11

  1. Christoph Friedrich Hacker was born 29 Sep 1832 in Rußheim. He died in 1914 in Erie County, Ohio and was buried in Castalia Cemetery. About 1860, he married Christina Callista Kahn, born about 1842 and died 1 May 1923, and had children:
    1. August C. Hacker (1861-1933)
    2. Philip Hacker (1862-1938)
    3. George C. Hacker (1864-1951)
    4. William Hacker (1867-1951)
    5. Frederick Hacker (1869-1946)
    6. Charles Hacker (1871-1907)
    7. Peter Hacker (1874-1907)
    8. Sarah Hacker (1874-1931)
    9. Unknown Hacker (?-bef 1900)
    10. Unknown Hacker (?-bef 1900)
  2. Christine Friederike Hacker was born 2 Jan 1835 in Rußheim and arrived in New York city with her parents 11 Nov 1854. She may have been married or deceased by 1860. I have no additional information on her.
  3. August Frederick Hacker was born 8 Sep 1837 in Rußheim and died 20 Apr 1903 in Margaretta Township. He was buried in Sandhill Cemetery. He married sometime prior to 1 Jun 1870 Helen Walter (or Ellen Walder). She was born about 1847 in Germany and died before 1 Jun 1880 in Erie County. August and Helen had children:
    1. William Christopher Hacker (1871-?)
    2. Christina Hacker (1872-?)
    3. Henry Hacker (1874-1959)
    4. John Hacker (1876-?)
    5. Susan Hacker (1878-1943)

    August married second Catharine Zahn before 1 Jun 1880. They had children:

    1. August Charles Hacker (1881-?)
    2. Elizabeth C. Hacker (1882-1953)
    3. Fred J. Hacker (1885-1925)
    4. David John Hacker (1887-1975)
    5. Rose Hacker (1888-?)
    6. Catharine Hacker (1890-?)
  4. Luise Hacker was born 31 Oct 1839 in Rußheim. She may have married Peter Hermes in Erie County, Ohio.
  5. Infant Hacker
  6. Wilhelm Hacker was born 16 Aug 1843 in Rußheim. He was living with his parents in Perkins Township in 1860, but I haven’t located him in later census records.
  7. Philippine Hacker was born 29 Mar 1846 in Rußheim. She was included as “Christine” in the 1860 census enumeration for her family. I’ve found no further information about her.
  8. Christina Hacker was born 4 Apr 1848 and died 20 Apr 1851 in Rußheim.
  9. Ferdinand Hacker was born 18 Oct 1850 in Rußheim. I’ve found no additional information on him after his arrival with his family in New York on 11 Nov 1854. He may have died prior to 1 Jun 1860.

The emigration from Rußheim didn’t end with Johann Christoph and family. Several of Christoph’s nieces and a nephew immigrated to America, presumably in the 1880s: Luise Friederike Hacker and Emilie Hacker (and her daughter Hanna), daughters of Daniel and Christina (Knoblach) Hacker; and Ferdinand, Hermina, and Sophia Siegel, children of Johann Friedrich and Margaretha (Hacker) Siegel.

Footnotes

  1. It’s interesting to note that the heads of both immigrating families were named Christoph. ↩
  2. “United States Germans to America Index, 1850-1897,” index, FamilySearch, (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:KD31-VFV : accessed 22 May 2015), Christoph Hacker, 11 Jan 1854; citing Germans to America Passenger Data file, 1850-1897, Ship Zurich, departed from Havre, arrived in port of New York, New York, United States, NAID identifier 1746067, National Archives at College Park, Maryland. ↩
  3. Wilhelm Ludwig Lang, Rußheimer Familien Ortissippenbuch, 1692 bis 1920 (Dettenheim, Germany : Gemeinde Dettenheim, 2003), page 181. ↩
  4. 1860 United States Federal Census, Erie County, Ohio, population schedule, post office: Sandusky, Perkins Township, page 292 (handwritten), dwelling 2310, family 2241, C Hagar household; digital image, Internet Archive, “Population schedules of the eighth census of the United States, 1860, Ohio” (https://archive.org/stream/populationschedu958unit#page/n294/mode/1up : accessed 20 May 2015); citing National Archives and Records Administration, micropublication M653, roll 958. ↩
  5. 1870 United States Federal Census, Erie County, Ohio, population census, post office: Castalia, Margaretta Township, page 16 (handwritten), dwelling 134, family 127, Christopher Hawker household; digital image, Internet Archive, “Population schedules of the ninth census of the United States, 1870, Ohio” (https://archive.org/stream/populationschedu1197unit#page/n182/mode/1up: accessed 20 May 2015); citing National Archives and Records Administration, micropublication M593, roll 1197. ↩
  6. He is not listed in the 1880 census for Margaretta Township. It’s possible he was still living outside the township with another child. ↩
  7. 1880 United States Federal Census, Erie County, Ohio, population schedule, Margaretta Township (village of Cold Creek), enumeration district 115, page 103A (stamped), dwelling 402, family 420, Frederick Hacker household; digital image, Internet Archive, “10th census, 1880, Ohio” (https://archive.org/stream/10thcensus1013unit#page/n28/mode/1up : accessed 20 May 2015); citing National Archives and Records Administration, micropublication T9, roll 1013. ↩
  8. 1880 United States Federal Census, Erie County, Ohio, population schedule, Margaretta Township, enumeration district 115, page 85B (stamped), dwelling 123, family 128, August Hacker household; digital image, Internet Archive, “10th census, 1880, Ohio” (https://archive.org/stream/10thcensus1012unit#page/n790/mode/1up : accessed 21 May 2015); citing NARA micropublication T9, roll 1012. ↩
  9. 1900 United States Federal Census, Erie County, Ohio, population schedule, Margaretta Township, enumeration district 34, page 8A, dwelling 149, family 154, Fred Hacker household ; digital image, Internet Archive, “12th census of population, 1900, Ohio” (https://archive.org/stream/12thcensusofpopu1264unit#page/n193/mode/1up : accessed 22 May 2015); citing National Archives and Records Administration, micropublication T623, roll 1264. ↩
  10. 1900 United States Federal Census, Erie County, Ohio, population schedule, Margaretta Township, enumeration district 34, page 12A, dwelling 225, family 230, August Hacker household; index and image, Family Search, “United States Census, 1900” (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.3.1/TH-266-11815-43260-22?cc=1325221 : accessed 20 May 2015); citing National Archives and Records Administration, micropublication T623, roll 1264. ↩
  11. Rußheim information from Lang’s book, other information from census records and Ohio vital records available on FamilySearch.org. Yeah, I got a little lazy and didn’t cite the sources here. Doing it now. ↩

Cite This Page:

, "The 2nd Wave 19th Century Hacker Emigrants from Rußheim to America," A Pennsylvania Dutch Genealogy, the genealogy & family research site of Kris Hocker, modified 31 Jan 2018 (https://www.krishocker.com/the-2nd-wave/ : accessed 23 Apr 2024).

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