Gerd Frerichs b. 1867

/ Kirstin Miller

Gerd Frerichs 2nd great uncle, on RootsMagic tree, was born on November 10, 1867 in Engerhofe, Germany, standard name: Engerhafe, 26624 Südbrookmerland, Germany. Engerhofe is 5 miles south of the Wadden Sea on the northwestern coast of Germany, part of Lower Saxony or Niedersachsen, on Google maps

Gerd’s parents were Casjen and Kuna Janssen Frerichs. Gerd had 3 sisters and was the younger brother of Enno Frerichs who was the dad of Mary Frerichs who married George Roose, their son Stanley Roose was born in 1915, in Iowa.


Baptismal font photo via Matthias Süßen, CC BY 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Engerhafe_Taufbecken.jpg

The Frerichs family were members of the local Lutheran church, that’s where Gerd was baptized on December 13, 1867 and where his parents married a few years earlier. It is almost certain their church was Church of John the Baptist (Engerhafe) or Kirche Johannes der Täufer (Engerhafe). This church was built in 1250, completed around 1280 and was the only church in the area during Gerd’s lifetime. The church is famous for it’s organ built in 1774 by Hinrich Just Müller. The baptismal font or Taufbecken is impressive too, “The lid was delivered in 1665 by master Hinrich Julfs from Wittmund. Its structure, divided into four floors, shows mermaids with fish tails and female breasts. The facial features of these figures are clearly masculine and have mustaches. In the middle of the lid sits a Madonna, surrounded by columns”.

The mayor of Engerhafe today is Frerich Hinrichs- funny because both these names are Roose ancestor surnames- Enno Frerichs married Annie Hinrichs.

In August 1883 Gerd and his family left Engerhafe, Germany on the ship America, they sailed to America and landed in Baltimore, Maryland on October 10, 1883. From Baltimore they went to Butler County Iowa. Gerd was only in America for 5 years, he died at age 19 on July 25, 1887. Gerd is buried in Jungling Cemetery, near Vilmar Church in Allison, Iowa. His older sister Yevkea Frerichs Reents is also buried there.

Jungling Cemetery, Allison, Iowa

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