Joseph Schrag (Schrack)

Other Events and Attributes:

• Occupation: Miller In Gondrexange and Imling, And At Rhodes (Bachat) At The Time Of Death
• Occupation: Unskilled Laborer In 1827 At Time Of Peter’s Marriage
• Religion: Amish
• Residence: 1797, Rhodes, Moselle, FR
• Residence: 1799-1807, Gondrexange, Moselle, FR
• Residence: 1811, Imling, Moselle, FR
• Residence: 1822, Rhodes, Moselle, FR
• Residence: 1826, Rhodes, Moselle, FR

Notes:

At the time of Joseph’s brother Jean’s marriage in 1797, he was living at Moulin Les Bachats near Rhodes. Bachats is attached to Rhodes, 9 km north of Gondrexange. There is a walled Anabaptist cemetery at the edge of town, bordering a cow pasture, where Pelsy, Esch, Abresol families, and more, are buried.

The 'ferme des Les Bachats' at Rhodes is still operational and maintains an inn. It is located on a peninsula in L'Étang de Stock (Stock Pond). A bachat is a feeding trough for cattle, indicating that it may have once been a dairy farm.

Joseph married his first wife, Marie Engel at Alzing farm near Gosselming in 1798. Very soon after they were living at Gondrexange, for their first and only child (Joseph, who lived only 5 years) was born there. Marie died there, possibly as a result of child birth complications. A second time Joseph went to Alzing to marry his second wife, Marie Neuhauser, but returned to Gondrexange to live and work. Their first three sons and one daughter (Anne, who evidently died as an infant) were born between 1801 and 1806.

Joseph and his wives could have lived at Domaine Ketzing for a time, a nobleman’s possession, who hired workers to farm and run the mill, blacksmith workers, brick kilns, etc., but this isn’t documented. Living quarters were provided in the woods some distance from the main chateaus. Today one can find a few foundation stones of buildings, and the remains of a well that served the workers. (2012) There was no persecution of Anabaptists during this time at Ketzing, as the Duke of Lorraine protected them. Today Ketzing is owned by an insurance company: a newer building is used for training seminars. The domaine is part of the forestry department and the chateaus provide lodging for hunters.

But more than likely the family lived at the mill in Gondrexange, since Joseph was the miller there for a number of years from about 1800 to 1811.

By 1811 the family had moved to Imling near Saarebourg. They lived at one of the three mills along the Saare River, Remeling, when their first daughter was born. The other two mills were Rimling, and Rot (Roth) (also called Rotmuhle). All three mills were situated side by side along the banks of the Saare. Eleven years later Joseph and Marie were back at Bachats, and were there in 1826. No doubt they lived there continuously until Joseph’s death in 1830. Marie was still living in 1826, but what happened to her after that is still unknown.

“Joseph Schrack, 33, miller, ...witnessed the civil birth record of Johannes Gascho, Born on 8 Jan, 1806, son of Joseph Gascho, lease-manager of the agricultural property called Canardiere in Gondrexange, and Katharina Swalter.”

“Gondrexange had two mills, one was sacred for the construction of the Marne-Rhine canal. It is logical that in a given period an Anabaptist was a miller. Joseph Schrag from Bellegarde, commune of Bistroff, had the mill turned from about 1800 to 1807. He was married to Marie Neuhauser who gave him several children in Gondrexange. Did he then go to Rhodes where he died in 1830?

“His sister Catherine, born in Oderfang, Saint-Avold, married the mill boy Joseph Oyer in 1804 and went to Niderhoff's mill. Joseph Schrag was probably replaced or was he in competition with André Schertz enumerated in 1809 as head of the family. He was the son of Christian Schertz and Elisabeth Reitiger. The only act that reveals his presence is his testimony at the death of his father at the age of 55 years.”

Birth:
Belgrade farm. Commune of Grostenquin. Belgerade (Bellegarde) farm was built around 1818 according to Jean-Claude Koffel.

Residence:
Living at Moulin les Bachats at time of brother Jean’s marriage.

Residence:
At the mill in Gondrexange where four children were born.

Residence:
Lived at the mill Remeling near Imling at the birth of Magdelaine in 1811, was still there in 1813 according to source 1056.

Residence:
Living at the mill at Bachats at time of Johannes and Catherine’s marriage

Died:
“On Apr. 5, 1830, Joseph Serack, 58, miller, a native of the farm called Belgrade [canton of Bistroff], Moselle, husband of Maria Neuhauser, died in Rhodes. The death was reported by son Peter Serack, 27, miller at Dompcevrin, Meuse.”
(Translation by NASL)


Buried:
Most probably in a burying ground on the farm/mill Bachats.

Joseph married Maria Engel on 13 Aug 1798 in Gosselming, Moselle, Lorraine, FR. Maria (daughter of Christian Engel and Catherine Marie Ritzieker (Regsecker) (Lithzieker)) was born in 1774 in Gosselming, Moselle, Lorraine, FR; died about 1800. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

Joseph was age 25 at marriage and Marie Engle was 26 years.

Witnesses:
Sebastian Ohmer, 64 years old and a blacksmith living in Gosselming.
Jean Schrag, farmer living in the community of (Demascalle?), brother of Joseph.
(Demascalle? may be Marshal/Marsal (Canton of Vic), a hamlet attached today to Vergaville, and
near Bistroff)
Jean Kamp, age 21, living in Bascha village of Rathe (probably Rhodes), neighborhood of ?
Jean Newhauser, age 22, farmer living in Allzing, village of Gosselming. Named as a brother of Marie--actually he was a step brother, since Marie’s mother married secondly Jean’s father, Nicolas Neuhauser.

Married:
Fenetrange 57930 Alzing Ferme

1. Joseph Schrag, Jr. was born on 7 Jun 1799 in Gondrexange, Moselle, FR; died on 9 Feb 1805 in Gondrexange, Moselle, FR.

Joseph married Maria Neuhauser about 1800 in Gosselming, Moselle, Lorraine, FR. Maria (daughter of Nicolas Christian Neuhauser and Catherine Marie Ritzieker (Regsecker) (Lithzieker)) was born about 1772-1773 in Gosselming, Moselle, Lorraine, FR; died after 1826. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

Married:
Alzing?

1. Johannes Schrock (Schrack, Gerrard) was born on 15 Jun 1801 in Gondrexange, Moselle, FR; died on 21 Jan 1875 in Pekin, Tazewell Co., IL; was buried in Pekin, Tazewell Co., IL.
2. Peter Schrock was born on 15 Jun 1802 in Gondrexange, Moselle, FR; died on 7 Sep 1887 in Trenton, Butler Co., OH; was buried on 9 Sep 1887 in Trenton, Butler Co., OH.
3. André (Andréas) Schrock was born on 3 Jul 1804 in Gondrexange, Moselle, FR; died on 5 Aug 1855 in Washington Twp., Tazewell Co., IL; was buried in Aug 1855 in Washington Twp., Tazewell Co., IL.
4. Anne Schrag (Serach) was born on 24 Dec 1806 in Gondrexange, Moselle, FR.
5. Magdalena Schrock (Schrack) was born on 10 Apr 1811 in Sarrebourg, Moselle, FR; died on 4 Aug 1855 in Congerville, Montgomery Twp., Woodford Co., IL; was buried in Woodford Co., IL.
6. Barbara Schrock (Schrack) was born about 1815 in Moselle, FR; died about 1835 in Spring Bay, Worth Twp., Woodford Co., IL; was buried in Worth Twp., Woodford Co., IL.

Other Events and Attributes:

• Occupation: A Mennonite tailor
• Occupation: Miller And Tailor Of Clothes In Rhodes
• Religion: Amish
• Residence: 1771, St. Avold, Moselle, FR
• Residence: 1772, Bistroff, Moselle, FR
• Residence: 1773, Bistroff, Moselle, FR
• Residence: 1775, Bistroff, Moselle, FR
• Residence: 1783, St. Avold, Moselle, FR
• Residence: 1787, Rhodes, Moselle, FR
• Residence: 1788, Rhodes, Moselle, FR
• Residence: 1794, Rhodes, Moselle, FR

Notes:

Andréas has been included as a child of Caspar by several researchers. However, his birth date seems not to fit with being Caspar’s son, but perhaps Andréas’ birth date is incorrect. It could also be that Caspar’s birthdate is incorrect or that he had a wife before Barbe Rouvenac.

Gondrexange is situated at the edge of a lake with the same name, between Rechicourt le Chateau and Heming. Eight km from Rechicourt le Chateau, twelve km from Sarrebourg and 72 km from Nancy. In 1836 there were 1027 people living in the village. By 2001 that number had dwindled to 464. A farm 2 km away called Ketzing had 18 inhabitants in 1836.

“At the edge of the village (Gondrexange), next to a large recreational lake, a narrow lane named ‘rue de la vieux moulin,’ or ‘old mill street,’ winds down below the edge of the main highway. Here can be seen the trace of a small mill stream and the ruins of a small stone mill structure, overgrown with weeds. Though not conclusively documented, this site seems a likely candidate for the Schrag residence and site of Joseph Oyer’s marriage (to Catherine Schrag, daughter of second wife, Marie Blazer).”


(also found on French documents as 'Caspard' and 'Gaspard'), was born circa 1744 and died on Sommerhof at Neuviller, Lower Alsace March 15, 1794. He was a miller at Bischwald Mill and a cultivator on Belgrade farm at Bistroff after 1772, and at the time of his death was a tailor at Rhodes. His civil death entry from Neuviller described him as a 50-year-old Anabaptist living at Rhodes (it is likely that he was visiting the Sommers on Sommerhof at the time of his death). Witnesses were tenant farmer Jean Sommer, 63, and day laborer Jean Müller, 59 (Jean Sommer, born circa 1731, was the father of Joseph Sommer, and grandfather to the Sommers who came to Tazewell County in 1834). “ }




  

Birth:
Ingweilerhof

Residence:
Cultivator at Belgrade farm, and miller at Bischwald Mill.

Residence:
Son Joseph was born at Bellegrade Ferme near Bistroff

Residence:
At time of Catherine’s birth

Residence:
At time of Anne’s birth

Residence:
Domiciled at Bachats at the time of his death.

Died:
On Sommerhof. 25 Ventose 2. Caspar Schraag, 50 year old Anabaptist living at Rhodes. Witnesses: Tenant farmer Jean Sommer of Sommerhof, 63, and day laborer Jean Muller.
The witnesses may not have known the exact date of Caspar’s birth, and gave a nice round number as what they thought was a probable age. Witnesses were Jean Sommer, 63 (tenant farmer) and Jean Muller, 59 (day laborer). Jean, b. abt. 1731 was the father of Joseph Sommer and grandfather to the Sommers who arrived in Tazewell Co., IL in 1834.

Buried:
There are remains of a Sommers cemetery at Sommerhof, so Caspar could have been buried there, or the body removed back to Rhodes. There are no identifiable stones at either place.

Caspar + Barbe Rouvenac (Rüfenacht). Barbe (daughter of Jean Rouvenac and Barbe Ringenberg) was born in 1730; died in 1773. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• Religion: Amish

Notes:

The marriage record of Caspar’s son, Josef, names his mother as Barbe Ruvennach. The other children’s marriage records name Marie Blaser as mother.

NOTE: Anne Rouvenacht [Barbe’s sister?] married Jean Hirschy b. 1752, who is listed as a witness to Anne Schrag’s marriage and is named as her cousin.

Other Events and Attributes:

• Religion: Anabaptist/Amish
• Residence: Abt 1733
• Residence: 1744, Zweibrücken, Rheinland-Pfalz, GR
• Residence: 1750, Zweibrücken, Rheinland-Pfalz, GR
• Residence: 1761, Zweibrücken, Rheinland-Pfalz, GR

Notes:

On the Ernstweilerhof.

Named on the Ingweilerhof near Zweibrücken in 1761.The Schrags were part of the Amish “Haftler” (those who believed buttons were a luxury and instead wore hooks and eyes), along with families Stalter, Hauter, Oesch, Eyer, Gut, Nafziger, Gungerich, etc. This group formed their own congregation at Ixheim where they built their own “praying house.” This was separate from the Mennonite congregation who were following “Knopfler” (those who wore buttons); Bachmann, Lehmann, Steinmann, etc.

Birth:
or Jebsheim, Alsace

Residence:
Ingweilerhof, according to LDS info

Residence:
Ingweilerhof

Caspar married Elisabeth Weiss in 1730. Elisabeth was born in 1708 in Zweibrücken, Rheinland-Pfalz, GR. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• Religion: Amish

Notes:

Birth:
Ingweilerhof

Other Events and Attributes:

• Occupation: Farmer At Bachats, Rhodes, FR

Notes:

Jean was of Bening parish. There most likely was a previous marriage.

Jean married Barbe Ringenberg on 2 Dec 1754 in Rhodes, Moselle, FR. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• HIST: "Schrag-Schrocks came to America at various times and by a number of routes--before 1800 via northern Alsace and the Palatinate, and after 1870 via Volhynia, Russia. The Schrags were one of only three prominent Amish names that originate in the Emmental (along with Troyer and Schwarzentruber)." (This couple may have had a daughter Elisabeth (b. 1722) who is now linked to Caspar Schrag who married Elisabeth Weiss. () It is possible that the Johann Schrag family of “The Children’s Blizzard” was a descendant of Caspar and Elisabeth Leyenberger.
• Religion: Anabaptist
• Baptism: 13 Dec 1685, Wynigen, Bern, SW
• EMPL: 1711, Jebsheim, Haut-Rhin, Alsace, FR
• Residence: 1712, Jebsheim, Haut-Rhin, Alsace, FR
• Residence: Aft 1712, Zweibrücken, Rheinland-Pfalz, GR
• Residence: 1713, Zweibrücken, Rheinland-Pfalz, GR
• Residence: 1714, Zweibrücken, Rheinland-Pfalz, GR
• Residence: 1733, Zweibrücken, Rheinland-Pfalz, GR
• Residence: Aft 1733, Somerset Co., PA

Notes:

The Schrag surname is interpreted as a nickname for a carpenter or a cabinetmaker. "Schrage" in German means a holder or frame from crossed woods used for framework building. The spelling of the surname changed to Schrack, or Chraque in France--Schrock in America. "Schrag/Schrock comes from Schrage (an old name for a special wood combination.)"

In Southern Alsace along the Rhine River, south and east of Colmar, refugees came directly to these towns from Switzerland. Among the refugees listed at Jebsheim after 1700 were: 1700-Ulrich Birky, Steffisburg, worker; 1712-Gaspard (Casper) Schrag and Elisabeth Leyenberger of Wynigen.

!!This individual, Caspar b. 1685, who married Elsbeth Leyenberger, can be traced back to Switzerland, and through him all of the other Anabaptist Schrag branches. 

Virgil Miller, in his book "Both Sides of the Ocean" lists the refugees at Jebsheim, Alsace after 1700 and includes the fact that Gaspard (Caspar) Schrag and Elisabeth Leyenberg of Wynigen were married in 1712 (evidently in Jebsheim). Virgil Miller's research is probably correct.  This means son Caspar was born no later than September/October of 1711 (in Wynigen?), since Anne was born in June of 1712. 

Caspar, as well as other Schrag families moved into the Palatinate area around Zweibrücken. They lived in various places in the Palatinate, including Heckenaschbacherhof, Kaplaneyhof and Ingeweilerhof before leaving for America or going to Lorraine.


Schrag-Schrocks came to America at various times and by a number of routes--before 1800 via northern Alsace and the Palatinate, and after 1870 via Volhynia, Russia. The Schrags were one of three prominent Amish names that originate in the Emmental (along with Troyer and Schwarzentruber).

"In a list of Anabaptists in the Staatsarchiv in Bern, Switzerland, two brothers, Christian and Bendicht Schrag, sons of Ulrich Schrag, are named in 1765. They move from Wynigen-Leumberg in Switzerland to the Munstertal. About this time Schrags of Zweibrücken were already living here. Ulrich Schrag, who is leaseholder (Bestander) on the Ernstweilerhof in 1735, was a son of Caspar Schrag. A Casper Schrag is on the Ingeweilerhof in 1761. It is not clear whether these two individuals were father and son or brothers; the author assumes the latter. In that case, they would both be sons of Caspar Schrag, the father of Ulrich Schrag, who does not otherwise appear in the Palatinate. The following arrangement of descendants of the two brothers has not been proven and is based in part on assumptions."

Birth:
Leumberg farm

Baptism:
Evangelisch-reformierte Kirche (Reformed Church)

EMPL:
Transient farm workers

Residence:
Ingweilerhof

Residence:
Ernstweiler

Caspar married Elsbeth Leyenberger on 9 Aug 1711 in Jebsheim, Haut-Rhin, Alsace, FR. Elsbeth (daughter of Ulrich Leyenberger and Anni Zougg (Zaug, Zaugg, Zook)) was born in 1690 in Jebsheim, Haut-Rhin, Alsace, FR. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• Religion: Anabaptist

Notes:

Married:
They were given a Catholic marriage ceremony, even though they were Anabaptists.

Other Events and Attributes:

• Occupation: Farmer

Notes:

Of the parish of Bening. Also later at Rhodes.

Jean married Madeleine Schertz in 1734. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• Occupation: Farmer at Bachat in 1854
• Residence: 1854, Rhodes, Moselle, FR

Notes:

The first Anabaptist farmer listed in the parish registers is Christian Ringenberg in 1750. The priest Cornet records the marriage of his daughter Anne, whom he had with his wife Anne Kreyenbul, with Jean Schertz on the Bachats farm.
Besides, his sons were also there, Christian husband of Marie Schertz, Joseph married Marie Lettwiller and Joseph with his wife Catherine Schwartz.

After 1774, the records of the Ringueberg family are no longer mentioned [in Rhodes. In 1780 died at Quatre-Vents near Phalsbourg Christian Ringueberg, 86 years of Ketzing, Gondrexange, presumably the father.

Residence:
Bachats

Died:
Near Phalsbourg

Christian married Anne Kreyenbuhl (Krabyl) before 1750. Anne died in 1753. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]