| Notes |
- Joseph was born at Largitzen, Upper Alsace July 6, 1823, died March 3, 1885, and is buried in Glendale Cemetery at Washington. On Feb. 3, 1850 he married Catherine Birky. She was born at Gern, Bavaria Jan. 29, 1826, and died March 18, 1870, a daughter of Valentine Birky and Elizabeth Unzicker. She is buried in Landes Mennonite Cemetery.
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“JOSEPH AND CATHERINE
Joseph Ropp (1823 - 1885) and Catherine Birky (1826 - 1870)
Their Children
Elizabeth Ropp Eyer (1850 - 1955)
Barbara Ropp Burkey (1851 - 1882)
Amos Ropp (1852 - 1886)
Josephine Ropp Strubhar (1854 - 1883)
Daniel Ropp (1855 - 1947)
Catherine Ropp Strubhar (1857 - 1892)
Fannie Ropp (1858 - 1885)
Joseph Ropp was born July 7, 1823 at Barthel Heute near Dammerkirch, Upper Alsace, France. He was Andréas and Elizabeth Eiman Ropp's ninth child. Joseph was the third son they named Joseph - two older brothers named Joseph and a sister Barbara had died in childhood. Joe was welcomed by five older brothers - fifteen year old Andrew, eleven year old Christian, eight year old Peter, six year old Jacob and two year old John. His father was a leaseholder on a large farm - he farmed a portion of the land, giving part of the crop to the landlord as rent. Their home was humble.
Joseph's parents were Amish Mennonites - their ancestors had been driven out of Switzerland because of their beliefs. Although they lived in France, the language in their home and church was German. Joe's older brothers attended private German schools. About the time Joseph was born, the family began considering emigration to America. Families that had emigrated earlier had sent letters describing their new homes and urging others to come. After Sunday services, people shared these letters and discussed the pros and cons of moving. In late 1825, his parents made the decision to go to America and began to make preparations.
They left Alsace in the spring of 1826. Joe celebrated his third birthday on board the ship that carried the family and their wagonload of possessions from LeHavre, France to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Travel at that time was arduous and must have at times been overwhelming to a toddler. But his mother, father and brothers were there to reassure and care for his needs. His memories of his home in France and of the long journey to America were few - family stories related by his parents and older brothers sometimes recalled vague images from his early childhood.
The family lived in Wilmot Township west of present day Kitchener, Ontario from 1826 to 1832. Their home was in an Amish settlement. The government offered fifty free acres to settlers - the settler had to improve the land and clear the right of way for the road. An additional one hundred and fifty acres could be purchased later. Their lot was forested with many large hardwood trees. They built a small log cabin when they arrived in early October, 1826. This cabin with only minor improvements was their home during the years in Canada. Using little more than an axe, Joseph's father Andréas and his older brothers began clearing the land. The first winter was very hard - the food supply was marginal and the cabin cold and drafty.
The summer of 1827 was a busy one. Father planted some grain crops and he and mother planted a large garden. They acquired a milk cow and a young bull that father would train to do field work. Father and the older boys built a shed to house the animals. They fenced the gardens and fields to keep the animals out. Mother and the younger boys mixed clay and water and filled the cracks between the logs in the cabin wall. This was work even a four year old could do - Joe and John worked on the lower part of the wall. The cabin would be much more comfortable the second winter; and there would be ample food.
Joseph learned by emulating his parents and older siblings. Father, Mother or an older brother would demonstrate and then help him master a task. Gradually he acquired the skills he needed to become a farmer. It didn't take many lessons to learn to drag and pile brush from Father's clearing projects. He soon learned to identify weeds and remove them either by hand or with the hoe. He learned to feed and care for the animals. When he was a little older he sometimes accompanied one of his older brothers when they checked the traps - pelts could be stretched, cured and sold or used to make warm winter clothes.
His brother Moses was born in March, 1828. Joseph and John often took turns rocking his cradle and entertaining him. When mother took Moses outdoors while she worked in the garden, they shooed the biting flies and mosquitoes away. When Moses began to walk, the two boys helped keep him away from danger. His older brothers had helped care for him; now Joseph helped care for Moses.
There is no record of a school either public or private in Wilmot Township during the years the Ropps lived there. As in France, the language in their home and their congregation was German. His parents and older brothers read and told him biblical stories. He began to learn the basics of reading from his mother and older brothers. John was also learning to read. Church services were held on Sundays when weather and roads permitted travel. After the services, people visited and the children played together. Sometimes, when father worked with neighbors on a project such as dragging logs, erecting a building or butchering hogs, they would go along. Mother would help prepare a meal; the older boys and Father would help with the communal project; and the younger ones would play.
They and their neighbors were transforming a wilderness area into productive farms; but the long harsh winters, lack of markets for their crops, and uncertainty about acquiring title to their lands led many to look elsewhere for land. When Joseph was nine, they sold their Canadian farm and moved to Butler County, Ohio where they lived for two years. This Amish settlement was prospering. His parents did not buy land there, but they and the older boys had no difficulty finding farm work. Joe and John and possibly Jacob and Peter were able to attend school during the two years in Ohio.
Late in 1833, they decided to move to Illinois. Because there were no schools yet in Illinois, mother wanted to stay in Ohio over the winter so her younger sons could get at least a basic education. Brothers Andrew and Christian left for Illinois in January; the rest of the family would come in the spring. In April, Joseph's mother Elizabeth became ill and died. She had always been the one to make the everyday decisions for the family. Joseph was ten years old when she died - he would miss her often over the years.
In May of 1834, they moved to Illinois. Joseph celebrated his eleventh birthday on their claim near the Mackinaw River. Andrew and Christian had cleared a few acres and built a log cabin in the early spring. Now they had a vegetable garden, a patch of ripening wheat, and another patch of corn. In the fall, they sold the claim and moved to the Peter Engel farm. Andrew had married Jacobena Verkler that spring. Jacobena was Peter Engel's stepdaughter. Andrew and Jacobena stayed at the Engels for only a brief time - he had found land in Elm Grove Township. In the spring Joe's father, Andréas, moved the family to a claim west of Washington, Illinois near the Illinois River.
We have no record of how this all male household handled the cooking, laundry and mending chores. Because Elizabeth and Andréas had no daughters, the boys had always helped their mother with her work. Andrew's wife Jacobena and Peter Engel's wife Catherine surely helped them master cooking and baking techniques and to learn some basic mending techniques. Andréas kept his wife's sewing box for many years - eventually Peter had it.
As soon as they built a cabin on the claim, Christian moved to Andrew's and set up a blacksmith shop. In 1836, both Peter and Jacob found work near Andrew - Andréas, John, Joe and Moses farmed and improved the claim. Late in 1836, they lost this claim. The reason for this loss is not known - we believe that Andréas failed to file some paperwork. They packed their possessions and moved to Andrew's home. We don't know where they lived for the next two years - probably in a cabin on Andrew's farm. There was plenty of work in the area for his older brothers. Joe, now a young teenager, usually worked with his father and John - sometimes for a neighbor. In 1838, his father purchased a farm in Elm Grove Township, Tazewell County, Illinois. This would be Joseph's home until about 1848. The farm was across the lane from the school. When he had no work, Joe attended school.
Joe grew to be a strong, well-coordinated, vigorous young man. He was a quiet, friendly man who worked well with others. He was soon in demand as a hired hand. He often worked away from home - getting room and board in addition to his wages. He was saving to buy a farm. In 1849, he may have considered joining the wild rush to the gold fields of California. He decided to stay in Illinois. By the late 1840's, Joe was farming near Groveland. On February 3, 1850, he married Catherine Birky. Joe's brother Christian, now an Amish bishop, married them.
Catherine was born in Bavaria, Germany on January 31, 1826. Her family emigrated from Bavaria to Butler County, Ohio sometime between 1830 and 1836. They moved to a farm near Groveland, Illinois about 1840. They too were Amish. There were several Birky families who came to Illinois in the 1800s. Their descendants were often classified as belonging to one of three clans - the big Birkys, the little Birkys, and the red Birkys. A redhead, Catherine belonged to the last clan. He and Catherine met at Sunday services and work and social gatherings.
Joseph was twenty-six and Catherine twenty-four years old when they married. In the first months of their marriage, they lived on their farm near Groveland. That year they produced thirty-five bushels of wheat, three hundred bushels of corn, fifty bushels of oats, a hundred bushels of barley, and six tons of hay. They had two horses, two milk cows, six pigs and some chickens.
Late in 1850, they bought a one hundred-twenty acre farm on the Allentown Road a mile east of his brother Peter. This farm was in Elm Grove Township. It had been settled about 1828 by a family named Hodgson. There were fields under cultivation. It had a house and some outbuildings. On December 5, 1850, their first child was born - a daughter they named Elizabeth. 1850 was a big year for Joseph and Catherine.
MEMORY DRAWING OF JOSEPH AND CATHERINE ROPP'S FARM
1850 TO 1875
Drawn in 1957 by Walter A. Ropp, who lived on this farm from 1875 to 1885
Joe was a good farmer. He cared for the land, buildings and fences. Over the next ten years, he cleared the remaining acres for farming. He built a log barn, a granary, rail pens for the corn, and improved the house. The barn sides were logs - some were thirty feet in length. The roof was shingled with split white oak clapboards, and the floor was made of oak planks. His field fences were all hand split rails - the road cut through the farm, so he needed more fences than most of his neighbors. He became very adept with axe and maul.
Their home was a frame house. It was larger than most homes of that time. It had six rooms and was warm and cozy and had a large attic where the children could play. He had a very large garden with vegetables and three long rows of grapes as well as currents and gooseberries. In the yard by the house he had cherry, peach and plum trees. He also planted a two-acre apple orchard. There were Maiden's Blush, Bellflower, sweets for cider and apple butter, and Northern Spy for long winter evenings. He also planted walnut trees - a half-mile long row along the road.
While Joseph was improving their farm and tending to the crops and livestock, Catherine was caring for the home, her husband, and bearing and rearing children. They had seven children in their first nine years of marriage - Elizabeth in 1850, Barbara in 1851, Amos in 1852, Josephine in 1854, Daniel in 1855, Catherine in 1857, and Fannie in 1858. Her days were filled with activity - cooking and baking, sewing and mending, laundry and cleaning, gardening, harvesting and preserving food - and caring for an infant and several toddlers.
In 1860, Joseph's farm produced a hundred bushels of wheat, a thousand bushels of corn, a hundred bushels of oats, a hundred bushels of potatoes, and ten tons of hay. The orchard was coming into production. They marketed twelve dollars worth of fruit. They now had seven horses, four milk cows, four steers, and twenty pigs. They sold a hundred fifty pounds of butter. The value of the animals they slaughtered that year was one hundred and thirty dollars. Their farm was valued at three thousand dollars, livestock at seven hundred dollars, and their farm implements at two hundred dollars.
The 1860s brought prosperity to Illinois farmers. Railroads connected them to markets in the East, improvements in farm implements, and high Civil War prices for farm products combined to make farming very profitable. By 1870, Joseph was farming two hundred acres - one hundred was improved, the remainder was woodland. His farm was valued at ten thousand dollars, his implements at two hundred fifty dollars, and his livestock at twelve hundred dollars. In 1870, he and his sons and hired help produced three hundred eighty bushels of wheat, six hundred bushels of corn, three hundred bushels of oats, a hundred bushels of potatoes, and thirty-five tons of hay. They also sold four hundred-eighty pounds of butter, three hundred and forty dollars worth of orchard products, twenty-five dollars worth of garden produce, and two hundred dollars worth of forest products. They had seven horses, five milk cows, eight steers, twenty sheep and ten pigs. Animals slaughtered or sold for slaughter brought in four hundred twenty-five dollars. He also sold seventy pounds of wool. The farm brought in more than twenty five hundred dollars that year.
At some time during her life Catherine contracted tuberculosis. By the late 1860s, she was greatly weakened by the disease. On March 18, 1870, Catherine died. She was buried at the Birkey-Landes Cemetery. Joseph and their children mourned her loss - the girls were old enough to take over the household duties. Catherine had trained her daughters well. Under nineteen-year-old Elizabeth's leadership, they were able to manage their home and gardens. Family and neighbors helped when needed.
Joseph and his family lived on their Elm Grove farm for twenty-five years. All of their children attended Railroad School. Five of Joseph's six brothers lived within three miles of their farm and the sixth only about eighteen miles away. During most of their years in Elm Grove, they belonged to the Dillon Creek Amish congregation - Joe's brother Andrew was its bishop and his brother Peter one of the deacons. The brothers often shared work - butchering, harvesting, making cider, and erecting barns or other large buildings. While the men worked, the wives visited and prepared a meal. The children played with their cousins.
Before Joe's sons were old enough to help in the fields, Peter often sent his older sons to help Uncle Joe. They went with enthusiasm. In those days, boys rarely had any money. Uncle Joe never failed to give each of them fifteen or twenty cents for the days work. When they worked for other neighbors, there was no money - only another day of work. Peter's son Jacob related that his Uncle Joseph was a kind, generous man and very good with children.
In 1875, Joseph sold the Elm Grove farm and bought a farm east of Washington, Illinois. Their older children were grown and ready to marry and leave home. The younger ones had completed their schooling. Their relocation was motivated in part by a desire to move to an area where he could more easily find farms nearby for the children. They also wanted to move to a different Amish congregation. The Dillon Creek congregation was very conservative. The congregation near Washington was liberal. In the years prior to the move, Joseph, his children, and others in the area had been worshiping with the Washington group. In the 1870s, Joseph and several of the other dissenters who lived in the Elm Grove area relocated to the prairies near Washington. Joseph wore his beard short and replaced his hooks and eyes with buttons.
Joseph farmed at Washington for five or six years. All but his youngest daughter Fannie soon married and he quit farming. He still had a garden and a few animals to care for, but he no longer did the heavy work. Elizabeth, Barbara, Josephine, Catherine, and Amos lived nearby. There were grandchildren for him to visit. He also exchanged visits with his brothers and many of his nieces and nephews.
Tuberculosis continued to haunt the family. In the early 1880s, two of his daughters died of complications of tuberculosis. Three of his grandchildren died as small children. Barbara and her daughter Elsie and Catherine's daughter Ada died in 1882, and Josephine and her son Alvin died in 1883. These were difficult years for Joseph and his family. Catherine and Fannie would also become victims of consumption brought on by tuberculosis.
Joseph died on March 3, 1885. The cause of death is not known. He is buried in the Glendale Cemetery in Washington, Illinois. His wife Catherine had died fifteen years earlier on March 18, 1870. Two of their daughters and three grandchildren preceded him in death. Five months later Fannie also died. Joseph lived sixty-one years. He was a quiet man - sociable and willing to listen. He usually let others do most of the talking. He was like his brother Peter in temperament and appearance. He was about five foot, ten inches tall and muscular. The years of hard physical labor had made him strong. He was kind and generous - much liked by his neighbors.“ [3]
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1823 - 1885 (61 years)
