The Last of the First Cousins
The recent death of John Howard Hagenbuch got me thinking about first cousins. John was born on March 11, 1936, and he died three weeks ago on August 18th. John’s Hagenbuch ancestry is: Andreas ...
This Week's Article From the Beech Grove
Your Husband, Ben: Letters from the Civil War, Part 4
In the previous article in this series, Benjamin “Ben” Del Fel Hagenbuch (b. 1833) was camped near Hatcher’s Run, Virginia, having participated in a battle there. He was assigned to the provost guard, military...
Mary C. Hagenbuch’s Counterpane, Part 2
When Andrew and I started this site almost seven years ago, we were interested in preserving stories of our family, predominantly our immediate Hagenbuch family. In 2016, Andrew launched Beechroots, our online family tree....
Your Husband, Ben: Letters from the Civil War, Part 3
In Part 2 of this series, Benjamin “Ben” Del Fel Hagenbuch (b. 1833) had joined the Union Army for a third time in late 1864. After training, he arrived in Virginia and participated in...
Mary C. Hagenbuch’s Counterpane, Part 1
On June 4th, we received a message from Debbie Hagenbuch-Reese. First, Debbie gave us her lineage, descending through patriarch Andreas’ youngest son John (b. 1763). Then, she mentioned that she would like to attend...
Your Husband, Ben: Letters from the Civil War, Part 2
In Part 1 of this series, we met Benjamin “Ben” Del Fel Hagenbuch (b. 1833) who lived in Columbia County, Pennsylvania with his family. Ben joined the Union Army in 1861 and again in...
The Family of John Hagenbuch, Born 1802
Andrew and I often feature families that are especially interesting, different, or have curious photos attached to them. Yet, so many of our ancestors were simply upstanding citizens with ordinary careers, conventional families, and...
Your Husband, Ben: Letters from the Civil War, Part 1
Journals, letters, and postcards are some of the best ways to examine the daily lives of our ancestors. Sixteen letters, penned by Benjamin Del Fel Hagenbuch during the American Civil War, are held by...
July of 1776
We have numerous questions about Andreas Hagenbuch, including some about the Revolutionary War service of Andreas’ four sons: Henry (b. 1737), Michael (b. 1746), Christian (b. 1747), and John (b. 1763). These were explored...
Making Bank: Clues About Hagenbuchs and Their Money
There was a time in American history when a dollar wasn’t always a dollar and when your local bank was more likely to have printed the paper money in your wallet than the federal...
