Homestead Cemetery Cleanup Day, 2025
Last weekend a new generation of Hagenbuchs visited the family homestead for the first time. Getting there, however, was a perfect example of Murphy’s Law. Everything that could go wrong did go wrong! We...
Tagged: Pennsylvania
Christian Hagenbuch’s Last Will and Testament
Christian Hagenbuch (b. 1747) was the third son of Andreas Hagenbuch (b. 1715), who immigrated to America in 1737. He was born December 17, 1747 in Albany Township, Berks County, Pennsylvania to Andreas and...
Dog Guards Fallen Boy From Death on Tracks
Searching for one thing can occasionally lead a person to encounter something unexpected and yet equally as fascinating. This has happened to me when researching families, and most recently occurred while looking for the...
Good Things Come in Threes
They say good things come in threes: three wishes, three gifts of the Magi, and for my wife, Sara, and I, three children. In August, we welcomed a third child to our family—a daughter—Rosanna...
Stories Left Untold
In 2014, my father, Mark, and I founded this site to share the stories and genealogy of our Hagenbuch family. It’s been almost five months since Dad died, and you may have noticed that...
Childcare in the 1930s: Irene (Faus) Hagenbuch’s School Project
Raising children isn’t easy—especially during an economic downturn. In the 1930s, the Great Depression put renewed focus on America’s children and how they were being taught. In 1933, Congress tasked the Works Progress Administration...
JoAnn (Hagenbuch) Dake: a Legacy of Love & Wisdom
I keep an eye on family obituaries as they are published, so if you have any to share, please send them along. At a minimum, an obituary tells us who a person was and...
Norman E. Hagenbuch’s Eyebrow-Raising Matchbooks
Matchbooks, printed with advertisements, were once a popular way to promote businesses. In a time before cheap, pocket lighters, matches were the most convenient way to light a candle or start a fire. The...
Connecting Families in Marion Township, Henry County, Iowa
Receiving comments and emails from readers is one of the best parts of running Hagenbuch.org. Recently, I was contacted by Jean whose family roots are in Mount Pleasant—a small town in Marion Township, Henry...
What Is All This Nonsense?
Lately, I have been reading a lot of nonsense. I’m not talking about social media posts or news stories. Rather, I keep running across information about our Hagenbuch family that makes no sense to...
