Seeking Josephine. Part 1: Katharine’s Travels to Rödelheim

My second great-grandmother, Josephine Maria Alwine Adolfine Steffen, was born on 15 July 1868 in Rödelheim, a district of Frankfurt am Main, Hesse to Caspar Michael Steffen and Johanna Wilhelmine Elisabeth Hoffman. She was the second child in the family. All the Steffen children grew up in Rödelheim. While most of the children who survived to adulthood stayed and lived the rest of their lives out in Rödelheim, two children, my second great-grandmother and her sister, emigrated to the United States.

Rödelheim

Frankfurt am Main.

Rödelheim in the Frankfurt am Main greater region.

In 1868, when Josephine was born, Rödelheim was not part of Frankfurt am Main as it is today, instead it was its own town complete with a post office and ruins of a castle. On 1 April 1910, it became the twentieth district of Frankfurt am Main.[1]

Rödelheim was born into history as early as 778 CE, as it was first mentioned in a document in 778 CE as “Radilenheim” or “home of Radilo.” [2] In the twelfth century, a moated castle was constructed in Rödelheim.[3] In 1276, the Rödelheimerschloss, Rödelheimer castle, became an imperial castle. In 1356, St. Cyriakuskirche, “Cyriakus Church,” was constructed. The church was originally Roman Catholic, but once the Protestant Reformation reached Rödelheim in 1544, it became Lutheran. The family of Josephine were all parishioners the St. Cyriakuskirche which is still in Rödelheim. It is a Lutheran church on the street "Auf der Insel” which was destroyed in the air raids on Frankfurt am Main in World War II, but the church was rebuilt in 1956.

Historical marker across the street from the St. Cyriakuskirche for Rödelheim. Photo taken during my trip to Rödelheim on 30 July 2019.

St. Cyriakuskirche, where Josephine Steffen and all her siblings were baptized. Photo taken during my trip to Rödelheim on 30 July 2019.

When I visited Rödelheim in the Summer of 2019, I was able to see St. Cyriakuskirche and explore Bretano Park, which lies directly across the street from the church. Unfortunately, at the time I visited, the church was closed for repairs, but I was able to take photographs of the outside of the church, including the memorial plaques for the church members who died in WWI & WWII.

Memorial plaque for the church members who died during WWI. Photo taken during my trip to Rödelheim on 30 July 2019.

Historical marker on the bridge over the Nidda River commemorating Georg Bretano’s construction of Bretano Park. Photo taken during my trip to Rödelheim on 30 July 2019.

Rödelheim underwent many changes and hosted many big events in the eighteenth century. In 1743, the English King George II was a guest at the Rödelheim Castle.[4] In 1770, Brentanopark was constructed by Georg Brentano, possibly with planning help from Johann Wolfgang von Goethe.[5]

By the beginning of the nineteenth century, the old castle that was the residence of the counts of Solms-Rödelheim, had become dilapidated and needed to be renewed.[6] Thus, in 1802, part of the old castle was demolished, and a new castle was to be built by Georg Friedrich Mack.[7] However, in 1803, the Napoleonic Wars began, which interrupted the construction being done on the castle, as turmoil had broken out in Germany as a result of the French state upheaval.[8] Unfortunately, the work on the Rödelheim Schloss was not completed:

“Nur das westliche Mittelgebäude mit einer stattlichen Freitreppe und der nördliche Flügel mit dem Thurme wurden errichtet und lassen sich nun wie eine neue Ruine ansehen. Neben ihnen blieb noch längere Zeit der andere Theil des alten Schlosses stehen: bejahrte Leute erinnern sich noch, wie in ihm der Graf von Solms seine Hofhaltung hatte, bis er zuletzt beinahe mehr zusammenfiel als niedergerissen wurde.”/ “Only the western central building with a stately outside staircase and the northern wing with the tower were built and can now be viewed as a new ruin. The other part of the old castle remained standing next to them for a long time: the elderly still remember how the Count of Solms held court in it, until at last it almost collapsed more than was torn down.”[9]

While the castle no longer stands, within Bretano park, you can see the foundation outlines where the castle once stood and a miniature model of what it looked like. Photo taken during my trip to Rödelheim on 30 July 2019.

In 1806, Rödelheim officially became part of the Grand Duchy of Hesse.[10] Then, in 1861, the Frankfurt-Rödelheim-Bad Homburg railway line was opened, leading to more industrial development in the town.[11] In 1885, Rödelheim received city rights under the duchy of Hesse.[12]

Rödelheim, in the middle to late nineteenth century was a beautiful town, as described by Ludwig Heinrich Euler in 1859:

“Unter den vielen kleineren Ortschaften, die in verschiedener Herren Ländern wie ein Kranz Frankfurt herum liegen, rühmt Rödelheim sich eine der am schönsten gelegenen zu sein. Wenn der Wanderer aus Bockenheim hinaus tritt auf die nach Hausen führende Landstrasse, und sein Auge sich weidet an dem Anblick der grade vor ihm liegenden Kette des schön geformten Taunusgebirgs, während sich vor ihm ein grosser von der Nidda durchströmter Wiesengrund ausbreitet, sieht er westlich am Rande der Wiesen hinter hohen Bäumen die Spitzen des Schlosses hervorblicken, welches in der Mitte Rödelheims liegt.”

“Among the many smaller towns that lie like a wreath around Frankfurt in different countries, Rödelheim prides itself on being one of the most beautifully situated. When the traveler from Bockenheim steps out onto the country road leading to home, and his eyes feast on the sight of the chain of the beautifully formed Taunus Mountains lying straight front of him, while a large meadow, through which the Nidda flows, spreads out in front of him, he sees to the west at the edge of the meadows behind tall trees, the peaks of the castle, which lies in the middle of Rödelheim” (1).

Drawing from Ludwig Heinrich Euler’s book of Rödelheim’s castle, c. 1802.

Rödelheim has always been tied closely to culture, music, and the arts. In the early nineteenth century, Georg Bretano from the Bretano family, which played an important role in the German romanticism movement, bought a mansion in the then separate town near Frankfurt. He built the Brentanopark around his mansion, which consists of 34 acres. Additionally, romantic poets such as Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, Clemens Brentano, the Grimm brothers, and Bettina von Arnim frequented Rödelheim. Characters in Goethe’s Sorrows of Young Werther were inspired by the Rödelheim family of Buff.

Katharine (me) standing in front of part of the markers that indicate where Rödelheim Castle once stood in the park. Photo taken during my trip to Rödelheim on 30 July 2019.

Additionally, Rödelheim used to be a center of Yiddish folklore and publishing. The book Ma’asse (ajn schojn massebuch, a collection of Jewish folktales) was printed and published in Rödelheim during the 18th century.

The air raids of World War II heavily damaged the existing architecture in Rödelheim including the Rödelheim Castle, which is now completely gone. The castle would have towered over the town and would have been viewed by the Steffen family throughout their day-to-day lives. There is a current movement among citizens of Rödelheim to rebuild the Rödelheim Schloss (the Rödelheim Castle).

Today, Rödelheim is known throughout Germany for its famous rap musicians including RHP, Moses Pelham, and Sabrina Setlur. It is also the apple cider capital of the Rhine-Maine area. Additionally, one of Europe’s largest IT centers is based in Rödelheim, as is the Deutsche Flugischerung (the office for international flight control). Additionally, the Frankfurt am Main’s women’s football (soccer) team, FFC Frankfurt, is based in Rödelheim and is arguably one of the most successful women’s football teams in the world.

The Steffen Family

Josephine Maria Alwine Adolfine Steffen was the second child of Caspar Michael Steffen and Johanna Wilhelmine Elisabeth Hoffman. Her father was the illegitimate child of Johanna Bayer. Her father, Caspar, sometimes spelled Kaspar or Kasper, was the illegitimate child of an Klaus Dietrich Steffen and Johanna Bayer.

Caspar Steffen’s birth/baptism record.

Until my genealogy research brought me to Germany in the Summer of 2019, I did not know much about Caspar. However, while in the city archives of Frankfurt am Main, I was able to look through the physical original documents pertaining to Caspar’s baptism and marriage. In these documents I found that his mother’s name was Johanna Margarethe Bayer and her father was Johannis Bayer. Per Caspar’s baptism record[13], Johannis and Johanna lived in Rödelheim. Additionally, the baptismal record names a Kaspar Bayer as a godfather to Caspar Steffen. This may be a brother of Johanna or an uncle. Interestingly enough, the baptismal record also claims that Caspar Steffen’s father was a man named Klaus Dietrich Steffen from Plön in Schleswig-Holstein. [14] This has not been verified and has raised many new questions for me in my research: Plön is about 330 miles (roughly 530 kilometers) away from Rödelheim–why would Klaus Steffen be in Rödelheim so far away from his home? It would take someone today about 6 hours to drive from Rödelheim to Plön or at least 4.5 days of nonstop walking. One theory that my grandmother has is that Klaus Steffen was a soldier who passed through Rödelheim or a travelling salesman of some sort. Further documentation is needed to verify who Klaus Dietrich Steffen is.

Johanna Hoffman, Josephine’s mother, was the child of Georg Carl Hoffman and Beata Dorothea Walz.[15] Unlike her husband, she was not born in Rödelheim. She was born in Frauenzimmern, Heilbronn, Baden-Württemberg. Johanna and her eleven siblings all grew up in Frauenzimmern. Johanna’s mother’s family had been living in the town of Frauenzimmern since at least the late 1600s, according to church records. Her father’s family were from a neighboring village called Wüstenrot.

Johanna Hoffman and Caspar Steffen’s marriage record.

Johanna was the only one of her siblings who from out of the area. She moved shortly after her marriage to Caspar Michael Steffen. Johanna and Caspar were married on 19 April 1867.[16] Their marriage record is one that utilizes different spellings of their names: Caspar is Kaspar Steffen and Johanna is Johannette Wilhelmine Hofmann.

Johanna and Caspar Steffen had nine children. However, only five survived to adulthood. Their children were: Karoline "Aunt Carrie" (born 1867), Josephine Maria Alwine Adolfine (born 1868), Markus (born 1870), Elisabetha Karoline (born 1872), Adam (born 1874), Katharina (born 1877),  Johanna Elisabetha (born 1879), Maria (born 1881), and Friederike (born 1883). Of the two sons, only Markus lived long enough to get married and have children. Later in her life Josephine sent postcards and letters from America to her brother and received mail from Rödelheim.

Josephine’s Early Life

Caspar Steffen’s death record.

My second great-grandmother's life must have been anything but easy. Until the age of 15, Josephine's life seems to have been relatively normal for a girl who grew up in 19th century Germany, at least on paper. Because there are no known journals or accounts of her upbringing and memories that exist today, I do not know much about her upbringing, but from what my grandmother told me: Josephine loved her mother very much and had many memories of her. She shared some of these memories with my grandmother when my grandma was growing up. However, she never talked about her father. While Josephine's mother grew up with children and worked at home, Caspar was a shoemaker. Family legend has it that he was also often drunk, as alcohol became a problem for some of Josephine's sons. This would also explain a tragedy in the family that happened when Josephine was 15 years old.

Near the pond on the Nidda River where Caspar Steffen was found deceased. Photo taken during my trip to Rödelheim on 30 July 2019.

On the morning of 21 April 1884, Caspar Michael Steffen was found dead in a pond on the Nidda River, which flows through Rödelheim.[17] An investigation into his death was conducted and concluded that it was likely an accident. This was the first of many major changes that occurred within the family beginning in 1884. Four years after her father's death, Josephine's oldest sister, Karoline, left Germany for Boston, Massachusetts.

Josephine followed soon after. On 18 July 1893, Josephine arrived in Boston aboard the Kaiser Wilhelm II with one piece of baggage.[18] Josephine worked as a maid during her time in Boston. Less than a year after her arrival in the United States of America, she married Luis/Lues Ludwig Ruoff, a brewery worker, on 20 May 1894.[19] Her older sister's new husband, Sylvester Hohman, may have arranged the marriage or introduced the two, as Johann Ruoff, Ludwig Ruoff's brother, had married Sylvester's sister, Francesca Hohman, a few years prior on 7 July 1888.[20]

Josephine had two children with Ludwig Louis Ruoff while the couple lived in Boston: Louis Alexander Ruoff, born on 22 May 1895[21] (nearly one year to the day of his parent’s marriage), and John Leo Ruoff. [22]

However, tragedy would strike Josephine once more when her husband died less than six months after the birth of their second child. Ludwig Ruoff succumbed to meningitis while in the Boston Eye and Ear Infirmary.[23]

Louis/Ludwig Ruoff’s death and funeral announcement from The Boston Globe.

Less than half a year later, Josephine and her two children had left America behind and were back living with her mother in Frankfurt am Main, as she was just about to have her third child. Her third child, Markus Steffen, was the last son of Josephine and Ludwig Ruoff. He must have been conceived in the two weeks before Ludwig's death. Unfortunately, Markus would not live until his first birthday. Within a year of losing her husband, Josephine lost their youngest son to illness on 12 September 1899.[24]

Reference Notes:

[1] “Rödelheim – Stadt Frankfurt Am Main.” 2021. FRANKFURT.DE - DAS OFFIZIELLE STADTPORTAL. Accessed 3 January 2021. https://frankfurt.de/frankfurt-entdecken-und-erleben/stadtportrait/stadtteile/roedelheim.

[2] “Rödelheim – Stadt Frankfurt Am Main.”

[3] “Rödelheim – Stadt Frankfurt Am Main.”

[4] “Rödelheim – Stadt Frankfurt Am Main.”

[5] “Rödelheim – Stadt Frankfurt Am Main.”

[6] Euler, Ludwig Heinrich. Dorf und Schloss Rödelheim: Beiträge zu der Geschichte derselben. (Frankfurt am Main: August Osterreith, 1859). https://www.google.com/books/edition/_/V9bNuABoVQoC?hl=en. 1.

[7] Euler. Dorf und Schloss Rödelheim. 1.

[8] Euler. Dorf und Schloss Rödelheim. 1.

[9] Euler. Dorf und Schloss Rödelheim. 1.

[10] “Rödelheim – Stadt Frankfurt Am Main.”

[11] “Rödelheim – Stadt Frankfurt Am Main.”

[12] “Rödelheim – Stadt Frankfurt Am Main.”

[13] “Standesbücher der Vororte,” 30-31, p. 45, Caspar Steffen baptism; Institut für Stadtgeschichte Frankfurt Am Main, Frankfurt Am Main, Hesse.

[14] “Standesbücher der Vororte,” 30-31, p. 45.

[15] Frauenzimmern (Frauenzimmern, Heilbronn, Germany). “Frauenzimmern Taufregister I von 1 Januar 1808 bis 31 December 1848” [Frauenzimmern Baptismal Register from 1 January 1808 to 31 December 1848] p. 116, Johanna Wilhelmina Hoffmann baptism, 7 July 1844; digital images, Ancestry.com, Wüttemberg, Germany, Lutheran Baptisms, Marriages, and Burials, 1500-1985 (https://www.ancestry.com : accessed 18 May 2022), English-language path: Frauenzimmern > Taufen, Heiraten, Tote, Familienbuch Unehel 1558-1967 > image 676.

[16] “Standesbücher der Vororte,” 122-123, p. 6, Kaspar Steffen and Johannette Wilhelmine Hofmann marriage; Institut für Stadtgeschichte Frankfurt Am Main, Frankfurt Am Main, Hesse.

[17] “Hesse, Germany, Deaths, 1851-1958,” digital images, Ancestry.com (https://www.ancestry.com : accessed 20 July 2018), entry for Caspar Steffen, 22 April 1884; citing Hessisches Landesarchiv, Marburg, Deutschland, Personenstandsregister Sterberegister, p. 31. Image 190.

[18] “New York, U.S., Arriving Passenger and Crew Lists (including Castle Garden and Ellis Island), 1820-1957,” digital image,  Ancestry, ( https://www.ancestry.com : accessed 18 May 2022), entry for Josefine Steffen, age 25, arrived New York, New York, 18 July 1893 aboard the Kaiser Wilhelm II.

[19] “Massachusetts, U.S., Marriage Records, 1840-1915,” database with images. Ancestry. (https://ancestry.com : accessed 20 July 2018), entry for Lues Ruoff and Josephine Steffen, 20 May 1894; citing New England Historic Genealogical Society, Boston, Massachusetts, Massachusetts Vital Records, 1840-1915.

[20] “Massachusetts, U.S., Marriage Records, 1840-1915,” database with images. Ancestry. (https://ancestry.com : accessed 20 July 2018), entry for John Ruoff and Francesca Hohmann, 7 July 1888; citing New England Historic Genealogical Society, Boston, Massachusetts, Massachusetts Vital Records, 1840-1915.

[21] “Massachusetts, U.S., Birth Records, 1840-1915,” database with images. Ancestry. (https://ancestry.com : accessed 20 July 2018), entry Louis Alexander Ruoff, 22 May 1895; citing New England Historic Genealogical Society, Boston, Massachusetts, Massachusetts Vital Records, 1840-1915.

[22] “Massachusetts, U.S., Birth Records, 1840-1915,” database with images. Ancestry. (https://ancestry.com : accessed 20 July 2018), entry Leo Ruoff, 8 April 1897; citing New England Historic Genealogical Society, Boston, Massachusetts, Massachusetts Vital Records, 1840-1915.

[23] “Ruoff,” The Boston Globe, 20 October 1897, p. 7, col. 8. Imaged at Newspapers.com (http://www.newspapers.com : accessed 1 May 2022).

[24] “Hesse, Germany, Deaths, 1851-1958,” digital images, Ancestry.com (https://www.ancestry.com : accessed 20 July 2018), entry for Markus Steffen, 12 September 1899; citing Hessisches Landesarchiv, Marburg, Deutschland, Personenstandsregister Sterberegister.