We
don't know the significance (if any) of the street scene or the house with the
numbered door. The number is clearly visible on the transom above the door when the
picture is enlarged.
(1815-1831, birth to 17 years)
(Last updated: Saturday April 30, 2005)
In his letters, Wilhelm referred to Endingen as Endingen-im-Breisgau, Grand Duchy of Baden. Today it is known as Endingen am Keiserstuhl, in the Länder (state) of Baden-Württemberg, Germany.
He was born Wilhelm Böniz on 8 February, 1815, to a middle class family in Endingen, Grand Duchy of Baden, Germany. His father (born Franz Antonius Böniz in 1773) and grand-father (Thaddeus Böniz) were master coopers (barrel or cask makers) - wine has been produced around Endingen since Roman times. Wilhelm's mother was Maria Anna Wagner (born about 1778). His parents were married in 1800. For more information on the social organization and trades of German villages of that period, please refer to the Benitz Ancestors page.
Wilhelm was taught how to read and write German by Mr. Grom (per Wilhelm's letter of March 8, 1855). According to family legend he attended Freiburg university, but given his social standing as the son of a tradesman, it's much more likely he was in Freiburg as an apprentice - trade unknown.
The
following photographs are from the personal collection of Wilhelm's wife,
Josephine Kolmer. We do not know how she came to have them. A
relative could have sent them (Benitz or Kolmer, see Wilhelm's letter of
22 Sept., 1856) or her son Alfred could have obtained them
when he visited Endingen during August, 1904.
We
don't know the significance (if any) of the street scene or the house with the
numbered door. The number is clearly visible on the transom above the door when the
picture is enlarged.
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Alten Rathaus (Old Town Hall) |
Street Scene |
House #501 |
| [Source: John C. Benitz, 2003] | ||
At best, we can only speculate on the reasons why Wilhelm left Endingen. However, here are some that could have influenced his decision to leave for America:
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His older brother Thaddeus had taken over the cooperage from their father and Wilhelm most likely had to consider other means of making a living. | ||||||
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Wilhelm - as an apprentice in Freiburg - must have been aware of the nationalist stirrings and reviving revolutionary spirit, particularly amongst the students. Germany in 1830: unrest forced the rulers of Brunswick and Hesse-Kassel to abdicate, and in Saxony a modern constitution was obtained - leading Metternich to clamp down on political dissent. Europe in 1830: the French replaced Charles X with Louis Philippe; the Belgians revolted against their Dutch rulers; the Poles likewise with their Russian rulers. | ||||||
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Though only about 25% of the men were conscripted, Wilhelm must have been concerned by its possibility. | ||||||
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He was 17 - young, healthy, and single - the world was his to explore. | ||||||
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Young and impresionable, he could easely have been intrigued by the possibilities of adventure in the American west:
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Whatever the reason for his leaving, he left as most did without the required official permission. According to family legend, he left in 1832 at age 17 to become a sailor on a merchant brig.
We recently had the opportunity to visit Wilhelm's (and Josepha Kolmer's!) birthplace. It is a very picturesque town surrounded by vineyards in the Kaiserstuhl area to the northwest of Freiburg-im-Breisgau along the east side of the Rhine valley.
Endingen am Keiserstuhl, Baden-Württemberg, Germany, circa 1995
We were attended to like visiting VIP's by the town's Bürgermeister, Herr Hans-Joachim Schwarz. The Benitz name is of great interest to the town due to Alexander Benitz, a cousin of Wilhelm's. In 1842-1843, Alexander led a group of 400 emigrants, recruited from Endingen and the surrounding villages, to Venezuela where 40 miles west of Caracas they established Colonia Tovar. A museum is being created in Endingen to commemorate the Tovar emigrants.
The website for Endingen is: www.endingen.de The Alten Rathaus, pictured above, is in several pictures and can be seen center-right in the live Webcam of the town's marktplatz.
