FEUERSTEINS IN THAL
the first johannes (hans) Feuerstein
The first Feuerstein to live in the Berg and Thal parish was Johannes (Hans) Feuerstein. Hans (Hans#1) was deceased sometime between May 28, 1711 (Src: Drulingen Registers) and May 8, 1712 (Src: Lorentzen Registers). All of the Feuersteins in the Berg Church registers (1712-1794) descend from him. One hundred and seven Feuerstein babies were recorded during that time. In addition, a Thiebold Feuerstein of Thal does not appear in the Berg Church registers, but very much appears to be one of Johannes' children.
Through the records of the churches in Berg, Drulingen, and Lorentzen, we can piece together a good bit of information about Johannes. It's well known that he was a carpenter who lived in Thal, but many details about him and his family have been overlooked by American researchers. Specifically, he had five children who appear in the registers of the Berg Church and apparently one who didn't. He left a widow by the name of Catharina. More about his children and widow below.
Important new information. The registers of the nearby church in Lorentzen contain three useful records about the Thal Feuersteins. The most important of them, a baptism on May 8, 1712, shows that the first Johannes (Hans) Feuerstein was deceased by then. More about these records below. (Some of Hans' descendants also appear in the on-line registers of the Butten Church.)
Hans' birthplace and birth year may be unknowable, but we can narrow down the approximate time of his birth by studying his children. His son (the second Johannes [Hans#2]) was born in 1696 and his daughter Margaretha was most likely born in or about 1698. (Their confirmations in 1707 and 1710 are recorded in the Drulingen Church registers, hers three years after his.) His nearly certain son Thiebold was apparently born even earlier, maybe about 1694, and it's not impossible that Hans had even older children that don't appear in the Berg records. Based on that and other considerations, he was likely born between 1664 and 1668, but possibly a little earlier. (American researchers have usually been unaware of Han's older children and of his early death. As a result, they often assumed birth and death years for him that were decades off the mark. Other researchers have mixed him up with his oldest son Johannes [Hans#2], a mix-up that leads to some very messy family trees.)
Hans#1's mother may have been Margaretha Feuerstein of Dehlingen. In January of 1669, widow Feuerstein remarried at about 27 years of age. Her first husband had been master mason Georg Feuerstein, and they were the parents of Peter Feuerstein (later of Diemeringen), likely born about 1662. In light of the mother's young age, if Hans#1 was another son of Georg and Margaretha, he was presumably born after Peter and before the widow's remarriage, i.e., about 1664-1668. There doesn't appear to be any surviving record of such a relationship, but it would explain why Hans#1's daughter was named Margaretha. Surviving church records show no other possible parents for him.
The Berg Registers never refer to the first Hans as "Senior, the elder, or the first" because he was deceased. However, I refer to him as "the first Johannes (Hans) Feuerstein" to avoid confusion; his oldest son and his oldest grandson were also named (Johannes) Hans. In later years, Hans#2 was called Hans Senior or "the Elder!" Some researchers have mistaken these younger Johanneses for our ancestor, Nicholas (Johann Niclaus), another easy mistake to make. With so many Hans (and also Catharinas), it's no wonder that even professional genealogists make mistakes about this family!
Through the records of the churches in Berg, Drulingen, and Lorentzen, we can piece together a good bit of information about Johannes. It's well known that he was a carpenter who lived in Thal, but many details about him and his family have been overlooked by American researchers. Specifically, he had five children who appear in the registers of the Berg Church and apparently one who didn't. He left a widow by the name of Catharina. More about his children and widow below.
Important new information. The registers of the nearby church in Lorentzen contain three useful records about the Thal Feuersteins. The most important of them, a baptism on May 8, 1712, shows that the first Johannes (Hans) Feuerstein was deceased by then. More about these records below. (Some of Hans' descendants also appear in the on-line registers of the Butten Church.)
Hans' birthplace and birth year may be unknowable, but we can narrow down the approximate time of his birth by studying his children. His son (the second Johannes [Hans#2]) was born in 1696 and his daughter Margaretha was most likely born in or about 1698. (Their confirmations in 1707 and 1710 are recorded in the Drulingen Church registers, hers three years after his.) His nearly certain son Thiebold was apparently born even earlier, maybe about 1694, and it's not impossible that Hans had even older children that don't appear in the Berg records. Based on that and other considerations, he was likely born between 1664 and 1668, but possibly a little earlier. (American researchers have usually been unaware of Han's older children and of his early death. As a result, they often assumed birth and death years for him that were decades off the mark. Other researchers have mixed him up with his oldest son Johannes [Hans#2], a mix-up that leads to some very messy family trees.)
Hans#1's mother may have been Margaretha Feuerstein of Dehlingen. In January of 1669, widow Feuerstein remarried at about 27 years of age. Her first husband had been master mason Georg Feuerstein, and they were the parents of Peter Feuerstein (later of Diemeringen), likely born about 1662. In light of the mother's young age, if Hans#1 was another son of Georg and Margaretha, he was presumably born after Peter and before the widow's remarriage, i.e., about 1664-1668. There doesn't appear to be any surviving record of such a relationship, but it would explain why Hans#1's daughter was named Margaretha. Surviving church records show no other possible parents for him.
The Berg Registers never refer to the first Hans as "Senior, the elder, or the first" because he was deceased. However, I refer to him as "the first Johannes (Hans) Feuerstein" to avoid confusion; his oldest son and his oldest grandson were also named (Johannes) Hans. In later years, Hans#2 was called Hans Senior or "the Elder!" Some researchers have mistaken these younger Johanneses for our ancestor, Nicholas (Johann Niclaus), another easy mistake to make. With so many Hans (and also Catharinas), it's no wonder that even professional genealogists make mistakes about this family!
DEHLINGEN AND DIEMERINGEN FEUERSTEINS
A book published in 1888 by the pastor at nearby Eyweiler (Eywiller) [Die Leiden der Evangelischen in der Grafschaft Saarwerden (Kanton Saar-Union und Drulingen im Elsass) Reformation und Gegenreformation 1557-1700, nach dem Quellen erzählt von Gustav Matthis, Pfarrer zu Eyweiler, Strassburg (1888), p. 256], was quoted by George Ely Russell (see his 1993 Firestone genealogy on the "Links" page). It suggests indirectly that Hans#1 was a son of Georg Feuerstein of Dehlingen, a small town just a few miles to the north of Thal. On-line records of the Dehlingen church do not go back far enough to include Georg, but a few decades later they show that one or two Feuerstein families, his descendants, did live there. According to his Dehlingen confirmation record, a (Johann) Daniel Feuerstein was born in 1699 (1700 according to his Diemeringen baptismal record), and (Hans) Adam Feuerstein, a lifelong carpenter, was born in May 1706 according to his burial record (and his Diemeringen baptismal record). Hans Adam had three daughters confirmed in the church, and one or more possible sons appear in the records of nearby churches.
Update. Records of the Diemeringen Church show that Daniel, Adam, and eight siblings were born there to Peter and Kunigunda (Sutor) Feuerstein. Peter was a son of Georg Feuerstein, master mason of Dehlingen. Georg died before 1669, probably quite young, but even so, he might have had other sons, possibly even Hans#1 Feuerstein of Thal. Notably, Hans#1 and Peter never witnessed the baptisms of each other's children even though their villages were only three miles apart.
In his 1888 book, Matthis says that a son of Georg moved to Thal in 1686, but if he provides a source, we aren't aware of it. It seems likely that the author was confusing Hans#1 with Peter, who married Kunigunda Sutor in 1686, not in Thal but in nearby Diemeringen. Still, Georg is the only Feuerstein in the church registers who might have been the father of Hans#1.
Later, the Dehlingen Church registers have the record of the marriage of the second Johannes Feuerstein (Hans#2) to Anna Margaretha Weinland (after the death of his first wife). This connection to Dehlingen also supports the possibility that the first Hans Feuerstein came from there.
Update. Records of the Diemeringen Church show that Daniel, Adam, and eight siblings were born there to Peter and Kunigunda (Sutor) Feuerstein. Peter was a son of Georg Feuerstein, master mason of Dehlingen. Georg died before 1669, probably quite young, but even so, he might have had other sons, possibly even Hans#1 Feuerstein of Thal. Notably, Hans#1 and Peter never witnessed the baptisms of each other's children even though their villages were only three miles apart.
In his 1888 book, Matthis says that a son of Georg moved to Thal in 1686, but if he provides a source, we aren't aware of it. It seems likely that the author was confusing Hans#1 with Peter, who married Kunigunda Sutor in 1686, not in Thal but in nearby Diemeringen. Still, Georg is the only Feuerstein in the church registers who might have been the father of Hans#1.
Later, the Dehlingen Church registers have the record of the marriage of the second Johannes Feuerstein (Hans#2) to Anna Margaretha Weinland (after the death of his first wife). This connection to Dehlingen also supports the possibility that the first Hans Feuerstein came from there.
THE FIRST HANS AND CATHARINA
The first Hans appears 20 times in the Berg Church Baptismal Registers as the deceased father of witnesses at baptisms. He also appears as the late father in the marriage records of Margaretha and Hans#2, but his burial is not recorded in the Berg burial register. He died during the years that Berg and Thal burials were recorded at Drulingen Church, but these burial records seem to be lost.
The earliest records of Hans#1 discovered so far were recorded in the Lorentzen church: on August 14, 1701, his wife, Catharina, was witness to a baptism and he is described as a carpenter of Thal. On December 20 of 1702, he was a witness at the baptism of Hans Caspar Nonnenmacher, son of a Martzlov and Anna Barbara Nonnenmacher (This Martzlov was likely a close relative, possibly the father, of Marcel Nonnenmacher of Berg). By May 8, 1712 Hans was deceased. On that date, Johannes, Hans#2, "the son of deceased carpenter Johann Feuerstein of Thal" witnessed a baptism in Lorentzen. The younger Johannes was just about to turn 16.
The first mention of Hans#1 in the Berg records is on March 10, 1713 when his daughter Margaretha (Anna Margaretha) was a witness at a baptism. The record does not state that he was deceased, presumably because the pastor had just come to the parish two months earlier and didn't know everybody. A month later, Margaretha was a witness at another baptism, and the record is clear that he is no longer living. (If Hans had been living in 1713, his burial would have been recorded in the Berg Registers.) The last mention of Hans was a record of 1733 as the late father of Johann Niclaus (Nickel, Nicholas), the main subject of this website.
Hans' widow, Catharina, was a witness at a baptism in the Berg Church in 1723. This is the only record of her in the Berg Church Registers. (It's always a little chancy to identify a person on so little evidence because clerical errors occurred then, just as now. Fortunately, she also appeared in the Lorentzen church record described above, and she appeared four or five times in the Drulingen Church registers.)
We could speculate that Catharina was born in Thal, and that Hans#1 moved there at the time of their marriage. Why her burial was not recorded in the Berg Church Registers is not known. Presumably she lived her later years in Eyweiler, with her daughter and son-in-law, where burial records after 1747 have been lost. Surviving records do not give Catharina's maiden name. A few genealogies have it as Nonnenmacher, but that is from mixing her up with one of her daughters-in-law. There is no record of any Nonnenmachers living in Thal at this time.
Most likely Catharina was from one of the larger families in Thal: Dintinger, Freund, Heckel, Weidman, Scheurer, or Geyer, among others. In 1670, the Weyer Church registers show the birth of Anna Catharina, daughter of Simon Dintinger of Berg or Thal. She was just the right age to be the wife of Hans#1 and the mother of his children, and Hans was said to be an heir of Simon Dintinger. However, other families in Thal were sizeable and appeared often with the Feuersteins in the registers of the Berg Church. The mystery of Catharina Feuerstein's maiden name probably can't be solved, but Catharina Dintinger is a good candidate.
The earliest records of Hans#1 discovered so far were recorded in the Lorentzen church: on August 14, 1701, his wife, Catharina, was witness to a baptism and he is described as a carpenter of Thal. On December 20 of 1702, he was a witness at the baptism of Hans Caspar Nonnenmacher, son of a Martzlov and Anna Barbara Nonnenmacher (This Martzlov was likely a close relative, possibly the father, of Marcel Nonnenmacher of Berg). By May 8, 1712 Hans was deceased. On that date, Johannes, Hans#2, "the son of deceased carpenter Johann Feuerstein of Thal" witnessed a baptism in Lorentzen. The younger Johannes was just about to turn 16.
The first mention of Hans#1 in the Berg records is on March 10, 1713 when his daughter Margaretha (Anna Margaretha) was a witness at a baptism. The record does not state that he was deceased, presumably because the pastor had just come to the parish two months earlier and didn't know everybody. A month later, Margaretha was a witness at another baptism, and the record is clear that he is no longer living. (If Hans had been living in 1713, his burial would have been recorded in the Berg Registers.) The last mention of Hans was a record of 1733 as the late father of Johann Niclaus (Nickel, Nicholas), the main subject of this website.
Hans' widow, Catharina, was a witness at a baptism in the Berg Church in 1723. This is the only record of her in the Berg Church Registers. (It's always a little chancy to identify a person on so little evidence because clerical errors occurred then, just as now. Fortunately, she also appeared in the Lorentzen church record described above, and she appeared four or five times in the Drulingen Church registers.)
We could speculate that Catharina was born in Thal, and that Hans#1 moved there at the time of their marriage. Why her burial was not recorded in the Berg Church Registers is not known. Presumably she lived her later years in Eyweiler, with her daughter and son-in-law, where burial records after 1747 have been lost. Surviving records do not give Catharina's maiden name. A few genealogies have it as Nonnenmacher, but that is from mixing her up with one of her daughters-in-law. There is no record of any Nonnenmachers living in Thal at this time.
Most likely Catharina was from one of the larger families in Thal: Dintinger, Freund, Heckel, Weidman, Scheurer, or Geyer, among others. In 1670, the Weyer Church registers show the birth of Anna Catharina, daughter of Simon Dintinger of Berg or Thal. She was just the right age to be the wife of Hans#1 and the mother of his children, and Hans was said to be an heir of Simon Dintinger. However, other families in Thal were sizeable and appeared often with the Feuersteins in the registers of the Berg Church. The mystery of Catharina Feuerstein's maiden name probably can't be solved, but Catharina Dintinger is a good candidate.
THE BERG CHURCH, OR KIRCHBERG, FROM THE WEST. BERG IS JUST BEYOND AND DOWN THE HILL.
NAMING CONVENTIONS IN BERG
Names were given and used quite differently in Berg from our usage today. Most children were christened with a first name and a middle name, but the similarity ends there. The majority of people went by their middle name. This has caused some Firestone genealogists to mistake a Hans Feuerstein for our ancestor, Hans Niclaus Feuerstein. Hans Niclaus' nickname was Nickel, never Hans. (During the years of the Kirchberg records, a majority of Feuerstein boys had "Johann" as their first name, with a wide variety of middle names.)
Nicknames were very common and were often used in the Church registers, sometimes even in marriage records. "Hans" is usually short for Johann or Johannes. Seldom is it a person's baptismal name. Likewise, "Nickel" is usually short for Niclaus or Nicolas.
Young men, unmarried women, and children were always identified in the Berg Church records as the child of their father, even when he was deceased. At some point, adult single men were only identified by their occupation and village, no longer by their father. Except for baptismal records and a few burial records, the mother's name is seldom seen. In some of the nearby churches, the mother's name does not even appear on baptismal records.
Married women were identified as the wife or widow of their spouse. On rare occasions, widows are identified by both their husbands and their fathers. If a woman was identified by her family name, the suffix "in" was attached to the end. For example, Feuerstein became Feuersteinin, Nonnenmacher became Nonnenmacherin, and so on. When Pastor Johann Josia Messerer of the Berg Church identified girls or women by their family name, it sometimes indicated that their father or husband was deceased.
Nicknames were very common and were often used in the Church registers, sometimes even in marriage records. "Hans" is usually short for Johann or Johannes. Seldom is it a person's baptismal name. Likewise, "Nickel" is usually short for Niclaus or Nicolas.
Young men, unmarried women, and children were always identified in the Berg Church records as the child of their father, even when he was deceased. At some point, adult single men were only identified by their occupation and village, no longer by their father. Except for baptismal records and a few burial records, the mother's name is seldom seen. In some of the nearby churches, the mother's name does not even appear on baptismal records.
Married women were identified as the wife or widow of their spouse. On rare occasions, widows are identified by both their husbands and their fathers. If a woman was identified by her family name, the suffix "in" was attached to the end. For example, Feuerstein became Feuersteinin, Nonnenmacher became Nonnenmacherin, and so on. When Pastor Johann Josia Messerer of the Berg Church identified girls or women by their family name, it sometimes indicated that their father or husband was deceased.
CHILDREN AND SPOUSE OF THE FIRST JOHANNES
(HANS) FEUERSTEIN
The children of Hans Feuerstein appear frequently in the Berg Church registers as witnesses at baptisms. The screen prints below are the earliest appearance of them and their mother in the Berg Church registers. They are cropped by the sitebuilder, but you can click on them for an uncropped view. They can also be viewed on-line in the Archives of Bas-Rhin (Source: Berg Church records on-line; link on the "Guestbook & Good Links" page). Most of this family also appears earlier in the records of Lorentzen and Drulingen.
NOTES ON THE FEUERSTEIN CHILDREN
Johannes (the second Hans, Hans#2 in my shorthand) was confirmed in 1707 at the Drulingen Church. His burial record states that he was the mayor of Berg and Thal parish. He lived his entire life in Thal, except during the time of his short, first marriage when he lived in Berg. Some of his children relocated from Thal to Berg. Researchers have sometimes mistaken Johannes for his father the first Hans, an easy mistake to make. Be careful not to call Hans#2 Junior, because surviving records do not call him that. In later life he was known as Hans Senior!
Margareta (Anna Margareta) was confirmed in 1710 at the Drulingen Church. A Margaretha Feuerstein of Dehlingen may have been her grandmother. She was married to (Hans) Michael Giess, the long-time schoolmaster at Eyweiler. Their descendants appear in the Berg Church records generation after generation. After the Eyweiler Church started keeping its own records in 1746, Margaretha disappears from the historical record, but there is no evidence that she died young.
Andreas is also well documented in the Berg Church registers. (One record calls him Johann Andreas.) He was a linen weaver and often appears with his wife and children in the records. It can be assumed that many, if not most, of today's Feuersteins who live near Berg and Thal descend from Andreas and Hans#2.
Lorentz is the least documented of the children. He is recorded only a few times, twice as a sponsor at baptisms. UPDATE: According to "Eighteenth Century Emigrants from Northern Alsace to America" citing a letter from Michel (Michael) Marck, Lorentz died at sea about 1741, crossing to America. His final "appearance" is in the legal document that names his sister and his four brothers as heirs. This document can probably be found in the Archives Departementales du Bas-Rhin in Strasbourg. It was researched and documented in the books of Gerhard Hein.
Johann Niclaus (Nickel, Hans Nickel, Nicholas) appears as a witness at baptisms as a young, single man, and later he, his wife (Anna) Catharina, and their children frequently witness baptisms. This is how we know about his different occupations and about the various forms of their names. The Berg Church lost a noticeable part of its membership when this family emigrated for America.
Thiebold (probably Johann Thiebold) was presumably born about 1694 or maybe a little earlier. He married a Catholic girl and converted, and so he does not appear in the Lutheran records that have survived. If you happen to know Latin, we could use some help translating his church records. Some of his children were sons, and at least as late as the 1800s his descendants were living in or around Thal.
The following image, compiled by Gerhard Hein, confirms the known children of Johannes in age sequence. This list probably comes from the estate papers of Lorentz, presumably explaining why his name comes first even though he is thought to be the second youngest. The comment next to Nickel states "the siblings are heirs of their brother Lorenz."
Johannes (the second Hans, Hans#2 in my shorthand) was confirmed in 1707 at the Drulingen Church. His burial record states that he was the mayor of Berg and Thal parish. He lived his entire life in Thal, except during the time of his short, first marriage when he lived in Berg. Some of his children relocated from Thal to Berg. Researchers have sometimes mistaken Johannes for his father the first Hans, an easy mistake to make. Be careful not to call Hans#2 Junior, because surviving records do not call him that. In later life he was known as Hans Senior!
Margareta (Anna Margareta) was confirmed in 1710 at the Drulingen Church. A Margaretha Feuerstein of Dehlingen may have been her grandmother. She was married to (Hans) Michael Giess, the long-time schoolmaster at Eyweiler. Their descendants appear in the Berg Church records generation after generation. After the Eyweiler Church started keeping its own records in 1746, Margaretha disappears from the historical record, but there is no evidence that she died young.
Andreas is also well documented in the Berg Church registers. (One record calls him Johann Andreas.) He was a linen weaver and often appears with his wife and children in the records. It can be assumed that many, if not most, of today's Feuersteins who live near Berg and Thal descend from Andreas and Hans#2.
Lorentz is the least documented of the children. He is recorded only a few times, twice as a sponsor at baptisms. UPDATE: According to "Eighteenth Century Emigrants from Northern Alsace to America" citing a letter from Michel (Michael) Marck, Lorentz died at sea about 1741, crossing to America. His final "appearance" is in the legal document that names his sister and his four brothers as heirs. This document can probably be found in the Archives Departementales du Bas-Rhin in Strasbourg. It was researched and documented in the books of Gerhard Hein.
Johann Niclaus (Nickel, Hans Nickel, Nicholas) appears as a witness at baptisms as a young, single man, and later he, his wife (Anna) Catharina, and their children frequently witness baptisms. This is how we know about his different occupations and about the various forms of their names. The Berg Church lost a noticeable part of its membership when this family emigrated for America.
Thiebold (probably Johann Thiebold) was presumably born about 1694 or maybe a little earlier. He married a Catholic girl and converted, and so he does not appear in the Lutheran records that have survived. If you happen to know Latin, we could use some help translating his church records. Some of his children were sons, and at least as late as the 1800s his descendants were living in or around Thal.
The following image, compiled by Gerhard Hein, confirms the known children of Johannes in age sequence. This list probably comes from the estate papers of Lorentz, presumably explaining why his name comes first even though he is thought to be the second youngest. The comment next to Nickel states "the siblings are heirs of their brother Lorenz."
HEIRS OF LORENTZ FEUERSTEIN
The youngest three of the Feuerstein children were born during the years that Berg and Thal baptisms were recorded by the pastor in Drulingen, but none of them appear there. This might indicate that the family attended a different church during these years. The church in Lorentzen seems to be the most likely possibility, but the baptisms don't appear there either. Presumably those records have not survived.
We can only guess about the lives of Hans Feuerstein's children after his death. Little is known about them until they were married. Did some of them live with aunts, uncles, godparents, and neighbors? Did they see much of each other? It seems likely that most, if not all, of them grew up in the parish since four of their marriages are recorded there. Except for Lorentz and Thiebold, all of them witnessed the baptisms of each other's children.
Part, or all, of the family may have been able to stay together. Thiebold was about 17 or older at the time of his father's death, Hans#2 was 15, and Margaretha about 13, so they could have supported the family by weaving fabric, farming, day labor, and odd jobs along with some occasional charitable support from their church and their neighbors. It would not have been easy with a baby and a two-year-old in the house.
We can only guess about the lives of Hans Feuerstein's children after his death. Little is known about them until they were married. Did some of them live with aunts, uncles, godparents, and neighbors? Did they see much of each other? It seems likely that most, if not all, of them grew up in the parish since four of their marriages are recorded there. Except for Lorentz and Thiebold, all of them witnessed the baptisms of each other's children.
Part, or all, of the family may have been able to stay together. Thiebold was about 17 or older at the time of his father's death, Hans#2 was 15, and Margaretha about 13, so they could have supported the family by weaving fabric, farming, day labor, and odd jobs along with some occasional charitable support from their church and their neighbors. It would not have been easy with a baby and a two-year-old in the house.
BIRTH DATA FOR THE CHILDREN OF JOHANNES FEUERSTEIN
| Child | Father | Occupation | Town | Mother | Birth Date | Source | Book | Page | Num | Age Married |
| Thiebold | Johannes | carpenter | Thal? | Catharina? | about 1694 | Gerhard Hein | Berg und Thal Volume | 275 | unknown | |
| Johannes | Johannes | carpenter | Thal? | Catharina? | 1696 | Burial Record | Berg S1713 -1789 | 56 | 1 | 22 |
| Anna Margaretha | Johannes | carpenter | Thal? | Catharina? | about 1698 | Deduced | Druling. BMS 1704-1771 | 112 | 1710 | about 18 |
| Andreas | Johannes | carpenter | Thal | Catharina | 1705 | Burial Record | Berg S1713 -1789 | 48 | 9 | 22 |
| Lorentz | Johannes | carpenter | Thal | Catharina | about 1710 | Deduced | Berg B1712-1749 | 92 | 3 | never? |
| Johann Niclaus | Johannes | carpenter | Thal | Catharina | about 1712 | Deduced | Captain's List of the Peggy | about 21 |
NOTES ON THE BIRTH TABLE
No baptismal records exist for any of the first Johannes (Hans) Feuerstein's children. Johannes, his occupation, and residence in Thal are given when the children appear as witnesses at baptisms. The last three children were born in Thal, and possibly all of them. Catharina is the mother of at least the last three children (a 1701 baptism at the Lorentzen Church reads in part, "Catharina, Hans Feuersteins zimmermans von Thal ehe. hauswe", that is "Catharina, Hans Feuerstein, carpenter, of Thal's lawful housewife"), possibly of all six.
Johann Niclaus is most likely the youngest in the family; if he was born in 1712 he would almost have to be. His father had died before May 8, 1712.
Johann Niclaus is most likely the youngest in the family; if he was born in 1712 he would almost have to be. His father had died before May 8, 1712.
A NEW-FOUND SON?
OR WHATEVER HAPPENED TO CHUCK CUNNINGHAM?
A somewhat unreliable new genealogy published in France in 2017, "Reconstitution des familles de 1698 - 1942, Berg et Thal-Drulingen", lists an older son for the first Johannes (Hans): Thiebold/Theobald, born about 1694. Theobald was a long-time or lifetime resident of Thal and he appears a few times in Catholic and in government records. Since he never appears in Lutheran records, he must have converted about the time of his marriage.
This genealogy seems to be based on the earlier and very impressive research done by Dr. Gerhard Hein. Dr. Hein researched church and government records in the Strasbourg Archives in the 1960s, and found Thiebold listed as one of Lorentz Feuerstein's heirs. The heirs were described as being the children of Johann Feuerstein, carpenter of Thal. The original record is not available on-line, so we are not yet able to confirm the accuracy of Dr. Hein's abstract, but we have no reason to doubt it. Theobald's descendants appear in Catholic and in government records of the villages around Thal. In the late 1800s, Berg and Thal Feuersteins told a visiting American cousin that one of the early Feuerstein boys married a Catholic girl. Apparently, Hein identified him!
The 2017 genealogy also lists two other unknown sons for the first Johannes (Hans), but they are clearly mistakes. Only one of them shows a source, and it doesn't check out. This genealogy is not a good resource for the first two or three generations of Feuersteins in Berg and Thal. It has serious mistakes about Hans1 and his wife and children. It also lists a non-existent extra daughter for Nicholas Firestone (Johann Niclaus Feuerstein).
On the other hand, Hein's research (in German) on the early Feuersteins, found in digital format on FamilySearch, is very helpful. Here is the link to his chapter on Berg and Thal:
HEIN'S BERG AND THAL RESEARCH IN FAMILYSEARCH
Click the first image to begin paging through it.
This genealogy seems to be based on the earlier and very impressive research done by Dr. Gerhard Hein. Dr. Hein researched church and government records in the Strasbourg Archives in the 1960s, and found Thiebold listed as one of Lorentz Feuerstein's heirs. The heirs were described as being the children of Johann Feuerstein, carpenter of Thal. The original record is not available on-line, so we are not yet able to confirm the accuracy of Dr. Hein's abstract, but we have no reason to doubt it. Theobald's descendants appear in Catholic and in government records of the villages around Thal. In the late 1800s, Berg and Thal Feuersteins told a visiting American cousin that one of the early Feuerstein boys married a Catholic girl. Apparently, Hein identified him!
The 2017 genealogy also lists two other unknown sons for the first Johannes (Hans), but they are clearly mistakes. Only one of them shows a source, and it doesn't check out. This genealogy is not a good resource for the first two or three generations of Feuersteins in Berg and Thal. It has serious mistakes about Hans1 and his wife and children. It also lists a non-existent extra daughter for Nicholas Firestone (Johann Niclaus Feuerstein).
On the other hand, Hein's research (in German) on the early Feuersteins, found in digital format on FamilySearch, is very helpful. Here is the link to his chapter on Berg and Thal:
HEIN'S BERG AND THAL RESEARCH IN FAMILYSEARCH
Click the first image to begin paging through it.
CONFIRMATIONS OF
JOHANNES AND MARGARETHA FEUERSTEIN
The confirmations of Johannes (Hans#2) in 1707 and of Margaretha (Anna Margaretha) Feuerstein in 1710, shown below, are in the registers of the nearby Drulingen Church. They suggest that Margaretha is younger than Johannes.
Johannes Feuerstein von Thal is the third name on the left side of the 1707 confirmations. Margaretha Feuerstein(in) von Thal is the fourth name on the right side of the 1710 records.
MARRIAGES OF THE CHILDREN
OF THE FIRST JOHANNES (HANS) FEUERSTEIN
The marriages of four of Hans Feuerstein's children were recorded in Berg. Three of them were married there and the other, Margaretha, was married in nearby Eyweiler. The second Hans became a widower after one year and remarried in Dehlingen.
Notes on the Marriages
The format of the Berg marriage records is quite consistent from record to record. First, the groom is named followed by his father's name, occupation, and village. Then the bride is named along with her father's name, occupation, and village. Sometimes commas are used to separate the names of different individuals, sometimes not.
Anna Margareta's husband, (Hans) Michael Giess succeeded his father as the schoolmaster in Eyweiler (now Eywiller). One of their daughters married the miller at the Froshmuhl (now Froeschmuehle) about a mile from Thal (now Thal-Drulingen).
Johannes' (the second Hans) and his bride, Christina, lived in Berg. Christina died just one year after the marriage, a few months after the birth of their son (the third Johannes Feuerstein). In 1721, he married a jungfer, a young single girl, in Dehlingen, a few miles to the north. They lived in Thal.
Andreas was married on January 20, 1728, "Codem". Codem is Latin for "the same", that is the same day as the previous recorded marriage. (Latin words are not common in these records except for a keyword here and there.) There were actually four marriages on that day, including a Nonnenmacher and a Dintinger. These families appear together so often that it's likely they were all good friends. Andreas was married without mention of his deceased father.
Johann Niclaus was also married without mention of his deceased father. The marriage record can be translated as follows: "The 13th June Hans Nickel Feyerstein carpenter of Thal with ... Catharina, Marcel Nunnenmacher's ... daughter ... in the evening at Berg became married." It says that Marcel was "d.z. schoffen (or schoffer) and wirth", which translates as "at this time clerk and innkeeper". The letters to the side of the record are "NB", nota bene, Latin for "note well".
Lorentz married in a different parish, if he ever married. His estate papers mention no wife.
The format of the Berg marriage records is quite consistent from record to record. First, the groom is named followed by his father's name, occupation, and village. Then the bride is named along with her father's name, occupation, and village. Sometimes commas are used to separate the names of different individuals, sometimes not.
Anna Margareta's husband, (Hans) Michael Giess succeeded his father as the schoolmaster in Eyweiler (now Eywiller). One of their daughters married the miller at the Froshmuhl (now Froeschmuehle) about a mile from Thal (now Thal-Drulingen).
Johannes' (the second Hans) and his bride, Christina, lived in Berg. Christina died just one year after the marriage, a few months after the birth of their son (the third Johannes Feuerstein). In 1721, he married a jungfer, a young single girl, in Dehlingen, a few miles to the north. They lived in Thal.
Andreas was married on January 20, 1728, "Codem". Codem is Latin for "the same", that is the same day as the previous recorded marriage. (Latin words are not common in these records except for a keyword here and there.) There were actually four marriages on that day, including a Nonnenmacher and a Dintinger. These families appear together so often that it's likely they were all good friends. Andreas was married without mention of his deceased father.
Johann Niclaus was also married without mention of his deceased father. The marriage record can be translated as follows: "The 13th June Hans Nickel Feyerstein carpenter of Thal with ... Catharina, Marcel Nunnenmacher's ... daughter ... in the evening at Berg became married." It says that Marcel was "d.z. schoffen (or schoffer) and wirth", which translates as "at this time clerk and innkeeper". The letters to the side of the record are "NB", nota bene, Latin for "note well".
Lorentz married in a different parish, if he ever married. His estate papers mention no wife.
BAPTISM OF JOHANN NICLAUS, SON OF NICKEL
AND ANNA CATHARINA NONNENMACHER FEUERSTEIN
This one baptismal record alone pulls together most of Johannes Feuerstein's children, Nickel Feyerstein, his brothers, Hans (farmer of Thal, the second Johannes), and Andreas Feyerstein (linen weaver), represented by his wife Anna Maria, and their sister Margaretha, represented by her unmarried daughter Anna Margaretha Giess.
BURIALS OF FEUERSTEINS IN BERG
There is no record of death or burial for Hans Feuerstein, but the 8 May 1712 baptism below is almost as good. The third line of the second baptism reads in part, "Johannes, weyl(and) Johann Feuerstein, Zimmerman zu Thal, ehe(lichen) hinterlassen sohn", "Johannes, deceased Johann Feuerstein, carpenter of Thal's survivng son." (The bar [-] over the "n" in Johan below indicates that the letter is doubled, so the true spelling is Johann.) The second Johannes was the second of four sponsors at this baptism of Joh. Peter Bach:
The Berg Church has the burial records of two of Johann Niclaus' brothers, the second Johannes (Hans) Feuerstein and Andreas. Over 60 other Feuerstein and Nonnenmacher burials are documented from 1713 to 1794. For best viewing, open these images in a new tab:
FUN WITH FRAUD
The webmaster looked at this bogus Feuerstein crest (below) a hundred times before noticing something obviously wrong about it. Can you spot the error? The answer is at the bottom of the next page.
Bogus Feuerstein Coat of Arms
MAP SHOWING BERG, THAL, AND SURROUNDING VILLAGES
Most of the villages on this map view are mentioned in the Berg Church records. Click in the lower left corner to visit Google Maps or zoom out to see Berg's location relative to Metz and Strasbourg. Thal is labeled Thal-Drulingen.
