Freiermuth

Adam Freiermuth was born about 1620. In his later years, he lived in the vicinity of Dackenheim were the only two records of his existence are found in the Kirchenbuch. He probably had lived elsewhere since there are no baptismal records for his children in the Dackenheim records, which go back to 1645. He died sometime after 1683 when he is listed in the marriage record of his son Erasmus. We do not know what his occupation was, but he seems to have been well-connected since his son Wolfgang was appointed Schultheiss of Leistadt by the Leiningen court.

Adam had the following known children:

  1. Wolfgang Adam: b. about 1645; m. Anna Catharina (b. abt 1646, d. 24 May 1704, age 58, in Leistadt); d. 15 Aug 1690 in Hardenburg[1]
  2. Johannes: b. about 1648; m. Anna Angela; d. bef 1699[2]
  3. Johann Erasmus: b. about 1655; m(1). Charlotta Sybilla Kraft, daughter of Urban Kraft of Hardenburg, 29 May 1683 in Dackenheim;[3] m(2). Maria Apollonia Hoffman, widow of Theobold Hoffman, 10 Apr 1695 in Neuleiningen;[4] d. bef 1705 in Leistadt
  4. Hans Conrad: b. about 1658; d. 3 Aug 1679 in Dackenheim[5]

Second Generation

Wolfgang Adam Freiermuth (Adam) was appointed Schultheiss of Leistadt and moved to that village no later than 1685 when his wife Anna Catharina sponsors the baptism of one of Erasmus’s daughters in Dackenheim and is recorded as being from Leistadt.[6] In 1690, while he and the rest of Leistadt were in Hartenburg seeking refuge from the French armies, he contracted a fever. He received communion from the Kallstadt minister and was described as being in great distress. He died at 8 in the morning on 15 August with his son Nicholas dying later that evening.[7] His wife was buried on 24 May 1704 in Leistadt, age 58.[8]

The records of the births of Wolfgang’s children have not survived, likely because they were born in Leistadt. The following are his known and probable children:

  1. Johann Adam: b. abt 1668; m. Anna Catharina Nolt, daughter of Georg Nolt;[9] d. 22 Oct 1748, age 80, in Leistadt[10]
  2. Anna Catharina (probable): b. abt 1675; m. Matthäus Bruch; d. aft 1716 in Leistadt
  3. Johann Wilhelm: b. abt 1677; confirmed Easter 1691 in Kallstadt;[11] m. Anna Catharina Georgens, daughter of Matthäus of Leistadt, about 1698; d. 27 Jan 1748, age 71, in Leistadt[12]
  4. Georg Augustin: b. abt 1683; m. Anna Martha Echter, 8 Nov 1707 in Leistadt;[13] d. 1 Jan 1772, age 89, in Leistadt[14]
  5. Johann Nicholas: b. unknown; d. 15 Aug 1690 in Hardenburg of dysentery[15]
  6. Daughter: a sister of Anna Catharina Bruch is referred to in the baptismal record of Andreas Bruch in 1705. In this record, the “child’s mother’s sister” was a baptismal sponsor and was described as serving in Dürkheim.[16]

Johannes Freiermuth (Adam) lived in Bobenheim according to the Dackenheim records. Johannes married an Anna Angela (or Engel), surname unknown. He likely died before 1699 when an Anna Engel Freiermuth, almost certainly his wife, marries in Battenberg.  

  1. Johann Adam: bap. 7 Jan 1671 in Battenberg[17]
  2. Johann Christian: bap. 7 Feb 1675 in Battenberg[18]
  3. Lorentz: bap. 7 Feb 1675 in Battenberg,[19] d. before 1679
  4. Johann Christian: bap. 7 May 1676 in Battenberg[20]
  5. Johann Lorentz: bap. 30 March 1679 in Battenberg[21]
  6. Georg Valentin: bap. 1681 (sic) in Battenberg[22]
  7. Anna Dorothea: bap. 7 March 1683 in Battenberg[23]
  8. Maria Margretha: bap. 6 July 1685 in Neuleiningen[24]
  9. Johann Everhart: bap. 14 Dec 1687 in Neuleiningen[25]

Johann Erasmus Freiermuth (Adam) was part of the Catholic community in Leistadt.

He first married Charlotta Sybilla Kraft on 29 May 1683 in Dackenheim. She was the daughter of Urban Kraft from Hardenburg.[26] They had the following children:

  1. Johann Nicholas: bap. 23 Mar 1684 in Dackenheim (sponsors were Nicholas Hauss from Dackenheim and Johannes Freiermuth from Bobenheim)[27]
  2. Anna Dorothea: bap. 12 Jul 1685 in Dackenheim (sponsors were Hans Peter Trescher’s daughter Dorothea from Leiningen; Anna Catharina, wife of Wolf. Adam Freiermuth; and Sebastian Philips from Herxheim)[28]
  3. Johann Peter: bap. 23 Feb 1688 in Neuleiningen (sponsors were Hans Peter Heck, Hans Adam Freiermuth, and Anna Maria Mollin)[29]
  4. Johann Peter: bap. 22 May 1692 in Neuleiningen (sponsors was Hans Peter Heck, from Leistadt, and his wife Agnes)[30]
  5. Anna Maria: bap. 7 Nov 1694 in Neuleningen (sponsors were Anna Maria Harnisch and Nicholas Hannewald, Lutheran)[31]

Erasmus next married Maria Apollonia Hoffmann on 10 April 1695 in Neuleiningen. She was the widow of Hans Theobold Hoffmann.[32] They had one known child:

  1. Johann Adam: bap. 1 Apr 1696 in Neuleiningen (sponsors were Johann Adam Ohm and Anna Margretha Hullin (Heckin?) of Leistadt);[33] m. Anna Elisabetha Georgens, daughter of Anton Georgens of Leistadt, 11 May 1723 in Pfeffingen.[34] This is probably the Adam Freiermuth who appears as a baptismal sponsor in the Leistadt records and listed as a Catholic.

Third Generation

Johann Adam Freiermuth (Wolfgang Adam, Adam) was born about 1668. He was very prominent in Leistadt, and was a frequent baptismal sponsor.

He married Anna Catharina Nolt, daughter of Georg Nolt, the Schultheiss of Leistadt from about 1690 to 1708. Anna Catharina was born about 1671 and died 20 Jan 1728, age 57.[35] Their children:

  1. Anna Catharina: b. abt 1696; conf. Pentecost 1708 in Herxheim, age 12;[36] d. bef 1713[37]
  2. Johann Jacob: b. 5 Oct 1700; bap. 10 Oct 1700 in Leistadt (sponsors were David Nolt, Hans Jacob Echter, and Catharina Harnisch)[38]
  3. Catharina Elisabetha: b. 17 Nov 1705; bap. 22 Nov 1705 in Leistadt (sponsors were Caspar Wollenschlager and “Christian Joachim’s two daughters” Anna Catharina and Anna Elisabetha); m. 16 Jan 1725 Conrad Raab, master tailor from the County of Solms-Laubach, in Leistadt[39]
  4. Johann Georg: b. 22 Aug 1707; bap. 28 Aug 1707 in Leistadt (sponsors were Georg Augustin Freiermuth, Johann Erasmus Heck, son of Hans Peter Heck, and the daughter of the forester Hans Veltin Harnisch); bur. 22 Dec 1709 in Leistadt[40]
  5. Anna Eva: bap. 22 Jun 1709 in Leistadt (sponsors were Matthis_ [sic] and Anna Eva, Andreas Federkeil’s daughter); m. Johann Peter Georgens 20 Jan 1728  in Leistadt[41]
  6. Anna Catharina: b. 11 Apr 1713; bap. 17 Apr 1713 in Leistadt (sponsors were Theobold Neu, youth, Anna Maria Nolt, and Maria Catharina R?); probably is the “Maria Catharina” who marries Johann Nicolaus Bechtloff 18 Nov 1732 in Leistadt[42]

Anna Catharina Freiermuth (Wolfgang Adam, Adam) is a probable daughter of Wolfgang, and would have been born about 1675. She married Johann Matthäus Bruch, a master cooper. She died after 1716 (when she was listed as a baptismal sponsor for Justina Catharina Nolt) and likely before death records resumed in Leistadt in 1722.

Johann Wilhelm Freiermuth (Wolfgang Adam, Adam) was born about 1677 and was confirmed in the church in Kallstadt, age 13, on Easter 1691.[43] Wilhelm was the Schultheiss of Leistadt, succeeding Georg Nolt in 1708. He remained in that office for the rest of his life, dying on 27 January 1748. In his death record, he was described as having been Schultheiss for 40 years. His age was listed as 71.[44]

He married Anna Catharina Georgens,[45] daughter of Matthäus Georgens. Their children:

  1. Johann Georg: b. 6 Oct 1700; bap. 10 Oct 1700 in Leistadt (sponsors were Georg Nolt, the Schultheiss of Leistadt and Anna Catharina Fohse From Ungstein); d. 15 Aug 1739 in Leistadt, age 38[46]  
  2. Anna Dorothea: b. 4 May 1703; bap. 13 May 1703 in Leistadt (sponsors were Dominic Habrole’s wife Anna Dorothea, Hans Adam Freiermuth’s wife Anna Catharina, and Caspar Wollenschlager)[47]
  3. Johann Adam: b. 8 May 1706; bap. 13 May 1706 in Leistadt (sponsors were Hans Adam Freiermuth “the brother [of the father]” and Catharina, the wife of Matthes Georgens)[48]
  4. Juliana Sabina: b. 26 Sep 1708; bap. 30 Sep 1708 in Leistadt (sponsors were “the child’s mother’s brother” Antony Georgens’s wife Juliana Sabina and Caspar Wollenschlager); m. 7 Sep 1723 Caspar Helbig, son of Reichart Helbig of Saxony. Caspar was the teacher in Leistadt’s school.[49]
  5. Juliana: b. 8 Jan 1712; bap. 17 Jan 1712 (sponsors were Anton Georgens and Juliana, the wife of Johann Philip Fohse); d. 1713[50]
  6. Anna Catharina: b. 1 Sep 1714; bap. 7 Sep 1714 in Leistadt (sponsors were Johann Erasmus Heck and Catharina Freiermuth, single)[51]
  7. Andreas: b. 30 Nov 1716; bap. 6 Dec 1716 in Leistadt (sponsors were Andreas Widdersheim, Schultheiss of Kallstadt, and his wife Catharina Elisabetha). Andreas succeeded his father as Schultheiss of Leistadt in 1748. His name is on the Leistadt Rathaus built in 1750. He married Anna Maria Heck on 28 Nov 1741 in Leistadt.[52]  
  8. Catharina Elisabetha: b. 9 Aug 1719; bap. 13 Aug 1719 in Leistadt (sponsors were Georg Augustin Freiermuth and Catharina Elisabetha Widdersheim of Kallstadt); d. 25 Dec 1724 in Leistadt[53]

Georg Augustin Freiermuth (Wolfgang Adam, Adam) was born about 1683. Georg Augustin was a master shoemaker, which seems to have been a common trade in the family. Georg Augustin died in 1772, age 89 according to the Leistadt Kirchenbuch.   

He married Anna Martha Echter, daughter of the late Ulrich Echter of Leistadt. Anna Martha was baptized 21 Jan 1686 either in the Catholic church at Neuleiningen or, more likely, by the priest when he visited Leistadt. One of her sponsors was Antony Anton, another prominent Catholic in Leistadt in the late 17th Century. It is unclear if Anna Martha herself was Catholic. They had the following children:

  1. Johann Wilhelm: b. 15 Aug 1709; bap. 19 Aug 1709 in Leistadt (sponsors were the Schultheiss Johann Wilhelm Freiermuth, and Anna Catharina, the wife of “the other brother” Hans Adam Freiermuth); d. 10 Jul 1722 in Leistadt[54]
  2. Justina: b. 20 Jun 1711; bap. 3 July 1711 (no sponsors listed; a + is next to her name)[55]
  3. Johann David: b. 17 Apr 1713, bap. 23 April 1713 in Leistadt (sponsors were David Nolt and Agnes, the wife of Caspar Wollenschlager)[56]
  4. Catharina Magretha, b. abt 1720; d. 18 Mar 1724 in Leistadt, age 4[57]
  5. Justina Margretha: b. 5 Nov 1723 in Leistadt (sponsors were Jacob Heyde, weaver, and Anna Margretha, wife of Master Heinrich Messerschmidt of Freinsheim); d. 26 Jul 1727 in Leistadt[58]
  6. Johann Peter: b. 25 July 1725 in Leistadt (sponsors were Johann Peter Schwartz, the Oberschultheiss of Grünstadt and his wife, and Johann Wilhelm Freiermuth, Schultheiss of Leistadt)[59] 
  7. Johann Ludwig: b. 28 Jan 1727; bap. 2 Feb 1727 in Leistadt (sponsors were Johann Ludwig Becker, the cooper, and Anna Maria, Johann Erasmus Heck’s wife), d. 19 Feb 1732 in Leistadt[60]

[1] Kallstadt Church Book. Died in Hartenburg while seeking refuge from the French. Buried in Leistadt.

[2] A woman with the same name as his wife marries in 1699 in Battenberg. It was almost certainly his wife.

[3] Dackenheim Church Book.

[4] Neuleiningen Church Book.

[5] Dackenheim Church Book.

[6] Dackenheim Church Book.

[7] Kallstadt Church Book.

[8] Leistadt Church Book.

[9] Adam’s wife is a baptismal sponsor of Melchior Nolt’s daughter in 1707 and is described as the father’s sister in the Leistadt Church Book.

[10] Leistadt Church Book. It lists his age at death as 80.

[11] Kallstadt Church Book. His age is listed as 13.

[12] Leistadt Church Book.

[13] Leistadt Church Book.

[14] Leistadt Church Book.

[15] Kallstadt Church Book. No indication of age is given, so we cannot say when he was born.

[16] Leistadt Church Book.

[17] Battenberg Church Book.

[18] Ibid.

[19] Ibid. Assuming died before another child of the same name was baptized.

[20] Ibid.

[21] Ibid.

[22] Ibid.

[23] Ibid.

[24] Neuleiningen Church Book.

[25] Neuleiningen Church Book.

[26] Dackenheim Church Book.

[27] Dackenheim Church Book.

[28] Dackenheim Church Book.

[29] Neuleiningen Church Book. It is unclear if Hans Adam Freiermuth is Wolfgang’s son or Erasmus’s father. Hans Peter Heck was a prominent Catholic in Leistadt.

[30] Neuleiningen Chuch Book.

[31] Neuleiningen Church Book.

[32] Neuleiningen Church Book.

[33] Neuleiningen Church Book.

[34] Pfeffingen Catholic Church Book.

[35] Leistadt Church Book.

[36] Herxheim am Berg Church Book.

[37] Presumably dies before another child of the same name is born to her parents.

[38] Leistadt Church Book.

[39] Ibid.

[40] Ibid.

[41] Ibid.

[42] Ibid.

[43] Kallstadt Church Book.

[44] Leistadt Church Book.

[45] In his daughter Juliana Sabina’s baptismal record, the “child’s mother’s brother” Anthon Georgens is a sponsor.

[46] Leistadt Church Book.

[47] Ibid.

[48] Ibid.

[49] Ibid.

[50] Ibid.

[51] Ibid.

[52] Ibid.

[53] Ibid.

[54] Leistadt Church Book.

[55] Ibid.

[56] Ibid.

[57] Ibid. There is no birth record.

[58] Ibid.

[59] Ibid.

[60] Ibid.