Heinrich Rohr Family Genealogy

Heinrich ROHR was born on 14 Sep 1811 in Waldgrehweiler,Hesse-Homburg,Germany. He died on 3 Dec 1871 in Stark Co, OH. He was buried in Massillon, OH / Massillon City Cemetery Sec 15. He married Margaret DEBE about 1835 in Hesse-Homburg, Germany.

Heinrich, a coal miner earning the equivalent of US$0.05 per day, and his wife Margaret emigrated to the United States (Stark Co, OH / Jackson Twp) from Waldgrehweiler, Hesse-Homburg, a 19th century landgraviate (territory governed by a count) located south of the Nahe River between the cities of Bad Kreuznach and Kaiserlautern in the Pfalz region. They traveled with Margaret's parents (Jacob and Margaret [Geiss] Debe), sisters and brothers, departing Havre, France on the ship Francis Depau which arrived in New York City on 22 Jul 1836.

The Francis Depau was a 595-ton, full-rigged ship built in New York in 1833 by Bell and Brown for the New York-Havre trade. She was slow and had one of the longest westbound passages of her day. In 1836 she suffered an "accident" at Havre, where she was condemned and sold to be repaired and used as a sailing 'tramp'. In fact, she proved to be serviceable and returned to active trans-Atlantic and coastal trade. In 1836 she became part of the Orleans Line, and by 1843, part of the Merchant's Line, carrying cargo between Liverpool, Savannah, Mobile and New Orleans. In 1849 she was sent to California for the Gold Rush and her history from that point on is unknown.

In the 1840 Ohio Census, the Heinrich ROHR family is not listed in Stark Co, OH; however, a Henry ROHR(er) family fitting the ages of the Heinrich ROHR family is found in Bucks Twp, Tuscarawas Co, OH (south of Stark Co.). In the 1850 Ohio Census the ROHR(er) family is NOT in the Tuscarawas Co. census and the ROHR family is in the Stark Co. census. It is believed that these families are one and the same.

W. H. Perrin's book "History of Stark County -1881" p788 states that William ROHR is the youngest of 17 children. Margaret Rohr's obituary also mentions 17 children. Only 14 children can be accounted for in Stark County Census from 1850 to 1880; therefore, it is likely that the "missing three" died in childhood.

Obituary notice from the Massillon Independent newspaper: Died - At his residence near Massillon, on the 3rd inst. Henry Rhorer (sic), aged 60 years.

Margaret DEBE [Parents] was born on 11 Sep 1813 in Hesse-Homburg, Germany. She died on 21 Sep 1896 in Stark Co, OH. She was buried in Massillon, OH / Massillon City Cemetery Sec 15. She married Heinrich ROHR about 1835 in Hesse-Homburg, Germany.

Obituary from the Massillon Independent newspaper: Mrs. Margaret Rohr, widow of Henry Rohr, died at her home in Jackson Township at 7:30 o'clock, Thursday morning, of paralysis. Mrs. Rohr was 83 years of age and the mother of seventeen children, eight of whom are living. The funeral arrangements will be announced later.

Funeral notice from the Massillon Independent newspaper: The funeral of Mrs. Margaret Rohr took place from St. John's Evangelical Church Sunday. The pallbearers were William Klein, Frank Borung, Jacob Fisher, Chas. Pretz, John Boerner and Cornelius Runser. The children of the deceased wish to thank, in this manner, all those who so kindly assisted them during the illness and death of their mother.