In the spring of 1871 Bernhard Friedrich and his family (except for Karl Julius who was now living in Manistee, Michigan with his wife, Wilhelmine) moved to Berlin-Schöneberg, where they resided until the end of February 1873.
Bernhard Friedrich and Emilie lost two of their children after they moved to Berlin—both Olga (24 years old) and Paul (5 years old) died in 1872. Olga died on September 18, 1872 [cause of her death not given] and Paul, their youngest son, died nine days later on September 27 as a result of quinsy [severe tonsilitis].
Did these tragic losses influence the family's decision to leave Germany for the United States? Or, had their departure been planned since Karl Julius went to the USA in 1868? I have found nothing in the family histories indicating their motivation to leave, but five months later, Bernhard Friedrich, Emilie, and five of their children boarded the steamship, SS Westphalia, at Hamburg. It arrived in New York harbor on March 14, 1873. On Ancestry.com, I found Bernhard Friedrich, Emilie, and all of their children, except Bernhard Emil on the passenger list of the Westphalia. The transcriber of the record had changed their surname to "Pressentan."
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This steamship was built by Caird & Co. of Greenock, Scotland for Hamburg America Line. She weighed 3,158 gross tons, had a length of 340 feet and a beam of 40 feet, one funnel, two masts, and a single screw. Her service speed was 12 knots. There was accommodation for 90 first-class, 130 second-class, and 520 third-class (steerage) passengers. She had a crew of 120.
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The family history book states "Agnes brought a lifelong interest to the Family Association and maintained ties to her people in America, whereby our local family obtained important news."
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Thanks to Dr. Bodo Koglin's website, I found the Berlin Directory for 1872 on a website (http://adressbuch.zlb.de/index.htm) .
On page 392 of the Directory I found two entries for "von Pressentin."
The first entry reads: " v. Pressentin, Rentier, Alt-Schöneberg, Hauptstr. 41";
The 2nd entry: " von Pressentin, Rittmeister n.D., Schönhaufer Allee 120."
Since "Rentier" translates as "annuitant," and "Rittmeister" = "Ride master," my best guess is that Bernhard Friedrich and his family were living at 41 Hauptstrasse, in the "Old Schöneberg" section of Berlin.
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Where Bernhard Friedrich & Family Probably Lived in Berlin The red star on this map of Berlin indicates the location of "41 Hauptstrasse, Old Schönberg" where I believe Bernhard Friedrich and his family lived from 1871 - 1873 Note that today the Tempelhof Airport is just to the east of the Schönberg district of Berlin From Wikipedia: |