Jean Frédéric Lebeau

Narrative:

     Jean Frédéric Lebeau was born about 1815, before his parents married. Such "premature" births were not uncommon at the time. He was later reported to have been "of Friedrichdorf," but most likely he was born in Homburg, now known as Bad Homburg, his mother's home village. His birth was not recorded in Fredrichdorf, and records from Homburg are not available.^4,5
     Jean settled in Friedrichsdorf with his parents after their marriage in 1816.
     On 30 Aug 1837 Jean declared in a statement to the head priest of her parish that he was not father of Johanna Louise Baum, the daughter of his future wife, but nevertheless wanted to accept the child as his child. On 21 Jun 1839, after he had married her mother, he confirmed the adoption by declaring that he represented himself as her father.¹⁴
     He joined the French Reformed Church in Offenbach on 6 Jul 1839.¹⁴
     Jean married Johanna Christina Baum, daughter of Johann Heinrich Nicolaus Baum and Anna Margaretha Schreid, on 14 Jul 1839 in French Reformed Church, Offenbach, Grand Duchy of Hesse and by Rhine.^6,7,8
     Jean and Christina settled in Offenbach, where they joined the Moravian Church.¹⁵
     In the German-speaking community in Offenbach, and after emigrating to the America, he used the German spelling of his given name, John Frederick.^2,3

Influanced by Engelhard Riemenschneide --- Text Stolen from ReigelRidge.com !! ---

     Engelhard Riemenschneide was born 1815 in the Electorate of Hanover, and immigrated to the America in 1835.¹⁶ He became a preacher in the German Methodist Church, initially as a circuit rider. In 1845 he become the fourth pastor of the Race St. Church, Cincinnati, Ohio, the mother church of German Methodism. The church, a Methodist Episcopal Church, had been founded by William Nast to serve the German-speaking community.¹⁷
     In 1851 Riemenschneider was sent back to his native German states as a missionary. He mainly spoke in private homes, and constantly faced the objections of local officials, and was even arrested. He began his work in Frankfurt am Main, preaching there and in nearby towns, including Oberrod. John attended his meetings in both places.¹⁸
     John requested that Rev. Riemenschneider conduct classes in Offenbach, and he and Christina invited him to speak in their home. He accepted and preached there weekly for a time, to mixed audiences of Christians, Jews, and unbelievers. They both joined the Methodist Episcopal Church.^19,20
     John was issued an Exhorter's license by Rev. Dr. Louis Nippert, who succeeded Rev. Riemenschneider. An exhorter was what is now known as a lay speaker, authorized to hold meetings for prayer and exhortation under the direction of the preacher in charge. John frequently conducted the services during Dr. Nippert's absence.²¹

Immigrating to America --- Text Stolen from ReigelRidge.com !! ---

     John felt called to the ministry, but found the persecutions and restrictions he was experiencing so severe that he and Christina sold their home, and in 1854 immigrated to America.^22,23,24 They left Frankfurt am Main with their daughter Louisa at 6:00 a.m. on 29 May 1854, traveling by steamboat down the Main River to Mainz, where a large number of other emigrants boarded with their crates. The boat then went down the Rhine River, arriving at Cologne that evening. They stayed at the Four Season Inn there.²⁵
     The next morning they boarded a train, expecting to arrive in Bremen by evening. They changed trains in Minden, where police officers required everyone to show their passports, giving some emigrants palpitations. They continued after a while but after traveling a short distance their train stopped because the preceding train had come off the rails and sunk into the earth. They were delayed for six hours at a tiny village called Hölzen.²⁵ They finally arrived in Bremen at 2:00 a.m. the next morning, where they met the innkeeper Brügesch, who had them and their crates taken to his inn. They stayed there for two nights.²⁵
     While in Bremen they bought supplies they would need for the voyage. Based on recommendations he sent home for others, it would seem they included tin dishes, straw sacks (for bedding), woolen blankets, wine (red Bordeaux), ham, squash, coffee, sugar, lemons, and even Zwieback (milk bread that's cut up and toasted again). He wrote to not forget to buy some treats, such as figs, "which keep your stomach open, because one suffers severely from constipation." But he wrote that bread should be toasted at home, cutting 1-inch-thick pieces around the loaf. It can be mixed with a little butter and add some caraway seeds, so with boiling water soup can be made. He added that bouillon tablets are also good, and that well-baked bread can last for 2-3 weeks on the ship and it is a good idea to take some with you because North German bread is almost like pumpernickel.²⁵
     At 2:00 p.m. on 2 Jun they left on a steamboat to the harbor, which is about 40 miles down the Weser River from the city of Bremen proper. Their crates had been sent ahead by barge. Some emigrants took the barges themselves, but that took two days, compared to five hours on the steamboat.²⁵
     They stayed overnight with Brother Riemenschneider. At 2:00 p.m. Saturday, 3 Jun 1854, they boarded the sailing ship Schiller. They traveled in the second class cabin, which they shared with 17 other passengers. There were eight passengers in the first class cabin, and 190 "between decks." The ship immediately went into the harbor, where they laid at anchor three days because of unfavorable winds. They could see the harbor, where their friends were celebrating Easter holidays.^26,25
     The ship had three masts, displacing 160 tons, which was fairly small for an emigrant ship. It was about 150 feet long and 30 wide, and the center mast was 150 feet high from the keel to the top. The first cabin was 14-15 feet wide, 21-22 feet long, had 10 beds, and had a small dining room in the middle. The second cabin was the same size but had bunks two high, 16 single-berth and two double-berth, of which he and his wife had one, which was three feet wide. Both cabins were located high on the deck and were often been swept by the waves. Between decks, or steerage, was 100 feet long and ran the width of the ship, with bunks a foot and a half wide, two high, and no windows. There were three lifeboats on the ship, each capable of carrying 70-100 people. The ship's crew consisted of 20 people: a captain, two helmsmen, a cook, a carpenter, 12 sailors, a waiter and two errand boys.²⁵

Sailing Across the Atlantic --- Text Stolen from ReigelRidge.com !! ---

     The winds remained unfavorable but the ship couldn't stay ashore longer. So on the morning of 7 Jun 1854 it weighed anchor and sailed to the North Sea. On the evening of 10 Jun they entered the English Channel. There they met English fishermen from Heligoland who were trading fish for salted beef. The fish they had were called sea tongues. They were very flat, silvery on one side and like fresh liver on the other. They only live on the bottom and were caught with a tree branch that had leaves. He wrote that they are fried and taste very good.²⁵
     On 11 Jun they could see the coasts of both France and England. They passed Calais, and in the evening saw Dover. But they were set back overnight by strong headwinds, and the next evening back at Dover again.²⁵ On 17 Jun, the 18th birthday of their daughter Louisa, they reached the middle of the English Channel, having covered only 48 miles in eight days.²⁵ On the 19 Jun they passed the Isle of Wight. It was very stormy and many waves crashed onto the deck. It was very cold in the Channel and also the North Sea and snow was falling. On the morning of 22 Jun they emerged from the Channel into the Atlantic Ocean, having spent 11 days and 12 nights in the Channel.²⁵
     On 1 Jul, after sailing for 25 days, they had traveled under half way, 420 of the 1,000 miles to New York. They had had only had two hours of favorable wind and an almost constant headwind the entire month. So they had to tack constantly, making little progress. They saw a variety of birds and sea life, most frequently hogfish, which appeared in large groups and made arching leaps above the water. The sailors caught two of them, which were about six feet long and weighed 100 to 125 pounds. He wroote that "its meat tastes very good, the inch-thick blubber is torn off, the lean part is soaked and fried; tongue and liver were the best."²⁵
     On 6 Jul, a wind arose that carried them a good distance further, but the next morning, the sea was again as smooth as a mirror, so they hardly moved at all. Their own provisions were running low. He wrote that "these were sad prospects, as one can hardly survive on ship's fare alone."²⁵
     On 10 Jul, with the winds still calm, they were about 40 miles north of Azores. They had not encountered other ships for some time, but that day saw 20, taking on fresh water there. The calm continued until the 13th through the 15th when they had a fairly strong wind, which came from the northwest. It was only a quarter wind for them, but it carried them quite a bit further. From the 16th to 19th there was calm again. On the 20th and 21st there was a very strong wind, almost a gale, with waves 15 feet high. On the 22nd there was calm again. After seven weeks on board there were still 30 degrees to go (from Bremen to New York it is 84 degrees). He wrote that they were finding this a sad, boring journey.²⁵
     On the evening of 29 Jul they reached the "Gulf of Florida" (now called the Gulf Stream), which together with a strong wind allowed them to reach 60 degrees west longitude.²⁵ The following night they again had very strong winds, with rain and complete darkness. They seemed to be almost buried in the waves. A large ship was heading towards them but the watchman didn't notice it until it was just 100 to 150 feet away. Fortunately, the strange ship had burning pitch torches on the boatsprit. An alarm was quickly made and the two ships passed each other safely.²⁵
     On 5 Aug they had been under sail for nine weeks and still had 7 degrees (about 95 miles) to go. John wrote that it "is miracle that we haven't gotten sick yet with the poor food; we are exhausted enough." The sea was smooth again like a mirror, but the sailors are cleaning the outside of the ship, a sign that they would soon be on land. The water was turning green again, like in the North Sea.²⁵ On the 9th and 10th they finally had a favorable wind, a strong breeze. That was the only consistently favorable wind they had on the entire voyage. At 2:00 p.m. on the 10th they saw land. At 7:00 p.m. the ship was tied up in the harbor of New York. They we had been under sail for 66 days and aboard a ship for 69 days.²⁵

Describing Conditions on the Voyage --- Text Stolen from ReigelRidge.com !! ---

     John described conditions during the voyage in a letter home. He wrote that in Bremerhaven, in the North Sea, and in the Channel, it was bitterly cold. On the ocean, on the other hand, it was often oppressive, especially when there was no wind. Even at night in the bunks, it was sometimes unbearable; but from August 4th to 10th it was bitterly cold again as they came near America. In any case he wrote, it was a good idea to equip yourself with warm clothes because it's very easy to catch colds, and illnesses on the ship are very serious because there is no doctor. The captain, even if he has medicine, can't make proper use of it because he doesn't know much about it. Seasickness, he wrote, was not dangerous but very troublesome, which can be said of the entire sea voyage. Everyone got seasickness. Dizziness, headache, loss of appetite, and nausea were the main symptoms, along with great fatigue in the limbs. It is a feeling as if someone has overindulged in the worst drink and as a result has a pretty bad hangover. On top of that, their cabin was like a pub, with terrible tobacco smoke and rum drinking, which together caused a disgusting stench.
     Added to that was the bad food. The bread was as black as the earth, wet and sour. In the morning there was very bad, thin coffee, black without sugar, and in the evening tea, also without sugar. But no one could drink that because it tasted almost like ship's tar. Therefore, they only had hot water brought to them and added bread to the soup or other tea, if they had any. Sunday lunch was rice. Monday was peas and salted bacon, which they didn't want to eat either. Tuesday was hulled barley with salted beef. Wednesday was beans with the same meat. Thursday was rice and salted beef, which stank and was as hard as bones, spoiling the soup so much that we often had to throw it away along with the meat. Friday was sauerkraut soup with bacon. Saturday was hulled barley with plums and syrup, none of which we could eat because there was so much dirt in it. Once the fresh bread was gone, the hardship really began. The ship's biscuits were as hard as stone and tasted almost like earth. The grain wasn't just crushed, but wheat bran was also added. They couldn't eat them. There was also white bread, made from white flour and water without salt, which were finger-thick and round, about five inches across. When baked, they are good and tasted like matzo. Often, however, they are still made from raw flour.
     He described arrival at land as making a strange impression when you haven't seen land for so many weeks: "in the far distance, which you saw as far as 4 to 6 miles away, a dark spot in the sky becomes visible, and you can't yet tell whether it's a cloud or something else. This spot gradually develops and becomes more visible, finally beginning to take on a tinge of light and dark, then green becomes visible, and finally houses become visible and fields distinguishable, and finally even carriages, horses, and people can be seen. Then your heart begins to leap, especially when it's America, the land of golden dreams. Off the coast of New York lies an island that looks very picturesque. Many beautiful summer houses with magnificent gardens between them, lighthouses, telegraphs, fortifications, the unusual architecture, steamships. Everything, everything completely different from back home in the German fatherland, everything differently arranged. Finally, the harbor is visible with its thousands upon thousands of masts and gigantic ships; it looks like a large city on the water.
     New York comes into view, with its many church towers and domes and miles of checkerboard-like streets through which many railways run, and hundreds of carriages in one street, where you can ride for hours for 5-6 cent. Added to that, there are shop after shop, so that you don't know where all the customers are coming from. A terrible hustle and bustle of people and wagons. People from all corners of the world: Black, yellow, white, and even the Chinese are not missing. One is quite struck by all of them. Customs and traditions are also quite different. The houses are built in the oriental style, without roofs. But you open your eyes the most when you have something to pay, because "here they demand a dollar with even greater ease than a guilder, and the dearly acquired German money slips through your fingers like melting butter."
     In summary, he wrote, the poor emigrants were treated like livestock, and even worse. Everyone they came into contact with seeks to further their own interests and, if possible, to cheat and defraud them. A sea voyage or emigration was associated with many discomforts, inconveniences, and unpleasantnesses. Beyond that, there was no danger involved. The people were as calm and safe on their ship as they were at home. No one has died on their ship. No misfortune happened at all. As for the danger, he wrote, it was greatly exaggerated but on the other hand the unpleasantness was often underestimated. "There is no way to describe it; it must be felt and experienced."²⁵

Arriving at New York and by Train to Cincinnati --- Text Stolen from ReigelRidge.com !! ---

     A doctor came aboard the ship to check for disease (another ship was not allowed to land because smallpox had broken out). They couldn't disembark until a customs official checked for items that needed to be declared. They couldn't sleep because their straw sacks had been required to be emptied outside the harbor. He went ashore that evening and drank a glass of beer and bought fresh bread for the family. They and Louisa went ashore for a walk between 1 and 2 a.m., having to climb over a higher ship to do so. But they didn't venture far for fear of robbers.²⁵
     John and Christina, and their daughter Louisa officially disembarked from the Schiller the next morning, 11 Aug 1854, after customs were cleared. He wrote that they didn't check very carefully, and it was more just for show, but customs and police officers had kept watch on the ship overnight. They declared that they had originated in Hesse-Darmstadt and their destination was Ohio.^25,27
     He went immediately to find his brother, who was working in New York, who he found after four hours.²⁵ They remained in New York for three days, staying at an inn.²⁵ His brother took off work and showed them "everywhere," including the new Crystal Palace, which had been constructed the year before for the Exhibition of the Industry of All Nations. On Sunday, 13 May, John held a missionary hour with Missionary Floken, which raised $30.75. There were fewer than 30 people present, though. He told them about the German mission.^25,28
     At 6 p.m. on 14 Aug 1854 they boarded a steamboat for a four-hour journey up the Hudson river, probably to Newburgh, New York. They departed by railroad at 11 p.m.²⁹ They arrived in Dunkirk, New York, on Lake Erie, at 6 a.m., and spent the day there, leaving at 6 p.m.²⁵ They arrived in Erie, Pennsylvania, at 8 p.m., and tried to sleep in the rail car, waiting for their departure at 1 a.m. the next morning.²⁵
     They arrived in Cleveland, Ohio, at 6 a.m., and had to stay there until 3 a.m. the next morning They didn't leave the station, however, because cholera was raging in the city, which was the case throughout America that year, especially in the big cities.²⁵ They left for Columbus, Ohio, at 3 a.m., arriving at 9 p.m. Between Cleveland and Columbus they had such dust and smoke in the car was so strong that one almost suffocated. But they couldn't close the windows either, because the "heat would have killed us."²⁵ They continued on after getting into good cars that were padded, and no dust got in. Everyone fell asleep immediately. They arrived in Cincinnati at 2 a.m. on 18 Aug 1854. There they were met by Brother Messerschmid, who had been converted eight days earlier at the camp meeting. They went home with the Messerschmidts.²⁵
     After his arrival John wrote a 12-page letter to his parents, siblings, relatives, and friends, describing their journey in great detail, and providing advice and prices for transportation, accomodations along the way, and supplies to bring to those who might follow.²⁵

Becoming a Minister --- Text Stolen from ReigelRidge.com !! ---

     Dr. Nast, founder of the German Methodist Church in Cincinnati, encouraged him to enter the Conference as a travelling minister.¹⁵
     John accepted a post in Huntingburgh, Indiana, and they moved there.¹⁵ He was received on trial into the South Eastern Indiana Conference and stationed in the South Indiana German District. He was appointed to the Huntingburgh, Indiana, circuit, supposedly the first circuit riding German Methodist in that district, but survived only a few months.^30,31,32
     His granddaughter Louise A. Fenker said he was an artist or designer, and that she had a folio of his work in her cedar chest.¹²
     John died on 17 Nov 1854 in Frankfort, Indiana.^9,10,11 He was buried in Frankfort, Indiana.^12,13