Christian Heinrich TRUE

Christian was born in Magelsen, Germany.

His siblings are Friedrich, Ehler, William, Dorthea "Lizzie", and John.

Christian was a member of the Rib Lake town band and played the cornet.The band played for concerts, parades, dances and weddings.

During the cold winter days, Christian helped pack big blocks of ice which had been cut and pulled from the lake. These were packed in ice houses between thick layers of sawdust from the mills so the ice would keep for the next summer's use.

He married twice. His two wives were Maria Martha Schneider and Maria Sophia Caroline "Mary" nee Reising Nielson.

Maria Martha was an only child and came with her mother, Maria nee Fischer, and her stepfather Adolf Schneider to the United States from Saxony, Germany in 1884. The 1900 census listed Maria as a servant in the home of August Kennedy, age 49, who was a lumberman. Mr. Kennedy was a Canadian, and his wife Sarah, age 42, had been born in New York. The Kennedy's had two children, Lillie Mae, and Willard. Christian probably metMaria Martha at the Lutheran Church in Rib Lake, as she was also a member of St. John's.

Christian and Maria lived in Rib Lake after they were married August 28th 1901, in Rib Lake, and their first child, Mary was born July 21, 1902.

The "lumber boom" ended around 1903, and the True families all moved back to the Marshall County areas. Christian and family lived on a farm near Herkimer, KS, and attended Zion Lutheran Church in Herkimer, whereChristian's brother-in-law, Hans Wein, was the paster. Christian workedpart-time as a meat cutter for his brother, Ehler, who had a butcher shop in Herkimer. Their 2nd child, Henry, was born October 21,1903, andChris was born September 30, 1905.

Around 1906, the family moved to a farm east of Bremen, KS, which was owned by William Rabe. Lena was born here November 2, 1906. Christian and Maria Martha's 5th child, a boy, was born on a Sunday morning, September 6, 1908. Maria was critically ill following the birth. The funeralservice for her was held on Tuesday morning at the Zion Lutheran Churchin Herkimer.

As the oldest child was only 6 years old at the time of their mother'sdeath, this was pretty devastating for the family. Christian's sister,Lizzie and Rev Hans Wein became foster parents for the new baby boy, and named him Benjamin William Hans True. The Weins lived in Herkimer. In1911, the Weins moved to Corning, Missouri, and Ben had little contactwith his family until 1934, except for a few brief visits of several of his siblings, who stopped in Corning. Christian came in 1921 when heattended his father, Heinrich's funeral.

Mr. and Mrs. William Rabe volunteered to care for little Lena, who wasjust 22 months old, and she lived with them until Christian moved his family to Coffeey County, KS in November of 1911. Christian hired younggirls to work in the home, and help care for his children. Two of his nieces, Lizzie and Mary True, daughters of his brother Ehler, worked thelongest for Christian's family.

Christian advertised in a Lonely Hearts column and Mary, nee Reising Nielsen of Nebraska answered the ad. They were married March 22, 1911 inthe Beatricee, NE Courthouse, by the Gage County Judge. Now Christian'schildren had a stepmother. Christian and Mary had no children together.

Mary was just 7 years old when her family left Sachsenhagen, Germany in1883, and moved to Columbus, NE.

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