Ensminger, from Alsace

The relationship between families sharing an identical surname, living in Alsatian villages less than two miles apart, is lost in the mists of time.

Hans Gerber, son of Peter, was referred to as Hans "of Ensming" later in his life; by the time of his burial on 26 Dec 1630 in DIEMERINGEN, Alsace (now the Department of Bas-Rhin, France) he was recorded as HANS ENSMINGER.

Hans Meyer "der Ensminger" came to Bockenheim, Alsace about 1600. His son, GEORG ENSMINGER, was the richest man in the village of WALDHAMBACH (just east of Diemeringen) at the time a tax list was drawn in the summer of 1662.

Aside from having original surnames associated with cattle (gerber = tanner; meyer = dairy farmer), and a later shared surname suggesting that both came from the village of Insming (Ensming) in Lorraine, no connection has been established between the two family lines. Members of each, however, enjoy the common distinction of sending emigrant families to the United States. Each line has books devoted to the founding American families that include detailed research on descendants.

[ILLUSTRATION: Outline map of France showing locations of Diemeringen, Waldhambach and Mattstall]
If you would like to examine a detailed map of the area around Waldhambach, click here, but be aware that this may take a little while to download. If not, on to the books:

ENSMINGER OF ALSACE AND PENNSYLVANIA by Dr. Raymond Bell is the fruit of 50 years of research about Ensminger families from Waldhambach, concentrating on descent through PETER ENSMINGER and others from the area surrounding Mattstall (some miles east of Waldhambach)who came to Cocalico Twp., Lancaster Co., Pennsylvania in the early 1730's. Offshoots of this family were soon found in the present states of Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland and South Carolina. The book covers 12 generations of Waldhambach/USA Ensminger ancestry and includes as well a discussion of the beginning of the Diemeringen line. A summary chart of early American descent is found at the bottom of this page.

PLEASE NOTE: LDS has filmed this book on microfiche #6075971 it is available through their Family History Centers, which will generally order the fiche and retain them permanently. Earlier works by Dr. Bell may also be found by consulting the Family History Library Catalog CD-ROM. Those visiting the Family History Library in Salt Lake City will find it shelved as 929.273 En78w.

This volume is also available for purchase (soft cover, duplicated as ordered by xerox, comb binding) for a cost of $23, postage included in North America. (For acid-free paper add $2 per copy.) Send a check made payable to

                  BRENDAN WEHRUNG
                  702 Irving Ave.
                  Royal Oak, Mi 48067 USA

A volume dealing with American Ensminger descendants who trace their ancestry to the Waldhambach line, AN ENSMINGER FAMILY FROM ALSACE TO IOWA by Wanda Starman covers 14 generations in 154 pages and traces U.S. descent from Peter Ensminger, who along with his wife Caroline Bieber, emigrated from Alsace in 1871, settling in Henry Co., Iowa in 1872. Peter's niece Sophie also emigrated from what by then had become the German province of Elsass in 1878. Many descendants provided family charts for this very complete book, which is indexed.

The book is available in digital form in the LDS Family History Library at the following direct URL: http://contentdm.lib.byu.edu/u?/FH37,92477

The title, AN ENSMINGER FAMILY FROM ALSACE: THE DESCENDANTS OF CONRAD ENSMINGER AND CAROLINA GAUPP FROM DIEMERINGEN, ALSACE, FRANCE, EARLY SETTLERS OF TONAWANDA AND AMHERST TOWNSHIPS, ERIE COUNTY, NEW YORK neatly describes the contents of a book by Robert D. Sherry, which covers 15 generations and is concerned with American descent from Diemeringen Ensminger families who settled near Buffalo, New York about 1830.

This book has also been filmed by LDS and is available on fiche #6075972, available at Family History Centers. The shelf number of the book at the Family History Library in Salt Lake is 929.273 En78s.

Also included in this book is American descent for the family of ADAM WEHRUNG of Diemeringen.

Finally, those who know or may own Dr. Bell's earlier books and wish to contribute new information are urged to contact

                  John K. Entzminger
                  1370 W. 91 Street
                  Cleveland, OH 44102
                  e-mail: JEntsmi180@aol.com
who is continuing Dr. Bell's work. He would prefer to receive information in the form of family group sheets.


The First Four American Ensminger Generations

While it would be too large a task to include all the information in Dr. Bell's book on a web page, the chart below, a version of which appears on page 76, Part II of Ensminger of Alsace and Pennsylvania, summarizes male surname lines descending from Philipp Ensminger of Mattstall, Alsace. The men listed in the fourth generation (itemized in the right column) were generally born in the decades following the American Revolution and completed their families before the Civil War.
{CHART: American immigrant sons of Philipp Ensminger]

If you have any questions contact me by clicking here.

Brendan Wehrung

1