My earliest German ancestors to emigrate to the New World arrived in New York on October 29, 1883. The Behning (Benning, Bening) family included William Behning and his wife Elizabeth, their 5 children, William’s step-mother, Luise Behning, and Elizabeth’s mother, Marie Schunemann. It is possible that Elizabeth was also pregnant with their 6th child. Their oldest child, Sophia Behning, became Emma Barmann’s mother.
SS Bohemia
Hamburg America Line
The extended family boarded the SS Bohemia in Hamburg on October 14, 1883. It is likely that they spent a night or two in the Emigration Halls in Hamburg before boarding the single funnel steamship for America. They were issued a metal tag which matched a metal tag on their baggage. Upon arriving in New York City, they would have been taken by a barge from the Bohemia, docked in Hamburg American’s slips in Hoboken, New Jersey to the Castle Gardens pier. Castle Gardens was the immigration processing facility in New York which preceded Ellis Island, which opened in 1892. After passing medical inspections and registering with the immigration officials, they entered the main hall where representatives of railroad companies were selling tickets to all parts of the United States. They used the metal tag to claim their baggage and were likely taken directly to the railroad station from Castle Gardens using transportation provided by the rail company.
Typical steerage accommodations
www.norwayheritage.com
The 24 hour journey to Chicago would have ended at one of several stations in the downtown Chicago area. It is possible that they were met there by agents of the Chicago German Aid Society or even family or friends. We can only hope that they were not met by the unscrupulous characters that preyed on recent immigrants at the train stations, sometimes stealing their luggage or charging outrageous amounts of money for a night’s stay in unsanitary rooms near the train station.
They made their way to their first residence in Chicago, 3016 South Keeley. Many German immigrants were coming to Bridgeport in these days. The Chicago Union Stockyards and Union Rolling Mills, both established in 1865, provided many jobs.
The Behning family was in Chicago for less than a month when tragedy struck them. William Behning, age 36, died of pneumonia after a 5 day illness on November 15, 1883. He had lived in America for 18 days. He left behind his 5 children, Sophia age 13, Friedrich age 9, Johann age 8, Ferdinand age 4 and William age 3, his step-mother, his mother-in-law and his wife, Elizabeth, who may have been carrying their 6th child at the time of his death. William was buried in Concordia Cemetery in Forest Park, Illinois on November 18, 1883. His body was moved to its current location (Section 5, Lot 83) in 1890, when Elizabeth Behning purchased a 6 burial plot. At the same time, an infant was moved to this plot. The infant, named Martin Behning, was born in November or December, 1883 and died 7 months later in June, 1884. In order to say with certainty that this was Elizabeth and William’s son, I will need to find the church or civil records of his birth or death, but there is circumstantial evidence to suggest that he was William and Elizabeth’s son.
Concordia Cemetery Gate, Forest park, Illinois, USA
Concordia Cemetery Lot 83, Section 5 There is no headstone for William and Martin Behning
It is difficult to imagine how Elizabeth felt when her husband died. She was probably planning to spend her time raising her children, but instead, she faced the prospect of supporting her family in this strange, new land, thousands of mile from home. Her experience as a house servant in a rural German manor house could not have prepared her for life and work in Chicago in 1883.
Of course, there was no Social Security or public welfare available at that time, so she probably relied on the local church to get through the early days without her husband. The church she attended was probably the First Lutheran Church of the Trinity, located at Kossuth and Canal Streets. This area is now occupied by the Dan Ryan expressway and the Union Pacific railroad yard (the church is now located at 31st and Lowe). Then, in 1886, Holy Cross Lutheran Church began operations at 31st and Racine, a few blocks from where the Behnings lived. This church was started by members of First Trinity in a location where they operated a school. Both of these churches offered German language services.
The Chicago German Aid Society may also have been a source of some aid. This society was formed in 1854 to assist German-speaking immigrants.
It is clear that Elizabeth landed on her feet. By 1900, she owned the building at 3625 S. Lincoln Street (now Wolcott Street), and had 2 tenant families living there. Three of her sons also lived there. She was always listed as a widow in the Chicago City Directories and the US Census records.
Links
Concordia Cemetery – Barmann Behning Burial information