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BUENKER BUNKER BUNKERS In the 1840s, Hermann Dietrich [Theodore] Buenker immigrated to the United States, first settling in Cincinnati, where he married Elizabeth Niegengert Heitmeyer on 1 June 1845. Elizabeth, born on March 15, 1815, was the widow of Carl Heitmeyer, whom she married in November 1843 and who died in June 1844. Like Theodore, Elizabeth was a German emigree. The first child of Elizabeth and Theodore Buenker, Hermann, was born in Cincinnati on June 7, 1846. |
The family of Theodore and
Elizabeth Bunkers soon went west to Guttenberg, Iowa, where their second
son, Henry, was born in 1848. From Guttenberg, the Buenker family went west
to the New Vienna/Luxemburg, Iowa, where their sons Theodore and Bernard
(Barney) were born. Eventually, Theodore and Elizabeth Bunkers and their
sons, Herman and Henry, went to the northwest Iowa towns of Remsen and
Granville. Their sons, Theodore, Jr., and Bernard (Barney) went to Texas.
Their surname was anglicized to Bunker or Bunkers.
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Members of the Henry and
Barbara (Simmerl) Bunkers Family of Granville, IA (circa 1910). Henry and
Barbara had 12 children. My grandfather, Frank Bunkers, is at the left in
the back row.
Click on each photograph to see an enlarged version. To read my essay about my research into my family's emigration from Germany, click on German Immigration |
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Would you like to view the
very large relationship in the family? Would you like to add information
about your branch? To view genealogical charts for many generations of the
Theodore and Elizabeth Buenkers Family, go to this URL: http://www.bunkers-dolan.com/
This is the web site of the extensive Bunkers-Dolan Family Genealogical
Homepage, created by Tami Bunkers Dolan. You can e-mail Tami at
Tami@bunkers-dolan.com
To the left: a portrait of the Herman and Christina (Koppert) Bunkers Family of Remsen, IA (circa 1910). Herman and Christina had 16 children, 14 of whom survived. |
| (Below) Photographs of the Susanna (Simmerl) and Frank Youngblut Family of Gilbertville, IA. Susanna was the mother of Barbara (Simmerl) Bunkers. Barbara was the mother of twelve children, including Frank Bunkers. My great-great- grandmother Susanna Simmerl Youngblut is pictured on the photograph at the bottom right of the collage. |
Hello to all, my e-mail address has
changed:
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On the other side of my
paternal ancestry, Anna Linster's family came to the U.S. from Hondelange (Hondelingen),
Belgium (formerly part of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg) in the 1860s.
Matthias Welter's mother's family (the Grethens) came from Waldbredimus,
Luxembourg. The Welter family settled near Holy Cross, Wisconsin. Matthias
Welter and Anna Linster came west and married in 1880 in Alton, Iowa. They
moved to Grafton, ND, for a time, then returned to Granville, IA, where they
operated Welter's Saloon and Pool Hall.
http://www.hondelange.be/ Hondelange website
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My grandmother, Roseline Lillian Welter, was born in Grafton, ND, on August 7, 1888. At left: Seated in this family portrait are Silverius (Sil) Welter, Matthias Welter, and Therese Welter (later O'Connor, then Lieb). Standing are Anna (Linster) Welter, Mary (May) Welter (later Schwebach), and Roseline Lillian Welter (later Bunkers, then Thorman). |
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Photographs of my paternal grandparents, Lillian (Welter) and Frank Bunkers of Granville, IA. Lillian and Frank married in June 1908. They were the parents of eight children (Larry, Dick, Ray, Vincent, Cletus, Bernice, Jerome, and Viola). Frank Bunkers died on November 26, 1926; Lillian Bunkers died on August 4, 1968. Their son, Jerome (Tony) Bunkers (November 16, 1921 - July 27, 1978), was the father of Suzanne Lillian Bunkers. |
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It's Bunkers Reunion
Time! Here are 29 of the Bunkers cousins--all grandchildren and great-
grandchildren of Lillian (Welter) and Frank Bunkers. This photograph was
taken at the Bunkers Every-Other-Year Reunion in Remsen, IA, on July 18,
1998. The next bi-annual Bunkers Reunion was in Remsen, IA, on Sunday, July
2, 2000. One feature: Suzanne, Dale, and Rachel Bunkers' report on their
June 2000 trip to meet Bunker (Buenker) cousins in Germany.
To see reunion photos, go to this URL: Bunkers Reunion 2000 |
| Helen, Clara, and Agnes--our "Texas Bunkers Cousins"--are descended from Elizabeth, the daughter of Theodore and Catherine Bunkers. In 1996, Helen Abston "found" all of the Bunkers cousins "up North" in Iowa, South Dakota, Minnesota, and elsewhere. | Since then, we've been working to link the Theodore Bunkers line to those of his brothers, Herman and Henry Bunkers. We are still searching for the descendants of the fourth brother, Bernard (Barney) Bunkers, who went to Texas with his brother Theodore in the 1880s. |
