Johan was born in Appeldorn, Rheinland, Prussia in 1843 to Wilhelm and Johanna (Verhaaren) Thielen. Today, Appeldorn is located on the western border of Germany near The Netherlands. The family's 2½ month journey to America began near the first of October 1854 aboard the ship Florence in Rotterdam. Twenty days into the voyage, Johan's sister Elisabeth, age 5, died.
My only photo of John and his wife Catherine, date unknown.
Still grieving, Johann, his parents and siblings-Heinrich, Theodor, Wilhelm, Gertrude arrived in New York City on 15 December 1854 and simply walked off the ship; the first immigrant processing center in New York City, Castle Garden, would not open until August 1, 1855. Various piers though out the city were used for passenger arrivals before this time. To protect future immigrants, Congress passed two acts in 1855; one to protect passenger health and welfare on ships and another creating an immigrant processing center to safeguard passenger from fraud as well as other services.
Wilhelm Thielen naturalization record.
An 1855 naturalization record filed in Racine by Wilhelm is evidence that the family quickly relocated to Wisconsin after arriving in the United States and by 1860 the US Federal Census shows the family living and farming in Caledonia, a small village in Racine County.
At the age of 18, on November 16, 1862 Johann enlisted in the 34th Wisconsin Regiment Infantry and was assigned to Company D. The regiment organized at Camp Washburn in Milwaukee and mustered in on December 31, 1862. Thirty days later they left Wisconsin and arrived at Fort Halleck in Columbus, Kentucky where the regiment performed camp and guard duty. Johan's service in the Civil War ended on April 16, 1863 when he was discharged due to disability (Currently investigating exactly what type of disability).
One of the sample shoes Johann used to show customers, handed down through the years. Currently, in the safekeeping of my cousin Kathy.
Johann married his beautiful bride, Catherine Kramer, on June 1, 1869 and made their home in the City of Racine, the southwest corner of Buchanan and St. Patrick Streets) sharing a home with his mother and father. Johann Thielen was a shoemaker by trade, his business located just three blocks from his home on Kewaunee and Wisconsin Streets. His granddaughter, Genevieve, wrote her remembrances of her grandparents and their home and offers valuable insight:
"Being only a short block from St. Joseph’s Church and school, I used to stop to see them either with my mother after Sunday Vespers or on my way home from school. The first thing you saw was a big white house and a chain fence surrounding it, there were lilac bushes and to the left a large flower garden with every kind of flowers you can think of. Some of my favorites were Snapdragons, carnations and bleeding hearts. Next to the house was a shed where food was kept in the winter months and a cistern (well) where rainwater was stored. At the back edge of the lot was the “out house” with three different sized holes and an old catalog across a long board where one could perform their “duty”. I didn’t care to use this too often, especially when it was cold out. In the back of the house was a large vegetable garden, an apple, plum and mulberry tree and grape vine.
Most of our visiting time was spent in the kitchen and sometimes I’d watch my Grandpa repair a shoe on a machine that stood in the corner.
Someone would always get me a drink of water by using the hand pump on the sink.
My mother took me upstairs once to show me the bedroom she used to sleep in.
There were two more and three downstairs.
The living room was closed off most of the time except when used during a wake for a deceased family member or when Grandpa, who played a violin beautifully, and my mother did likewise on the piano that stood along one wall of the rather small room.
Grandpa seemed kind of short and cute with his well-kept pointed beard and
John Thielen's naturalization petition, page 1.
Grandma a bit pudgy but always smiling and offering cookies and a bit of homemade wine.
We children sat quietly on chairs while the elders talked and no roaming around the house.
Although I was in eighth grade when Grandpa died on December 2, 1929 at 86 years of age and a sophomore in high school when Grandma died on May 5, 1931 at 79 years of age, I can’t remember their cause of death or funeral mass."
Naturalization petition, page 2
While researching Johann, or John as he would become known after immigrating, I found an interesting fact- he didn't apply for United States citizenship until 1927, that's 73 years after he arrived in the United States and two years before he died! And after reading over his Petition for Naturalization I found out why; he thought he was already a citizen. Here's the story: Approximately 1917 he served as a witness for another individual who was applying for citizenship and told he was NOT a citizen himself. Although he had resided in the United States for 63 years at that time and served in the Civil War he still wasn't considered a citizen. Yet, here's the irony of the situation, he was already a citizen through his father's application in 1855 (shown above) and because of the surname misspelling and the fact that
Naturalization petition, page 3.
before 1906 names of wives and children were not included on the naturalization application would have made it difficult if not impossible to prove his citizenship. Clearly citizenship was important to him and he did eventually become a citizen on April 17, 1928. My great-great grandfather was a United States Citizen for a total of 19 months and 15 days! John died on December 2, 1929 of chronic endocarditis (inflammation of the inner layer of the heart) and is buried in Racine, Wisconsin at Holy Cross Catholic Cemetery.
Although I didn't know him, his perseverance to become a citizen of this great country is inspiring, especially at a time when so many natural born citizens are grumbling. Here's a man who immigrated, worked hard to start his own business, paid his taxes, fought in a war and was disabled in that war and after 63 years was told he still was not considered a citizen. Not disheartened, he took up the task and applied for citizenship in the last years of his life. That's what I call determination and grit.
John Thielen Family memorial stone, Holy Cross Cemetery, Racine, Wisconsin.
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