There were three principal reference sources which helped to determine that Gerhard Heinrich indeed settled in Cincinnati.

The first was a book ¹ describing the history of Laxten, which today exists as a section of Lingen. Laxten was a Bauernschaft or a small farming community just outside the borders of the city of Lingen. It was there that the Kuhr family resided and the book has a section about their family history. In part it mentions that Rev. Kuhr went to Cincinnati in 1850 and died in Ohio on July 18, 1878. Gerhard Heinrich Wessling's baptismal sponsor was his uncle, Gerhard Heinrich Kuhr, who, at that time, was studying for the priesthood.²

By referring to the relevant volumes of a directory of Catholic clergymen ³ it was quite easy to follow Rev. Kuhr's mission in the archdiocese of Cincinnati. It is especially noteworthy that the majority of his religious work was spent at St. Philomena's parish in Cincinnati.

Secondly, a book ⁴ on immigration to America by people from the Lingen area mentioned that a Gerhard Wessling went to America. However, there was no direct reference as to who this Gerhard Heinrich Wessling was since that name was in common use by several people from Lingen during that time period.

Thirdly, the files from the Grundbuchsamt ⁵ in Lingen contain a notarized statement signed in 1882 by Gerhard Heinrich Wessling's daughter and only surviving heir, who, at the time of her making the statements, was married and living in Cincinnati.

Gerhard Heinrich Wessling was born on April 13, 1829 in Lingen Stadtflur to Johann Heinrich Wessling, who was a Neubauer by occupation, and Anna Adelheid, geb. Kuhr. On the following day he was baptized at the church of St. Bonifatius in Lingen. He was the second son and the fifth in the birth order of eight children.²

According to "Germans to America" ⁶ he may have very possibly entered the United States on December 27, 1853 aboard the Ship 'New England'. The passenger manifest for that ship showed his name as Heinrich Wessling, aged 24, a Joiner by occupation, and as being from Hannover. At that time Lingen was situated within the Kingdom of Hannover. Ironically, it appears that he was the only one of our Wessling ancestors who did not settle in New England.

On or about October 31, 1853 his voyage began from Bremerhaven to New Orleans and then on to his intended destination of Ohio. There were a number of hardships which the passengers endured and a law suit against the master and owners of the vessel was later undertaken. A summary of the libel, Kramme et al v. The Ship New England, can be found for further details.⁷

Also, on the same vessel were a number of others from Hannover destined for Cincinnati, as well as for Louisville and St. Louis. A number of the passengers were named Thien, Rolfes, Hasken, and Röbben and those surnames are not uncommon to the Lingen area. More importantly, there was another passenger on board named Bernhard Wessling, 26, and a Shoemaker !

Interestingly, there were 3 Kuhrs on board -

Bernhard, 20;
Gerhard, 24; and
Adelheid, 26.

The archives of the archdiocese of Cincinnati proved to be an excellent source of material as the first document which confirmed that he was in America was the entry of his marriage in the parish records of St. Philomena's church. On April 6, 1856 he married Maria Anna Bram. The witnesses were Johann Bernhard Bram and Anna Maria Stalbarg (sp ?); and Johann Bram, Hermann Bram and Maria Agnete Bram. Coincidentally, the entry was made by his uncle, the Rev. G.H. Kuhr, D.D.⁸

Hermann Hinrick Braam ⁹ was born on January 23, 1801 in Bramhar. His parents were Joan Gerardi Wilmes and Maria Aleidis Braam. He married Anna Margaretha Hillen on February 5, 1822 in Bawinkel at the church of St. Alexander. They had the following children:

1. Joan Bernard was born on December 20, 1826 in Bramhar.
2. Maria Anna was born on March 2, 1832 in Bramhar.
3. Anna Helena was born on February 28, 1836 in Bramhar.
4. Maria Agnes was born on December 21, 1840 in Bramhar.

Given the above information it seems that the witnesses were mainly the relatives of the bride.

Those children and their father immigrated to America in 1852 and settled in Cincinnati. Already in Cincinnati were several of Hermann Hinrick's siblings.⁴

Gerhard Heinrich Wessling and Maria Anna Bram were the parents of at least two children. The first child, whose sponsors were Agnete Bram and Gerhard H. Kuhr, was christened as Maria Anna Agneta on March 3, 1857. (It was not determined if this Kuhr was Fr. Kuhr or a cousin of Gerhard Heinrich Wessling.)

The second child was christened as Anna Adelheid Josephine on November 17, 1858 and the sponsors were Hermann Heinrich Brahm and Josephine Seeger. (The surname of the child's mother was spelled as Brahm in the latter's record.)⁸

From the Cincinnati city directories ¹⁰ of the late 1850's and 1860 there were several Wesslings listed whose first name was either Henry or Heinrich, not to mention several Gerhards, and it was not an easy task to determine either his place of residence or his occupation. By focusing on Henry as his first name, the following table gives several possibilities.

In looking at people who had the same surname as his wife there were entries for a Barney and a Henry Brahm, who both worked at the same place in 1859. Henry Brahm's residence in that year was given as 46 Woodward. (In the 1853 directory a Barney Brohm was a laborer at 370 Broadway and at the same address in 1855 was a Henry Brohm, laborer.)

The above entry for Henry Wesling in 1860 shows his address as 46 Woodbury, yet there was no street with that name. Perhaps, it should have been Woodward and that he shared a residence with his father-in-law.

The 1859 address for Henry Wessling was the site of a bedstead manufacturer (the H.B. Mudge Steam Bedstead Factory). Working there was a J. G. Ginter. In 1858 Ginter had been a partner with a Wm. P. Pfeifer in a wood turning business. Additionally, in 1855 a Wm. Pfeifer and a Frank Seeger worked as cabinet makers at 51 Vine. (A Franz Joseph Bernhard Segers from Spelle was born on May 17, 1820 and immigrated in 1847. His parents were Gerhard Bernhard Segers and Maria Elisabeth Lambers. ⁴) Seeger also worked at 51 Vine in 1859. Henry Wessling and Maria Bram were the witnesses for Amalie Pfeifer's marriage at St. Philomena's church. Moreover, a Josephine Seeger was one of the sponsors at Josephine Wessling's baptism.

The federal census of 1860 ¹¹ had an enumeration for a Westing family who were residing in Cincinnati's 9th Ward. (The enumeration did not include any street names.) This ward was searched partly based on its proximity to St. Philomena's church and partly because of some of the addresses for the various Henry Wesslings in the city directory. In the 1860 edition of the city directory there was a listing for a Henry Wesley residing on Woodward and that street was located in Ward 9.¹⁰ This section of Cincinnati was part of the "Over the Rhine" neighborhood.

It is possible that the surname was Wesling and a misspelling was made. Although the surname is unclear, the information was, nevertheless of some worth.

	Name	Age	Place of Birth	Occupation
	Henry Westing	30	Hannover	Carpenter
	Mary A	28	Hannover
	Josephine	1	Ohio

It would appear that the older daughter had died prior to the date of the census, June 18, 1860.

In a different Cincinnati ward, a Bernard Brahm, age 32, and a Hermann H. Brahm, age 58, were listed as residing at the same address.

Henry Wessling died in Cincinnati on September 13, 1861 and 2 days later he was buried from St. Philomena's church. ⁸

Continuing with information from the Cincinnati city directories ...

	Year	Name	Address	Occupation
	1861	Wesling, Henry	48 Woodward	Cabinet Maker
	1862	Wesling, Mary	176 E. 5th
	1863
	1864	Wesling, Mary	176 E. 5th	Widow
	1865	Wesling, Mary	5th & Culvert	Widow
	1866 - 1870	Wesling, Mary	164 E. 5th	Widow

On July 9, 1870 the federal census showed the following as respects Cincinnati's Ward 1.¹²

	Name	Age	Place of Birth	Occupation
	Mary Wesling	35	Hannover	Keeps House
	Josephine	12	Ohio	At School

It appears that the mother's age was a few years less than it should have been.

Continuing with the city directories ...

	Year	Name	Address	Occupation
	1871 - 1874	Wesling, Mary	164 E. 5th	Widow
	1875 and 1876	Wesling, Mary	164 E. 5th	Widow
		Josephine	Same	Box Maker

On October 15, 1876 Mary Wessling died in Cincinnati and two days later she was buried from St. Philomena's church.⁸

From 1877 until 1881 Josephine Wessling is listed in the city directories as follows.

	Year	Name	Address	Occupation
	1877	Wesling, Josephine
	1878
	1879	Wesling, Josephine	69 Harrison	Seamstress
	1880	Wesling, Annie	113 Pleasant	Box Maker
	1881	Wesling, Josephine	375 E. 3rd	Box Maker

On October 26, 1881 Josephine Wessling married Jacob Schmitt at St. Philomena's church.⁸ The witnesses were Henr. Hohenhorst, H. Hoppenjans, Justina Schmitt, and Emona (sp ? - Leona) Schmitt.

Further information about the Schmitts was found in the federal census returns for Cincinnati, Ohio of 1900 (949 E.3rd Street).¹³

	Name	Age	Place of Birth	Occupation
	Jacob Schmitt	41	Ohio	Painter
	Josephine	41	Ohio
	Clarence W.	17	Ohio	Paper Ruler
	Jacob, jr.	15	Ohio	At School
	Leona	14	Ohio	At School
	Luella	11	Ohio	At School

Both of Jacob Schmitt's parents were born in France. His father was named Lorenz Schmitt and worked as a Cabinet Maker.¹⁰

For 1910 (Same Address).¹⁴

	Name	Age	Place of Birth	Occupation
	Jacob Schmitt	51	Ohio	Carriage Mfg. Co.
	Josephine	51	Ohio
	Clarence W.	27	Ohio	Paper Printing Co.
	Leona	23	Ohio
	Luella	21	Ohio	Book Keeper

For 1920 (2894 Minot).¹⁵

	Name	Age	Place of Birth	Occupation
	Jacob Schmitt, Jr.	37	Ohio	Broom Maker
	Jacob Schmitt, Sr.	61	Ohio	Painter
	Josephine	61	Ohio
	Leona	33	Ohio

In addition there was a tenant who worked as a Broom Maker.  Since the name and age of the tenant's wife corresponded with that of one of Josephine's daughters, the tenant could very well have been a son-in-law.

	Name	Age	Place of Birth	Occupation
	Charles Adelsperger	41	Ohio	Broom Maker
	Luella	31	Ohio
	Ruth	4	Ohio
	Virginia	2	Ohio
	Charles	< 1	Ohio

For 1930 (2894 Minot).¹⁶

	Name	Age	Place of Birth	Occupation
	Clarence Schmitt	47	Ohio	Accountant
	Josephine	71	Ohio
	Leona	43	Ohio

The Adelsperger family lived at the same address and Charles Adelsperger was employed as a foreman at a Broom Factory.

1. Laxten Geschichte eines Dorfes im Wandel der Zeit ,1993
2. St. Bonifatius' Parish Records
3. Sadlier's Catholic Almanac and Ordo , 1850 - 1880
4. Auswanderung und Auswanderer aus dem ehemaligem Kreis Lingen nach Nordamerika,  1993
5. Grundbuchsamt Lingen Bund 1, Blatt 18
6. Germans to America: Lists of Passenger Arrivals at U.S. Ports , vol. 6 ,  1989
7. Federal Case 7930; 1 Newb. 481; 1 C. Adm. 551; 14 Fed. Cas. 85; District Court, E.D. Louisiana (June, 1854)
8. St. Philomena's Parish Records
9. St. Alexander's Parish Records
10. Williams' Cincinnati Directory , 1857 - 1881
11. 1860 Census for Ohio, Reference 304-1111
12. 1870 Census for Ohio, Reference Page 93, Enumeration #748
13. 1900 Census for Ohio, Reference Vol. 61, E.D. 34, Sheet 8
14. 1910 Census for Ohio, Reference Vol. 80, E.D. 50, Sheet 79
15. 1920 Census for Ohio, Reference Vol. 90, E.D. 35, Sheet 1
16. 1930 Census for Ohio, Reference Vol. __, E.D. 26, Sheet 13b
17. Picture of Public Landing obtained from the Greater Cincinnati Memory Project.