Helene Frank and Frank Rupp

Georg Franz Rupp was born in Freinsheim, the son of Conrad Rupp and Barbara Fett. He was christened on 27 May 1866.

Georg Franz's US records - which refer to him as "Frank" - were consistent in giving his year of immigration as 1888. On his passport application on 07 Mar 1924, he stated that he arrived on 26 Feb 1888 aboard an unamed ship that sailed from Antwerp. However I haven't been able to find him on any passenger manifests.

Frank was naturalized by the Superior Court of New York County on 08 Oct 1894. He also served as a witness for his brother-in-law Richard Kroether (Maria Rupp's husband) when Richard applied for a passport on 02 Aug 1894. Richard didn't return the favour. The witness for Frank's naturalization was another brother-in-law, Nicolaus Brooks (Anna Rupp's husband). Frank's address at the time was 246 East 87th Street. He was working as a bartender, while Nicolaus was working as saloon keeper.

As of the 1900 US Census Frank was living at 354 East 81st Street in Manhattan with his sister Susanna and her husband Emil Koetzle. Frank was working as a clerk and Emil, as a barkeeper.

Frank married Helene Frank in Manhattan on 18 Jan 1902. According to her death notice published in the Yonkers NY Herald Statesman 11 Oct 1965, she was born on 06 Mar 1876 in Bad Dürkheim (near Freinsheim), and according to her marriage record, her father's name was Friedrich Frank and her mother's last name was Walther. However according to the Protestant christening records for Bad Dürkheim, the daughter of Friedrich Frank and Katharina Walther born that date and christened 23 Mar 1876 was named Magdalene Frank. Furthermore there's a Magdalena Frank, 18 years old, who arrived at Ellis Island 07 Jun 1894 aboard the SS Willehad out of Bremen. Helene Frank Rupp's US records suggest that she immigrated to the States in 1892-1896. Both Magdalena and Helena could be shortened to the nickname Lena. I suspect that young Magdalena was actually called Lena and that she used the immigration process as a way to change her first name to Helena.

Frank served as the witness for Emil Koetzle's citizenship and passport applications in June 1902. By then both of them (and presumably Susanna and Helena as well) were living at 326 East 89th Street. Frank was working as a restaurant keeper and Emil as a waiter.

Frank and Helena's son Arthur Frank Rupp was born in Manhattan 08 Apr 1903. The following year all three of them took a trip to Europe. Frank's 1924 passport application states that they were in Luxembourg from 10 Jul to 25 Aug 1904. The family returned to NYC on 06 Sep 1904 aboard the SS Zeeland out of Antwerp. Their address on the passenger manifest is given as 557 Greenwich Street. However, this may have been meant to be Emil's and Susanna's address. On the 1905 NY State Census, Emil and Susanna were living at 537 Greenwich Street (along with Emil's cousin Fred, who had immigrated in October 1902). Frank, Helen and Arthur were living at 235 58th Street. Frank was manager of a restaurant.

By 1910 the family had moved to 225 East 59th Street. Frank had his own business keeping a lodging house and indeed, the 1910 US Census enumerated 12 lodgers as living with them. The Rupps were still at this address in 1920, along with 15 lodgers and Frank's stepmother, Sophia Weber Ruhl Rupp. Sophia died on 14 Apr 1921.

1920-1940: Travels Abroad and Family Connections

On 07 Mar 1924 both Frank and Arthur applied for US passports (which they apparently hadn't had for their 1904 trip). Their applications stated that they planned to depart aboard the SS Albert Ballin on 03 Apr 1924 to spend up to four months visiting relatives in Germany and touring in Austria, Italy, Switzerland and France. They vouched for each other's identities, with Arthur supplying his occupation as "bank clerk."

Frank and Arthur returned from their trip on 17 Jul 1924 aboard the Yorck out of Bremen. At this point they were still living at 225 East 59th Street. However, by the time Frank returned from another trip to Europe on 17 Sep 1928 (aboard the SS Deustchland out of Hamburg) the family had moved to 628 East 163rd Street in the Bronx.

On 15 Mar 1929 Arthur married Margaretha Brueckmann in the Bronx. Margaretha (AKA Margaret) had been born in Freinsheim on 15 May 1906. She immigrated in 1928, arriving in NYC on 20 Jul 1928 aboard the SS Albert Ballin out of Hamburg. She left behind her father K L Brueckmann at Bahnhofstrasse 9 in Freinsheim and was joining her brother-in-law John Sitzler at 368 East 152nd Street in the Bronx.

I initially wondered if Margaretha and Arthur first met during his trip in 1924. However, there's more to the story than that. Frank Rupp's brother-in-law Richard Kroether had a niece named Elisabetha Kroether, the daughter of Anna Maria Webel and Heinrich Kroether born 01 May 1877. Elisabetha married Friedrich Sitzler 25 Feb 1897. Their son, apparently named Johannes, was born in Freinsheim 11 Apr 1901 (per US records). Friedrich Sitzler died 29 Jul 1910. Elisabetha then remarried 26 Jul 1913, her second husband being Wilhelm Katz, the widower of P???ine Ginader. I can't quite make out P Ginader's first name, although I can tell that it's not Pauline. It almost looks more like P?utine. (Canadian readers should be assured that no, it is not Poutine.) There's also something in Wilhelm's portion of the marriage record about Ludwigshafn. Wilhelm had a daughter named Rosa from his first marriage. According to her US naturalization records, she was born in "Ludwigshaven" 05 Jun 1904. So Richard Kroether had a grandnephew named Johannes or Hans Sitzler and a step-grandniece named Rosa Katz.

On 15 May 1923 Hans Sitzler arrived in NYC aboard the SS Mount Clinton out of Hamburg. Hans had been born in Freinsheim 11 Apr 1901. He left behind his stepfather Wilhelm Katz at Herrenstraße 9, Freinsheim, and was going to join his "uncle" Richard Kröther at 147 Melrose Avenue in New York. Almost six months later on 01 Nov 1923, Rosa Katz and Lotte Brueckmann arrived in NYC aboard the SS Cleveland out of Hamburg. Both of them were said to have been born in Freinsheim, Rosa in 1904-1905 and Lotte in 1905-1906. Rosa left behind her father Wilhelm Katz, while Lotte left behind her father Konrad Brueckmann. Both were going to join their "uncle" Richard Kröther at 747 Melrose Avenue.

Lotte Brueckmann or Brückmann was the daughter of Elisabetha Deutsch and Konrad Ludwig Brückmann, who married in Freinsheim 16 Apr 1903. In the marriage record, Elisabetha looks to have been born in "Weutheim." Her parents were married in Kirchheim an der Eck. Konrad Ludwig's family was based in Freinsheim. He was the son of Charlotta and Franz, both of whom shared the last name at birth of Brückmann. Charlotta was the daughter of Charlotta Weilbrenner and Ludwig Brückmann, while Franz was the son of Regina Weibert and Heinrich Brückmann. My point here is that there doesn't seem to have been any close connection between Lotte Brueckmann and Richard Kroether. He seems to have been her "uncle" only in the sense that he was her companion Rosa Katz's step-granduncle. She may (or may not) also have already been betrothed to Johannes Sitzler by 1923.

"Charlotte Bruckman" married "John Sitzler" in the Bronx on 09 Oct 1926. Then in 1928 John and Lotte went back to Germany. When they returned on the SS Albert Ballin out of Hamburg, Lotte's sister Margaretha came with them. At this time John was working as a fireman, not in the sense of someone who fights fires but rather as a crewman who tends the fire aboard a steam locomotive. He and Lotte were living at 368 East 152nd Street.

It's certainly possible that when Frank and Arthur Rupp visited Germany in 1924, they had a request via Richard Kroether from Lotte Brueckmann Sitzler to pass on greetings to her father and younger sister Margaretha. But it's also possible that Margaretha and Arthur didn't meet until after she immigrated in 1928.

As I mentioned above, Margaretha and Arthur married on 15 Mar 1929. By 1930, Frank, Helena, Arthur, Margaretha and four lodgers all living at 628 East 163rd Street. John, Lotte and Rosa (and nine lodgers) were living literally around the corner at 921 Cauldwell Street. Arthur was working as a bank clerk, John as a fireman for NY Central and Rosa as a clerk in an insurance offie.

Frank and Helena continued to travel to Europe, returning on 12 Oct 1930 aboard the SS Rotterdam out of Rotterdam; on 06 Oct 1935 aboard the SS Ilsenstein out of Antwerp; and on 08 Oct 1937 aboard the SS Hamburg out of Hamburg. On the last trip, they were accompanied by Helena's younger sister Philippina "Bina" Frank Engelman and Bina's daughter Annette.

Arthur and Margaretha also travelled. They returned on 15 Oct 1934 aboard the SS Bremen out of Bremen. The same ship also carried Margaretha and Lotte's older sister Regina, born in Freinsheim in or about 1903. Her US contact was her brother-in-law "A F Rupp."

On 27 Dec 1935 Arthur and Margaretha returned aboard the SS Gatun on what was apparently a cruise to Honduras and back. On 22 Jan 1937 they returned aboard the SS Europa out of Bremen. Arthur seems to have gone alone on a trip in 1938, when he returned on 20 Jun 1938 aboard the Europa out of Bremen. To place this date in context, the Anschluss - the annexation of Austria to Nazi Germany - occurred on 12 Mar 1938.

1940 and After

1940 found the Rupps and the Sitzlers still living around the corner from each other in the Bronx, each with four lodgers. John and Lotte Sitzler now had a daughter, Margaret Elizabeth, born in or about 1938. They were later to have another child, Frederick. I don't know what happened to Lotte and Margaretha's sister Regina.

John's stepsister Rosa Katz married Richard Schoenemann in New York 05 Apr 1930. Their son Richard was born 11 Jan 1935. At the time Rosa applied for US citizenship on 27 Jan 1937, the family was living at 637 East 140th Street in the Bronx. Rosa's witnesses were Frank Rupp and Wilhelmine Foerster. (Wilhelmine herself was born in Hollenbach 16 Oct 1899 as Wilhelmine Heinmann, but her husband Karl was born in Freinsheim 21 Jan 1895. They seem to have been married twice, once 01 Mar 1924 in Buffalo and once 04 Jun 1934 in Manhattan. Karl's parents, according to his 1934 marriage record? Katharina Bruckmann and Georg Foerster.)

Rosa swore her Oath of Allegiance to the United States 17 May 1937. Having established her US citizenship, she then took her young son back to visit the folks in Germany. They returned to New York 14 Oct 1937 about the SS Washington, which had sailed from Hamburg 04 Oct 1937.

According to Helene Rupp's death notice in the Yonkers Herald Stateman, Frank Rupp died in 1951.

Arthur and Margaretha made another trip to Europe in 1953, returning from Le Havre on 11 Oct 1953 aboard the SS United States. At that time they were living at 241 East 202nd Street in the Bronx. However by 1965 they had moved to 678 Warburton Avenue in Yonkers, where Helene was living with them. She died on 10 Oct 1965 and is buried in Woodlawn Cemetery.

Arthur died six months after his mother in April 1966. As of November 1968, Margaretha was still living at 678 Warburton. She died on 13 Apr 1995.

The Sitzlers also moved to Yonkers, to 369 Upland Avenue, a bit more than a mile away from 678 Warburton. They were living there on 03 Jul 1960 when Margaret Elizabeth married Gerald D Evans of Reading, PA. Her brother Frederick was one of the groom's ushers.

By 1976, when John and Lotte Sitzler celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary, Frederick was living in Old Greenwich, CT, and "Betty" Evans, in West Reading, PA. John and Lotte also had two grandchildren.

John died on 02 Dec 1994 at the age of 93. I don't know what happened to Lotte.