Life story of Ludwig/Louis Spohr by Amy Spohr Chidester

 

Ludwig "Louis" Spohr

Ludwig Spohr was born in Eger, Bohemia in the Austrian Empire on 6 August 1871, the second son of Karl Spor and Ludmilla Breinl. He was the youngest of seven children. 

His siblings were:

Karl Christof born 26 April 1860.

Anna Elisabetha born 9 June 1861.

Johanna born 18 June 1863, died 3 March 1866, almost three years old.

Rosa Francisca born 3 December 1865, died 13 days later.

Mathilda Amalia born 14 March 1867.

Ludmilla born and died 24 February 1870 (emergency baptism performed by the midwife).

By the time Ludwig was born, only three of his six older siblings were living. 

Ludwig’s father was born with the surname Spor. Both Spor and the spelling variation Spohr were seen during his lifetime. Ludwig was born with the surname of Spohr, and this is the only spelling ever used in reference to Ludwig. 

Karl, Ludwig’s father, was the choir master in the St. Nicholas Church in Eger, Bohemia. The family lived in a house that was directly across the street on the north side of the church. Ludwig was baptized in that church in a baptismal font that was a relic from the medieval church originally on the same site. The north side of the church still has the old gothic entry, and this would be the view the family would have seen as they left the front door of their home.

Ludwig’s family suffered so much loss when he was young.

His mother Ludmilla died 31 January 1873 when he was only a year and a half old.

His father Karl died 19 May 1878 just before Ludwig turned 7.

His oldest sister, Anna Elisabetha, was just shy of 19 years old when she died 2 April 1880. Ludwig had lost both parents, and when he was still 8, he lost Anna, too.

Family Photo of Seifner Bräuhaus

For a time, Ludwig lived with his mother’s parents, Friedrich Breinl and Amalia nee Dotzauer. Both the Breinl and Dotzauer families were from Graslitz, Bohemia. Friedrich’s father, Sebastian Alois Breinl, was the master brewer for the Graslitz manor. As was custom in those times, Sebastian’s oldest son, Anton, became the manor’s master brewer after his father. Friedrich also became a master brewer but could not be the manor brewer. He moved his family to Seifen, Bohemia. He was the master brewer and brewery owner there. The brewery was attached to their home. The home where the family lived faced the road and the other much

larger section of the L-shaped structure was the brewery. This is the home Ludwig would have lived in with his grandparents, an aunt and uncles, and cousins.   

Another view of the home and brewery shows the "L" shaped structure of the building.  This photo is found on a large sign in Ryžovna, Czech Republic, formerly Seifen, Böhmen.  The sign displays photos of the Catholic church, a local band, other homes in Seifen, etc., and a brief history of Seifen.  The caption on the sign under the photo of the brewery is in both Czech (English translation: former state brewery - closed in 1912) and German (English translation: The former state brewery, brewing operations ceased in 1912).  

Byvaly statni pivovar - uzavren roku 1912
Die ehemals staatliche Brauerei, Braubetrieb 1912 eingestellt

When Ludwig was 10 years old, his brother Christof left Bohemia and emigrated to Cincinnati, where his great uncle, Wenzel Breinl, owned a pub and inn. Christof lived with and worked for his great-uncle.

Ludwig's sister, Amalia, emigrated to Cincinnati in August 1883. Ludwig was 12. Amalia’s address and occupation put her living with and working for her great uncle the first few years she lived in Cincinnati, too.

Ludwig and his sister Amalia suffered another terrible blow when their older brother, Christoff, committed suicide in 1884.

Ludwig Spohr

When Ludwig was 15 years old, he followed in the footsteps of his two older siblings and emigrated to Cincinnati, Ohio on 13 September 1886. He left on his ocean-bound journey from the port of Bremen, Germany and arrived at the port of Baltimore, Maryland, USA. He went on to Cincinnati and lived there for about 10 years and then relocated to the Madison, IL/St. Louis, MO area. He used his given name Ludwig and the Americanized equivalent interchangeably while living in Cincinnati, but after his relocation, he went by Louis for the rest of his life.

From entries in the Cincinnati city directories, it appears that Ludwig never lived with or worked for his great uncle like his siblings did when they first arrived. He did live at the same address as his sister off and on during those years. And at one point, he lived in the same tenement building as his future mother-in-law, Anna Ott. He had many different occupations, as seen in city directories.

Cincinnati, OH

1888 – driller (Ludwig)

1889 – locksmith

1890 – machine hand (Louis)

1891 – metal worker (Louis)

1892 – sword maker! (Ludwig)

1893 – metal worker (Ludwig)

1894 – locksmith

1895 to 1898 – jeweler (Louis)

In the 1898 Cincinnati city directory, not only did it give his occupation as a jeweler, but it included the note: removed to Madisonville, IL. The correct name of the town he moved to was Madison, IL, but this gives a time frame for his relocation. Since city directories collect information one year and print that information the next year, Louis most likely moved to the Madison, IL/St. Louis, MO area in 1897.

Wedding photo of  Louis (right) and Anna (sitting) and
Louis' sister Amalia and brother-in-law Wilhelm Schaefer
 

A letter in which Louis writes to his sweetheart Anna, is dated December 28, 1897, and sent from Madison, IL, confirming the 1897 move. In that same letter, Louis also talks about his sister Mallie (Amalia) and it is clear from the letter that Mallie and her family also live in Madison. Louis talks of how he dreams of Anna almost every night and he closes with these words: "kisses to my Beloved.” His letter was signed Loui, the nickname he went by. The letter is written in German.

Louis married Anna Maria Ott on 31 August 1898 in Cincinnati, OH. They set up housekeeping in Madison, IL. They had four sons. Louis Christopher was born 23 October 1899 in Madison, IL. Carl John was born 21 September 1903 in St. Louis, MO. Twin sons were either stillborn or died shortly after birth, but the exact date and location are not available.

Madison, IL

1898 – Jeweler

1899 – carpenter

1900 – banker

St. Louis

1903 – machinist (living at 2417 N. 12th)

1904 – machinist

The city directory shows that he lived at 1310 Hebert Street in St. Louis, MO.

1906 - confectionery

Madison, IL

1910 – confectionery

1911 – confectionery proprietor

The St. Louis World’s Fair (technically the Louisiana Purchase Exhibition) ran from 30 April 1904 to 1 December 1904 with an average of 100,000 people attending each day. Over 20 million people saw the exhibition that covered over 1200 acres. Were the Spohr’s among them?

The fairgrounds covered an area greater than any other World’s Fair in the history of the event. Ferris’s Big Wheel gave people an aerial view of the Exhibition. Technological innovations were debuted: the x-ray machine, the electric typewriter, the dishwasher and more. Purportedly, foods that were introduced for the first time at the Fair were the hotdog, the hamburger, the ice cream cone and more. Many of the tales of these foods originating in St. Louis have been debunked over time. Another huge event took place in St. Louis in 1904. This was the first Olympic Games to be held on US soil and the only Olympic Games to be held during a World’s Fair.

Louis worked at a confectionery in St. Louis and then in Madison, and then became owner of his own confectionery.

A confectionery is generally thought of as a candy-making enterprise, but the confectioneries in the St. Louis/Madison area at that time were stores that handled, among other things, cigars, tobacco, ice cream, stationery and periodicals.

L. Spohr Confectionery, 1518 3rd Street, Madison, IL

Louis’s confectionery was located on Third Street in Madison. It was part of a two-story building. On the bottom story were two places of business, Louis’ confectionery and a Billiard Hall owned and run by Anna’s two brothers, Frank and Louis. Above the two businesses were three apartments. Louis and Anna lived in one, and most probably each of Anna’s brothers lived in the other two. Louis would come up from the store at the lunch hour to have his meal with Anna. (Many years later, Anna lived in one while each of her living sons and their families lived in the other two apartments.)

And tragedy struck again. On 23 December 1912, sometime in the early afternoon, Louis was late coming up for lunch. Anna went down to the confectionery to see what was delaying him and found him dead. It appeared that he had climbed up on a counter to reach something and fallen and hit his head. His death certificate reports he had a heart attack. He was only 41 years old when he died. It is so sad that he was orphaned as a child and that then his own children were left fatherless at his early demise.

Written by Amy Spohr Chidester, daughter of Carl Spohr Jr., son of Carl Spohr, son of Ludwig "Louis" Spohr & Anna Maria Ott 

Brother & Sister: Ludwig "Louis" Spohr & Amalia "Molly" Spohr Shaefer

Recently I got an email from Lauren Partida, a descendant of my great, great grandfather's sister, and we have been sharing information and photographs about our Spohr and Shaefer families.   I went through my genealogy file and wrote out all the info I currently have about these families to send to her, and I thought I'd share it here too:

My mom's father was Carl John Spohr Jr., and his father was Carl John Spohr, and his father was Ludwig Spohr (who went by Louis after he came to the United States).  Ludwig and his family spoke German and were born in Böhmen (Bohemia), which was then part of the Austrian Empire.  Now these towns are currently located in the Czech Republic, and many of the town names have been changed from their original German names to Czech names.

Ludwig Spohr was the 7th and youngest child of Karl Spor and Ludmilla Breinl.  This is what we've learned about their family so far:

Karl Spor was born 16 Jan 1825 in a Bohemian town called Salesel, the son of Jannes Franziskus Spor & Johanna Katharina Pannowitz.  On 10 January 1860 in a town called Graslitz, Karl Spor married Ludmilla Breinl.  Ludmilla was born 14 Dec 1839 in Graslitz, the daughter of Friedrich Breinl and Amalia Dotzauer.  Karl & Ludmilla had 7 children, all born in the town of Eger:

1. Karl Christof Spohr, born 26 Apr 1860.

2. Anna Elisabetha Spohr, born 9 Jun 1861.

3. Johanna Spohr, born 18 Jun 1863.

4. Rosa Francisca Spohr, born 3 Dec 1865.

5. Mathilda Amalia Spohr, born 14 Mar 1867.  (Her birth record lists her name as Mathilda Amalia, but all other records we have found for her refer to her only as Amalia, or some form of that name, including Molly after she went to the US).

6. Lumila Spohr, born 24 Feb 1870.

7. Ludwig Spohr, born 6 Aug 1871.

Even with the higher  mortality rate of the past, it seems that this family had it especially hard:  In 1863 little Johanna died before her third birthday, then two years later baby Rosa Francisca died before she was 2 weeks old, then 5 years later in 1870 baby Ludmila died at just 3 hours after her birth.  In 1873, when their youngest child, Ludwig, was 1 1/2 years old, Ludmilla Breinl Spor died, leaving their surviving children without a mother.  Then in 1878 when Ludwig was 6 years old, Karl Spor also passed away, leaving the children orphans.  Two years later, the eldest daughter, Anna Elisabetha, died at age 18.  (And although we have done significant research to learn about the fate of the eldest son, Karl Christof, we have not yet been able to find any mention of him other than his birth record -- so we do not yet know if he survived to adulthood or not).  So by the time that the two remaining children, Amalia and Ludwig, were ages 13 and 8 respectively, they did not have any surviving parents or siblings (except possibly the brother, Karl Christof).

In Aug 1883, at age 16, Amalia arrived in Baltimore, Maryland, having departed from a port in Bremen, Germany, on a ship named "Nurnberg."  

Mathilda Amalia "Molly" Spohr Schaefer, my 2nd great aunt 

(I was so excited when Lauren sent me a copy of this photo of Amalia since I had never seen a picture of her before).

And 3 years later on 13 Sep 1886 her younger brother Ludwig arrived in Baltimore, also traveling through Bremen, on a ship named "Rhein."  The ship's passenger list listed 15 year old Ludwig as a citizen of Bohemia, carrying 1 piece of baggage, and "intending protracted sojourn." 

Ludwig, "Louis" Spohr, my 2nd great grandfather

In 1890 Amalia Spohr was naturalized a US citizen, in 1896 or 1897 (around age 29) she was married to William Albert Schaefer, and by 1900 she and her family were living in Venice, Madison County, Illinois.  Amalia, who also went by”Amalie,” "Amelia," or "Molly" in the United States, was the second wife of William Albert Schaefer, who was born 2 Feb 1862 in Germany, the son of Ferdinand Schäfer.  William's first wife was Mary Strobel, born about 1861 in Germany, and they were married about 1888 in St. Louis, Missouri.  Mary and William had 3 children before William re-married to Amalia Spohr in 1896 or 1897: William Albert Jr., Wilhelmina "Minnie" C., & George A. Schaefer.  William and Amalia went on to have 5 more children together: Annie "Nonnie," Agnes, Louis Christopher, a child that did not survive, and Lydia "Liddie" Shaefer.  And we can see from some US Census records that William's three children from his first marriage were raised with their younger half siblings by William & Amalia.  In a few different Illinois towns, William Albert Schaefer worked at a General Hauling Company, as a Sand Pit Operator, a Foreman at a Steel Works company, a Teamster, a Merchant for a Coal Company, and a Blacksmith.  Amalia Schaefer died at age 65 on 15 March 1932 in Granite City, Madison, Illinois.  On 28 Oct 1945 in Granite City her husband passed away at age 83.  They were both buried in Edwardsville, Madison, Illinois. 

On 31 Aug 1898 at age 27, Ludwig Spohr married Anna Marie Ott in Cincinnati, Ohio.  Anna Marie Ott was also from Bohemia, the eldest daughter of Josef Ott & Maria Anna Strunz, and she was born on 10 Aug 1874 in a town called Putschirn.  Anna Ott and her siblings were all born in Putschirn, except her youngest brother, Louis Christopher Ott, who was born in Ohio after the family immigrated to the United States together (they arrived in the US between 1881 and 1884).  After Ludwig & Anna’s marriage in 1898, they moved to Madison County, Illinois where Ludwig (“Louis”) worked several different jobs for the next few years, including Carpenter, Banker, & Confectionery.  Between 1899 and 1903, Anna had 4 sons, 2 of which did not survive past childhood.

In 1912 the Spohr family was living in Madison, Madison, Illinois -- their home was upstairs on the second story, above the downstairs confectionery shop.  On 23 Dec 1912 at age 41, Ludwig didn't come upstairs for lunch as was his usual habit and Anna went downstairs to find that he had fallen, and hit his head and died in the store.  The boys, Louis & Carl, were ages 13 and 9 at the time their father died.  Anna Marie Ott Spohr lived until 21 Jan 1961 when she passed away at age 86 in Edwardsville, IL.  Ludwig & Anna were both buried in St. John Cemetery in Granite City, Madison, Illinois.  Ludwig & Anna's youngest son, Carl John Spohr, was my great grandpa.

Ludwig "Louis" Spohr and Anna Marie Ott Spohr, my 2nd great grandparents

Ludwig's family:

Children of Ludwig "Louis" Spohr & Anna Marie Ott:

1. Louis Christopher Spohr, born 23 Oct 1899 in Madison, Madison, Illinois.  (On 2 May 1925 in Carlinville, Macoupin, IL Louis married Florence Frances Graham, daughter of John George Graham & Susie, born 1903 in St. Louis & died 1988 in Maryville, Madison, IL.  Louis & Florence has 3 children: 1. Louis John Spohr born 21 Jun 1928 in Granite City, 2. Dolores Anne Spohr born 7 May 1931 in Madison & died May 2001, & 3. Frank K. Spohr, born 14 Sep 1932 in Granite City).  Louis Christopher Spohr died 19 Sep 1949 in Stookey, St. Clair, Illinois.

2. Twin boy (1), born and died sometime between 1900 and 1910 in either Madison County, IL or St. Louis, MO.

3. Twin boy (2), born and died sometime between 1900 and 1910 in either Madison County, IL or St. Louis, MO.

4. Carl John Spohr, born 21 Sep 1903 in St. Louis, MO.  (On 14 Aug 1929 in Granite City Carl married Nettie Dorothy Graham, daughter of John George Graham & Susie Florence Dobbins, born 1907 in Granite City, and died 1980 in Kansas City, MO.  Carl & Nettie has one child: Carl John Spohr Jr., born 28 Jun 1930 in Madison, IL and died 31 May 2003 in Lee's Summit, MO).  Carl John Spohr (Sr.) died 20 Jun 1979 in Granite City, IL.

Amalia's family:

Children of William Albert Schaefer & Mary Strobel:

1. William Albert Schaefer Jr., born 27 Jul 1889 in St. Louis, Missouri.  (William Jr. later married Gladys Jane Golden, and they had 3 daughters, the youngest named Virginia E. Schaefer born 24 Mar 1918 in Aliquippa, Pennsylvania, and died 31 May 2007 in Coraopolis, PA.  I have no information about their first two daughters).  William Jr. died Oct 1967 in Georgetown, PA.

2. Wilhelmina "Minnie" C. Schaefer, born 7 Sept 1890 in Missouri.  (On 18 Nov 1908 in St. Louis, Minnie married Fredrich William Hilker, son of Gustav Hilcker and Elizabeth Hahn, born in 1886 in St. Louis, MO, died 1968 in Sacramento, CA.  Minnie and Fredrich had two children: 1. Fred A. Hilker, born about Mar 1910 in Illinois, & 2. Marie Elizabeth Hilker, born 2 Dec 1911 in Illinois, died 17 Jan 2004 in Arcadia, CA).  Minnie died 13 Nov 1987 in Orroyo Grande, CA. 

3. George A. Schaefer, born 24 Apr 1893 in Madison, Illinois.  (On 30 Aug 1917 in St. Louis Geroge married Bertha Elizabeth Keiderling, daughter of Henry Keiderling & Elizabeth S. Spree-Lorenz, born 1898 in Nameoki, Illinois, died 1975 in Sacramento, CA.  George and Bertha had 3 children: 1. Dorothy Elizabeth Schaefer 19 May 1991 in IL, died 22 Sep 1987 in Sacramento, 2. Albert Schaefer, born 1922 in IL, & 3. George Schaefer born 1924 in IL).  George A. Schaefer died Mar 1987 in Rancho Cardova, CA.

Amalia Spohr Schaefer and William Albert Schaefer, my 2nd great aunt & uncle

Children of William Albert Schaefer & Amalia "Molly" Spohr:

1. Annie "Nonnie" Shaefer, born Aug 1897 in Illinois.  (Married in 1924 to Kenneth C. Ross.  Kenneth was the son of William S. Ross and Emma D. McNeill, born about 1894 or 1898 in Minnesotta, and died in the 1970s in Florida.  Nonnie & Kenneth had no children).  Nonnie died between 1974 and 1979 in Florida.

2. Agnes Schaefer, born 21 May 1900 in Illinois.  (Married Raymond Beck in 1922.  Raymond Beck was born in 1900 in Illinois.  Agnes and Ray were divorced and had no children).  Agnes died in the 1950s.

3. Louis Christopher Schaefer, born 21 May 1900 in Illinois.  (Married Sara May Frazier, born 4 Aug 1902 in IL or MO, died 25 Mar 1976 in Bakersfield, CA.  Louis and Sara had 2 children: 1. Mary Lois Schaefer, born 18 Jan 1925, died 16 Jun 2008 in Bakersfield, CA, & 2. Louis William Schaefer, born 20 May 1928 in Madison, IL).  Louis Christopher Shaefer died 25 Aug 1990 in Oceano, CA.

4. Child born and died between 1896 and 1910.  (According to the 1910 census, Amalia Schaefer was the mother of 5 children, and 4 of her children were living as of 1910.  Assuming that the child that died was born during her marriage to William, we can suppose that this child was born sometime between 1896 and 1910). 

5. Lydia Schaefer, born 1905 in Illinois.  (In 1925 or 1926 Lydia married Oliver Scott , born 1904 in Michigan, died in Florida in the 1970s.  Lydia and Oliver had two children: 1. Robert Oliver Scott, born Oct 1928 or 1929 in Illinois, and 2. Suzanne Scott born 1936).  Lydia passed away in Florida in the 1970s.

I am excited to go through photos I have, and as Lauren continues to send copies of photos she has I hope to be able to identify some of the people in our previously unidentified family photographs.  I'll post the photos she sends me, and more of our findings soon.

Travel Log: October 5th, Part 2, Graslitz, Bleistadt, & Elbogen

“. . . Then we drove further, about half an hour through a heavily wooded area on a very windy road (I'm very glad I didn't get motion sick, I was worried there for a while). 

The road to Graslitz

We have a whole list of houses for Graslitz, now Kraslice, a larger town in beautiful huge pine forests in the mountains where they used to manufacture musical instruments, but now the factories are all empty and Stanislav told us most people have to go elsewhere to work and unemployment is high.  We had lots of Breinl and Dotzauer ancestors there, and then a few others: Keilwerth, Mayer, Meinl, and Spohr that I had on my list. 

The town of Graslitz (now Kraslice)

An abandoned factory in Graslitz

A vacant old hotel in Graslitz.  My mom and I joked that we want to buy and
restore this old hotel -- just look at those cool statues lining the facade.

The Graslitz family houses that we know of are 80, 262, 306, 316, 322, 375, 383, 391, 501, 522, & 587. . . .

Here’s what we know so far about the ancestors who lived in those houses:

Graslitz No. 80 was the birth place of my 4^th great grandfather, Freidrich Breinl. 

Graslitz No. 262 was the residence of Gottfried Wenzl Dotzauer, my 5^th great grandfather.  It was also the residence of Rosalia Theresia Dotzauer, Gottfried’s sister.

Graslitz No. 306 was the home of Amalia Dotzauer Breinl, my 4^th great grandmother, and of her mother, Katharina Mayer Dotzauer (Gottfreid’s wife).

Anton Breinl, a son of Freidrich Breinl and Amalia Dotzauer, lived in Graslitz No. 316.

Graslitz No. 322 or 522 was the birth place of Amalia Dotzauer, and was the home of Amalia and her husband, Friedrich Breinl. 

Anton Breinl (son of Freidrich Breinl and Amalia Dotzauer) lived in Graslitz No. 375, and so did his daughter, Emilie Amalia Breinl.

Graslitz No. 383 was the home of Gottfried Wenzl Dotzauer and his wife Katharina Mayer, and also of their daughter Amalia Dotzauer.

Graslitz No. 391 was the home of Friedrich Breinl.  No. 391 was also the birthplace of his daughter, Ludmilla Breinl, my 3^rd great grandmother.

Anna Elisabetha Spohr, the sister of my 2^nd great grandfather Ludwig Spohr, lived in Graslitz No. 501. 

And Graslitz No. 587 was the residence of Rosalia Dotzauer, the wife of Ignaz Stohwasser (Rasalia & Ignaz’s daughter, Rosalie Stohwasser, married Aloys Breinl. Rosalie & Aloys’s son was my ancestor, Friedrich Breinl.  Not sure yet how Rosalia Dotzauer Stohwasser may have been related to the Dotzauer side of our family).

. . .We drove up one street up a hill from the Main Street and finally found a house 80, but it was a brick building that looked old, but not old enough - Stanislav told us it was built around 1890 (too new). So either it is the right location and the house had been rebuilt, or it wasn't the right place. 

A House No. 80 in Graslitz -- not sure if this may have been our ancestor's House No. 80 or not?

The thing that was different about Graslitz from all the other little towns we've seen so far is that it had new sets of numbers starting over on each street, even for the old original house numbers. The other towns just had one of each old house number in the whole town. So how are you supposed to know which house it is, even if you find one there?  There are no street names in the old records we've been finding for Graslitz, just like the other towns, so I guess we have to figure that out. We didn't find any other possibilities for those other houses there either. 

We did get to go to the church in Graslitz where Ludmilla Breinl & Karl Spohr were married (they were the parents of Ludwig, who came to America at age 14).  The church is cool, with horizontal light yellow and white stripes all around the outside, and we could see inside the locked gate at the church door to see the painted walls and ceilings.

The church in Graslitz

I just loved all the cool doors in the Czech Republic! 

Just look at those ceilings!

A sign telling when construction began and ended on the current church building.

We saw a few handwritten pages and some historical pictures posted at the church, and Stanislav said the church was rebuilt like that from the previous falling down Catholic Church that used to stand there (so the earlier church would have been where they were married), because it was rebuilt from 1893 to 1896. 

The original old church on the left, and the new church on the right.  

It would be interested to have these pages translated to we can read
what they have to say about the history of the church.

Then we asked around until we found the cemetery up on a hill, and we spent quite a while there and didn't even see a quarter of the headstones. There were Czech ones and older German ones, and there were lots with family names: Kohl, Fischer, Breinl, Stowasser, Kohler, and more. 

The Graslitz cemetery.  Pictured here are just a few of the headstones with family names
that we need to figure out exactly how we are related. 

This headstone is one that my parents had found there on a previous trip to the Czech Republic, and we know for sure how these three Breinls are related to us from an old family letter that specifically mentions their names.

And in the back there are piles of old stones all stacked together with moss growing over them. I climbed up on the overgrown piles to see if any names were visible on the piled up stones, and only two were facing up and I think only one of those had a family surname on it. Unfortunately my camera battery ran out, and Mom's battery had already run out, so we couldn't photograph the last few family name headstones we saw.

The overgrown pile of headstones at the back of the cemetery.

Searching through the pile of headstones.

On the drive back we passed through the edge of Bleistadt, now called Olavi, a small town not too far down the road from Graslitz. Friedrich Breinl and his wife lived there at one time, but I didn't have a house number for that town written on my list, and we just drove through without stopping.

Last we stopped at Elbogen, now called Loket.  Elbogen means “elbow” and it's where there's a big curve in the river around this town with a castle. We don't have ancestors in the town of Elbogen that we know of, but some were within the larger Elbogen district. We hadn't planned to stop there, Stanislav just offered to. We went in and pretty quickly left, but it was a colorful little medieval town with a very old looking castle that was built right around a large rock outcropping. There was a wine festival going on inside the castle and it was so crowded you could hardly get around. Stanislav had to beg the guy to let us just go in and take a quick look at the castle without having to pay to get in for the wine festival.

Elbogen (now called Loket)

Mom with Dr. Stanislav Boracovic

The Loket castle

Then we drove back and stopped again in Putschirn where Stanislav's sister, Rose, lives and she had us for coffee (although she was very surprised that we didn't want coffee, tea, wine, or cola). We just asked for water, and she brought out a large water bottle and poured it for us and it was carbonated water. All the water in Europe is carbonated unless you ask for "still water." I don't care for the carbonated stuff – maybe it’d be ok if you were used to having it all the time. I don't think they drink a lot of water here like we do at home.  Oh and she fed us mushrooms she had picked in the woods. They were very good. Stanislav told us Czechs love mushrooms and 95% of them pick their own mushrooms in the woods here. Cool, huh?

Well, that was a nice tour today, and we didn't have any trouble understanding him, and we could almost always figure out what each other was trying to say. Then tonight we had traditional Czech or German food (not sure which) at a place near the hotel in Karlsbad, and I actually like sour krout, and the similar dish of red cabbage, when they are made here, and not something actually sour out of a jar in the U.S.  :)

Well, tomorrow we will go to that church in the morning. . . .  Can't wait!”