Historical Profile: Mr. George Hoenig – 1845 ~ 1931

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Sharon Schuler Kreps

Photo: George Hoenig on the right with his son-in-law, Bob Mize, on the left.

 

CULLMAN – George Hoenig was born in Grossumstadt, Darmstadt, Hesse, Germany (although he would later say he was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin) on May 24, 1845. He left Germany between 1845 and 1850, and grew up in Milwaukee.

As a young man he joined the 26th Wisconsin Volunteers, Company I, and fought in the Civil War under the command of General Sherman of the Union Forces. He was discharged from service in July 1865 near Louisville, Kentucky. Like many of his fellow soldiers, he kept a daily journal of his military days. The journal dates from April 5, 1864 to July 10, 1865. It was written in an old German dialect and was translated by Dieter and Erika Schirmer of Germany. For a peek into his military life, you can go to russscott.com/~rscott/26thwis/dgeorhoe.htm and read all about it.

After he was discharged from the Army, Hoenig returned to Milwaukee and got a job in a stave factory, where the narrow strips of wood that compose the sides of barrels are produced. He also met and married his first wife, Miss Bertha Emma Sophia Krienitz, in 1867. They had three children and sadly, Bertha died at the age of 26. Hoenig then married her sister, Wilhemina “Minnie” in 1874, and they had two children together.

Because Hoenig had admired the north Alabama area on his trek during the Atlanta Campaign of the War, he decided to move to that part of the country. In 1880 George Hoenig, Minnie Hoenig and the children packed up a wagon and headed south, where he purchased 80 acres of land from John G. Cullmann and Son for $300. He paid $60 down and paid off the balance of the $240 note in 1886.

One of George Hoenig’s daughters always told the tale of their move so long ago. “We left as soon as the snow melted. I remember counting the stars at night, and we slept under the wagon if it rained. The little kids rode in the wagon, but us older kids mostly walked.”

That’s a long time to walk. Calculations indicate that they spent approximately three months ‘walking’ to Alabama!

Once they made it to Cullman, the family worked together and cleared 4 acres of land for a crop that first year and built a two-room cabin to live in. As time passed, more rooms were added and more land was cleared. Cullman County was a thick wilderness at the time. It is said that when George Hoenig first went to Cullman for supplies, he blazed the trees so he could find his way back through the thick woods.

Over the years, George Hoenig became a wealthy man and owned hundreds of acres of land in Cullman. To give you an idea of all the land he came to own, here’s a list of land he purchased over time.

  • March 13, 1880 – 80 acres from John G. Cullmann for $300
  • Oct. 9, 1880 – 120 acres from L & N Railroad for $270
  • July 17, 1880 – 80 acres from William Richard for $450
  • Dec. 31, 1880 – 40 acres from Wilhelm Krienity for $75
  • Oct. 29, 1895 – 160 acres from Theo Von Gerichtan for $480
  • March 22, 1900 – 320 acres from S. L. Rose for $1,500
  • April 25, 1912 – 400 acres from Edward H. Wuerdeman for $200
  • Oct. 23, 1922 – 40 acres from R. W. White in which he took on a mortgage for $594

It is also worth noting that in his lifetime, George Hoenig was married a total of six times. He has numerous descendants throughout Cullman County. His home in Good Hope was dismantled in 1973. His home property was purchased by Cullman Urban Renewal and Community Development and is now an industrial park.

George Hoenig died on May 1, 1931 in Cullman. He is buried in the Protestant Cemetery (now called the City Cemetery) in a family plot that consists of eight graves he purchased for $8. The Hoenig family plot is located near the plot of John G. Cullmann, the founder of Cullman.

 

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