Subtree: Friedrich Johann Gerard Langemeyer 1790

Grandmother tells the story of our family
(Marianne Wiese 1953)
I’m sitting by my grandmother’s bed. It’s already getting dark outside, the large copper beech rustles in the wind. The room is quiet, only the ticking of the clock can be heard. Grandmother has straightened up a little and is telling me about times long past. She has stories of happiness, peace, and prosperity, but also of war and famine. She tells me about my ancestors, of real, strong men and their wives. I don’t notice that deep darkness has descended upon us; I can no longer hear the ticking of the clock. I’m no longer here in the room with the heavy oak furniture; I’m in the old house with its nooks and crannies. I admire the lace caps, the long dresses. Grandmother guides me safely and calmly through the times.
“You know those two oil paintings, don’t you?” Oh, yes, I know them well. These are the pictures in the room with the old furniture, the 200-year-old corner cupboard, the old mirror, the jugs, and the pitchers. The pictures fit well into this room. On the left, a serious, intelligent face peers out of the frame. The dimple in the chin somewhat softens the austere appearance. Dark whiskers frame the face. Next to it, the painting depicts a woman. Her dark hair, parted in the middle, is half-covered by a lace cap with ruffles and ribbons. She looks down at the viewer with a friendly smile. She has a cape draped around her shoulders, fastened at the front. She wears a small gold cross around her neck. I have always wanted to know something about them. But Grandma will tell me about them now:
“The oil painting on the left depicts your great-grandfather, Alexander Meyknecht. He was born at the end of the 18th century in the Langemeyer household. His father owned a bakery, a shop, and a farm. His mother was born Moormann from Werne. Her father owned a large distillery. She brought this business with her to Mettingen. They had four children: Hermann, Moritz, Alexander, and Luise. Her father died very young. The mother remarried a Langemeyer from Langenhof. (Farmer Telkamp-Wöhle now lives on this farm.) She gave him another son, Clemens.
The exterior of the house is much as it is today. At the front is the main entrance. A door to the right leads to the kitchen and the shop; to the left is the guest room. The shop is very small and old. It is always dim here, and a somewhat heavy atmosphere hangs over everything. There is a shelf, a table, and a few crates. They mainly sell yeast. To the left of the main entrance, opposite the mill, the schnapps is distilled. Entering through the side entrance, you enter the bakery. The brewery is across the street. Clemens Langemeyer inherits the entire business, and his half-siblings are forced to leave the house. The company is still named after him today. CI Langemeyer. Luise marries a man named Flottow from Mettingen. Hermann and Moritz move to Recke. Here they build a house (now Strübbe) and open a brewery, bakery, and inn.

Alexander marries the widow Marianne Kemper, née Kampschmidt, from Mettingen. This is the woman in the oil painting with the lace cap and the golden cross. She brings two children into the marriage: August and Antonia. August receives the Kemper inn in Nordhausen (now Hohnhorst-Keller). Antonia marries a Siermann from Beutzenburg in the Uckermark region.

Her father is a simple blacksmith in the farming community of Ambergen. He doesn’t have it easy and struggles to earn a living, having to feed 13 children. Marianne, the eldest, has to help her mother with the housework from an early age and therefore can’t go to school. She signs everything with a cross because she can’t even write her name.
One of her brothers emigrates to America. From there, he sends the first seed potatoes to his home village. The people of Mettingen eat vegetables and bread, but they’ve never seen potatoes. Most have never been further than Ibbenbüren or Recke. There are no trains, no cars, and no bicycles.