DENEUI, Johannes 1838-1920

DENEUI, WINNENGA

Posted By: Tammy (email)
Date: 4/12/2016 at 20:22:56

Two Of Older Residents Pass

Two of the older residents of this section passed away during the past week. They were Johannes DeNeui Sr. and M. J. Bakker. Both of them were men worthy of respect and remembrance by posterity. Each did the duty that lay nearest to his hand, looked after the material and spiritual interests of his family and leaves to us the memory of a life well spent. Their long lives have ended but their influence is to be felt in the lives of their children in the years to come. The sons and daughters of such men are well prepared by precept and example to do their part in the work of the coming years. To them and to us who knew these patriarchs are left the duties of our day. May we live and work as they did, in the faith that made them strong to labor, to cherish their loved ones and to walk uprightly before men.

The large number in attendance at the funerals show the esteem in which they were held in this community. Below is given a short obituary of each.

Obituary--Johannes DeNeui
Johannes DeNeui Sr. was born November 3, 1838, in Ostfriesland, Germany. He was married at the age of 27 to Frauka Winnenga, and came with his bride to America in 1865, landing at Cedar Falls, which was then the end of the railroad. There were seventeen of the party who had come from Germany together.

His first work was at Hardin City working in a sawmill and helping to build a dam. He also worked on the early railroad construction and helped with the building of the Illinois Central and Iowa Central, the first railroads in this section of the country.

Later he bought a span of oxen, and built a log cabin at the old home place now occupied by Dick DeNeui. Here he and his wife lived for nearly fifty years. Nine children were born to them, five of whom are still living. They are Riinte (Mrs. H. C. Kuper), Marten, Johannes, Dirk, and Elibertus.

The children all live in the vicinity of Wellsburg. There are 33 grandchildren and 6 great-grandchildren.

Mr. DeNeui's wife died about six years ago last April, and after a stay of ten months at the home of his son, Johannes, he went to the home of his daughter, Mrs. H. C. Kuper, where his death occurred Friday, August 27, at the age of 81 years, 9 months and 24 days.

The funeral was held Tuesday August 30, at the Kuper home at 1 o'clock at the house, and interment was made at the cemetery of the German Reformed church at Wellsburg.

Services were also held at the church, which were attended by a large number of old time settlers of this vicinity.

At the time of his death, Mr. DeNeui was the owner of more than a section of land in Grundy and Hardin counties. The home place where Dick DeNeui lives he purchased for seven dollars per acre and the remainder he bought at different prices, ranging from twelve to fifty dollars per acre.

He was the youngest of his own family and survived all of his brothers and sisters. He had two brothers and two sisters who came to America and two brothers in Germany. Of these, John and Peter were known here. John died at the age of 94 in Lennox, South Dakota, about a year ago, and Peter died at George, Iowa, about ten years ago at the age of 82.

The pall bearers were Henry Koch, G. A. Ohling, Riebke Freeze, Andrew Murra, J. E. Ross and Wm. E. Knock.

--Wellsburg Herald (Wellsburg, Iowa), 1 September 1920, pg 1