Heinrich Peter Hansen (1877 - 1946)

Born 10 Sep 1877 in Brarupholz, Germany

Husband of Maria Louise Anna (Jentsch) Hansen — married 12 Sep 1912 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA

Descendants

Died 30 Jan 1946 at age 68 in Cohocton, Steuben County, New York

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Heinrich Hansen has German Roots.

Biography

Heinrich Hansen, called Henry in the United States, was born in 1877 in Schleswig-Holstein to Peter and Christina.^[1][2]

His first wife was named Hermine C.M. Schrann.^[1][3] They both arrived in the United States in 1901 so they may have been married in Germany and emigrated together. They had three children before she passed away: Lydia (1903), Hermine (1904), and Henry (1908).^[3] All were born in the United States. Henry married for a second time in 1912 to Anna Jentsch in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.^[1] They had four children: Theodore (1921), Arthur (1922), Helene (1924), and Walter (1925).

Secondary sources indicate that Henry was educated at the Kropp Institute (also called the Ebenezer Lutheran Seminary, the Evangelical Lutheran Preacher's Seminary for Foreign Lands, and the American Theological Seminary - Kropp is the town it was in).^[4] This was a training institution for Lutheran clergy who were to conduct missions in America, where there was a need for clergy among the large German-speaking population.^[5] It was common practice for Kroop graduates to spend a year training at the Lutheran Theological Seminary in Philadelphia, but there were other locations where they finished their training before taking on a congregation.

These members of the clergy would fall under suspicion during World War I, partly because their training was funded by the government in Germany, which unlike the United States had a state church. German Lutherans in the United States were caught up by anti-German hysteria. Over 1,200 Lutherans pastors were investigated for possible disloyalty to the United States, and it was claimed that Lutheran pastors were leading their congregations in prayers for a German victory. When Henry first began leading congregations in the United States, it would have been in German. For example, the Lutheran congregation he led in Cohocton, NY between 1901 and 1908 first translated its church constitution into English in 1919 and started providing services in English in 1928.^[6]

Henry served many different congregations including Brockport, NY; New Kensington, PA; Conestago, Canada; Walsh, IL; Carterest, NJ; and Hackessack, NJ.^[7] He returned to Cohocton after retiring due to ill health and spent his last years there. He passed away in 1946 and is buried in the Zion Lutheran cemetery. ^[1][8] The parishioners in Cohocton were fond of Henry and he had visited while serving other congregations.^[9] They dedicated an altar vase to him a few years after he died.^[10]

Sources

1. ↑ ^{1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4} "Funeral Services for Rev. Hansen Saturday," Cohocton Valley Times-Index, February 6, 1946, p. 1, available online through Fulton County Postcards[1]
2. ↑ "United States World War II Draft Registration Cards, 1942," database with images, FamilySearch ([2] : 7 April 2016), Henry Peter Hansen, 1942; citing NARA microfilm publication M1936, M1937, M1939, M1951, M1962, M1964, M1986, M2090, and M2097 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.).
3. ↑ ^{3.0 3.1} New York State Census, 1905, database with images, FamilySearch ([3] : 26 November 2014), Henry P Hansen, Cohocton, A.D. 02, Cohocton Village, E.D. 01, Steuben, New York; citing p. , line 30, county offices, New York.; FHL microfilm 512,431.
4. ↑ Facts About Henry Hansen (subscription required)[4]
5. ↑ Francis Watson, "The Nazi Spy Pastor: Carl Krepper and the War in America," pages 6-8
6. ↑ "History of Zion," posted by the Zion Lutheran Church in Cohocton, NY[5]
7. ↑ "United States Census, 1920," database with images, FamilySearch ([6] : accessed 18 September 2018), Reverend Henry P Hansen, Roosevelt, Middlesex, New Jersey, United States; citing ED 62, sheet 15B, line 91, family 298, NARA microfilm publication T625 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 1992), roll 1057; FHL microfilm 1,821,057.
8. ↑ Anna Jentsch Hansen, "Birthdays" book entry for January 30: Am 30ten [Januar?] der Tordestag meines genten, geliebten manes, Heinrich Peter Hansen, Ruhe sanft. schlafe wohl, in Jahre 1946." Translation: On January 30th, the anniversary of the death of my beloved man, Heinrich Peter Hansen. Rest gently, sleep well. In the year 1946."
9. ↑ The Wayland Register, Wayland, New York, September 5, 1929, p. 6, available online through Fulton County Postcards[7]
10. ↑ "Vases Dedicated," Cohocton Valley Times-Index, April 12, 1950, available online through Fulton County Postcards[8]