Jungwirth-Meyer Photo Scrapbook 1883-1999

Childhood

John (Johann) Jacob Jungwirth was born March 4, 1875 in Tisch, Bohemia. (Bohemia was then part of Austria-Hungary, and John always referred to himself as "Austrian.")

His father was Johann Jungwirth (born c. 1830), but his mother's and younger sister's names are unknown (see photo at left, presumed to have been taken around 1883).

John attended the town elementary school for eight years, from September 17, 1881 to March 4, 1889. He seems to have been an excellent student. Click here to read a transcription of his final report card: Report card

A second family photo (at left) appears to have been taken around 1893, after John went to America.

About Tisch

Tisch (Ktis) is a town of about 500 people in the Sudeten Mountains of Southern Bohemia. It is 82 miles south of Praha (Prague) in the Czech Republic. The town is now known as Ktis. Its coordinates are Latitude 48°55' N, Longitude 14°08'E.

Until World War I, its people spoke German and were primarily Catholic. After the war, in 1919, Bohemia and neighboring areas were drawn into the new country of Czechoslovakia. After the atrocities of World War II, German-speaking residents were expelled from the Sudetenland.

Coming to America

In 1892, at the age of 17, John left behind his mountain village in Bohemia and traveled (presumably) by train to Hamburg, Germany. From there, he traveled alone to the United States.

Crop failures, falling grain prices, and farm foreclosures contributed to a major wave of emigration that occurred during the 1880s and early 1890s. Thousands of Czech farmers, laborers, and village artisans came to America to escape economic hardship at home. Many young men also left because 10 years of military service was required of them, starting at age 20.

Transcription of the Hamburg (Germany) departure manifest:

Jungwirth, Joh+
Age 17 years
Family members: none
Place of residence: Tisch
State of residence: Bohmen (Bohemia)
Profession: Tischler (carpenter)
Place of destination: New York
Passenger number: 01.0703
Passage number: A1892.0160
Date of departure: 6-May-1892
Ship's destination: New York (via Southampton)
Ship's name: Normannia (later renamed Auguste Victoria)
Ship type: Dampfschiff (steamer)
Accomodation: Zwischendeck (steerage)
Shipping company: Hamburg-Amerikanische Packetfahrt-Actien-Gesellschaft
Country flag: Deutschland (Germany)
Captain's name: Hebich

(Cimorelli's Manifests shows this ship arrived in New York eight days later on 14-May-1892.)

The "Normannia" (at left) was the first German express steamer, built in Glasgow for the Hamburg-American Line in 1890. It was 500 feet long; 57 feet wide; with a service speed of 19 knots. It held 1,100 passengers (400 first-class, 120 second-class, and 580 in steerage), with a crew of 245.

When John arrived in New York, he passed though Ellis Island (at left), which had opened just five months earlier. His ship sailed past the Statue of Liberty, which had been unveiled six years earlier, on October 28, 1886. At 305 feet, it was New York's tallest structure until 1899.

Starting a New Life

This is the portion of John's life of which I know the least, so I must speculate. Arriving at the age of 17, John may have traveled west by train to be with relatives or friends that had come before ... possibly to Oshkosh, Wisconsin. (This area had [and still has] a prevalence of residents named Jungwirth, an unusual surname.)

From there, it would not have been difficult to get to Chicago where a carpenter could easily have found work. Rebuilding after the Great Fire of 1871 had made the city's economy strong, and the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition would show off Chicago's rebirth.

Here he would meet Catherine (Katie) Meyer, born to Jacob and Susana (Schommer) Meyer on 25-Oct-1874 in Chicago. They were married 20-Jul-1895 at St. Francis of Assisi Church, 813 W. Roosevelt Road.

John and Katie had a large family, all born in Chicago:

1. John Jungwirth Jr., b. 6-May-1896, d. 8-Jul-1961


2. Edward Henry Jungwirth, b. 12-Nov-1897 , d. 28-May-1964


3. Fredericus Jungwirth, b. 16-Aug-1900, d. 19-Aug-1900


4. Catherine Gabriela Jungwirth, b. 12-Aug-1901, d. 6-Apr-1952


5. Gertrude Jungwirth, b. 28-Mar-1903, d. 24-May-1930


6. Marie Jungwirth, b. 17-Apr-1905, d. 11-Dec-1939


7. Frederick Peter Jungwirth, b. 15-Oct-1906, d. 7-Oct-1980


8. Arthur Henry Jungwirth, b. 22-Sep-1908, d. 6-Apr-1944


9. Clarence William Jungwirth, b. 19-Mar-1910, d. 3-May-1983


10. Susan Agnes Jungwirth (twin), b. 17-Dec-1911, d. 11-Feb-1977


11. Henry John Jungwirth (twin), b. 17-Dec-1911, d. 1-Oct-1958

For baptismal information on these children, click here: Baptismal listing

John and Katie celebrated their silver wedding anniversary in 1920, and are shown below at the celebration with nine of their 10 living children. Front row: Clarence, Henry (Heinz), Susan, Arthur, and Fred (Fritz). Back row: Gertrude, John, Edward, Katie, John Jr., and Marie. (Catherine [Kate] is not present.)

Because John had no family in Chicago, the family was especially close to Katie's Meyer relatives. There is no evidence that John ever returned to visit the family he left behind in Bohemia, although his daughter Susan recalled that packages were sent to and received from John's family. His father Johann did visit his son on 4-Oct-1899, arriving (via Bremen) in New York City on the ship Kaiser Wilhelm der Grosse.

Later Life

John Jungwirth became a citizen on 24-Oct-1898 in Chicago. His naturalization papers indicate he had lived in the U.S. for six years, five of these in Illinois.

John was a carpenter for 35 years, working at the Peter Schoenlager Brewing Company at 18th and Canal Sts. He was a member of the United Brotherhood of Carpenters & Joiners Local No. 58. (See two-sided ribbon, in the possession of John Peter Jungwirth; black side was worn for funerals.)

In the early years of their marriage, John and Katie lived with her parents at 31 Solon St., in the St. Francis of Assisi parish. While they both spoke High German, Jacob and John spoke different dialects, which was a source of conflict between them.

By 1900, John, Katie, John Jr. and Edward lived at 45 Green St. This location no longer exists, but it would have been near Madison & Halsted Sts.

By 1904, John owned and occupied a two-family frame home, built in 1893, at 511 Southport Avenue. (This was later renumbered as 2738 N. Southport Avenue.) The home was in the parish of St. Alphonsus Church, 1429 W. Wellington, in Chicago's Lakeview neighborhood. It had been moved around the corner from its original location on Diversey Avenue. There must have been a corner brewery nearby, since youngest daughter Susan remembered being sent there with a nickel and a pail to bring back a brew for "Pa."

The family's final home (lower right) was at 4231 N. Whipple St., in Our Lady of Mercy parish, 4432 N. Troy Street. John purchased the 2-year-old brick two-flat on Feb. 28, 1920. Here he kept his beloved aquarium on the back porch (see photo below).

Final Chapter

John had been prone to spells of depression, and had threatened to kill himself over the years. But in 1926, he became truly despondent when Katie, his wife of 31 years, died.

His family now grown and nearly on their own, John placed an ad in Chicago's German-language newspaper, the Abendpost, seeking a wife. He married Margaret Augustin, a widow with two grown children, on 19-Nov-1927 in Chicago. Conflicts between John's children and Margaret were frequent. Those living at home quickly moved out to live with married siblings (except youngest daughter Susan, who was denied this permission).

Prohibition (1920-1933) had devastated the nation's breweries, one of which employed John Jungwirth. But in 1929, the Great Depression hit, and by August, 1932 John Jungwirth joined the 25% of working Americans who had lost their jobs.

John finally succumbed to his own great depression, and hung himself in his Whipple St. basement on 28-Nov-1932, at the age of 57. He feared that he had cancer, and had threatened to jump from a bridge a few weeks earlier. John was buried 1-Dec-1932 at St. Joseph's Cemetery in River Grove, IL, next to Katie.

John's death opened new conflicts between his widow Margaret and his children, and between the children themselves. John left no will, and settling his estate took more than five years. Click here for probate proceedings: Probate documents

At the time of his death, John's name and dates were not carved on the existing tombstone, since the family did not agree as to who could or should pay for it. In 1999, a group of his grandchildren honored John by doing this.

Click here for a partial listing of John's descendants: Jungwirth descendant report