Bihlmartinshof

Information Compiled by Darlene O’Neal

The following information about the Ferenbach Family Farm in Germany was made available by Darlene O’Neal, a granddaughter of Albert
and Katharina Ferenbach. Darlene had this to say about her discovery of the history of the Ferenbach homestead, a homestead that had
been handed down from generation to generation of Ferenbachs, dating back to the 1600s when the property was owned by a Martin
Ferenbach, after whom the property itself was named “Bihlmartinshof”. (The ownership of the farm estate itself dates all the way back to the
1400s.)

Darlene begins by saying: “My mother, Theresa Ferenbach Fessler, had told me the story about an oil painting that used to hang in her
parents’ kitchen in Jersey County when she was a young girl.  Mother said her father (Karl Albert Ferenbach) stated it was a painting of his
family’s farm in Germany. . . . “

Darleen then goes on to say: “I first saw the paining on a visit to my aunt, Bertha Ferenbach Morgan, in St. Louis. We (my husband William
“Pat” O’Neal and myself) happened to have a camera with us and took a photo.  The large farm house consisted of living quarters on top of
the first floor devoted to barn type usage. It depicted mattresses hanging out the windows to air out and farm animals grazing and a wagon
proceeding along a road.  The artist who painted the picture is unknown and I do not know if he (my grandpa) brought the painting with him
when he came to the United States or whether it was sent to him by his family. I knew grandpa came from Furtwangen, Baden, Germany,
from conversations with my aunt, Mary Ferenbach Beil, and my uncle, Ernest Ferenbach.  I copied my photo and it was not until 1999 that I
sent it to a cousin, Herbert Lubowski, on my mother’s side of the family, who was a native of Germany.  He took it to the land office in
Furtwangen and they recognized which farm it was and referred him to a Ferenbach family historian, Gisela Hoch, for further details. What
luck!”

“It is through Gisela Hoch that much of my information has been gathered and I cannot thank her enough!  She wrote that to be a farmer in
the Black Forest is often very troublesome and there is not very much growing there and they often have a lot of snow.  A typical Black Forest
farmhouse has a great big roof to protect against wind, storm and snow.  The growing season is short.  Most do stock farming and have
some woodland and do not make much profit and this was also true around 1900 when the photo of the actual farm was taken.  It is
unknown who was standing in the foreground. (Above photo)

“Before 1900 the economy had been bad and a lot of people were poor and only one person or descendant could be on the farm as an
owner.  All the other children had to try to do something else to make a living.  Perhaps that is why Karl Albert and three of his younger
siblings (Jacobina, Ignaz, and Emilie) came to the United States.

“In Furtwangen, Neukirch and surrounding communities a lot of people tried to do other things to earn a living, including watchmaking. The
Black Forest has become famous for its watches, and today one can traverse the Deutsche Uhrenstrasse (German Clock Route) for 320
kilometers.  Along the way are museums and sights all to do with clocks, including clock factories.  As early as 1840, subsidiaries of the
Black Forest clock traders existed in four continents and twenty-three countries.  In 1845, over 600,000 clocks were produced in the Black
Forest.

“While researching the Furtwangen area I came across a book written by Klara Werber detailing the history of the local farms.  Farm number
12, which went by the name of Bihlmartinshof, was the Fehrenbach Family Farm that I had been searching for.  In her book, Ms Werber had
noted the farm’s history through it 18th owner, Anton Fehrenbach.  Gisela provided the remaining owners until the estate was sold.  The
farmland was later subdivided with different owners as it was no longer being used for farming.  Today there is also a playground, and there
are many other buildings erected on the site.  An original building from the Bihmartinshof farm complex is still standing and has been
converted into a restaurant.  The oil paining is remarkable in scale and position of the structures when compared to actual photos of the
farm.  The town of Furtwangen now seems to have expanded to meet the land where the farm was once located.
THE FERENBACH FAMILY FARM NEAR FURTWANGEN, GERMANY
View of Furtwangen in 1920 with Bihlmartinshof in the background (at the intersection of the two arrows)
This photo shows the only
surviving building of the
Bihlmartinshof.
It is the building on the far right in
the oil painting. It has been
converted for dining and is now
named “Gasthof Lowen” or the
“Lion’s Restaurant”
Furtwangen is a small city in the Black Forest
region in the south-west of Germany located
at the river Breg. Today the population of
Furtwangen is nearly 10,000.

Furtwangen became a city in 1873. The city is
know for its manufacturing of cuckoo clocks.
This watch industry was very important for
this region, but with the appearance of quartz
controlled watches, the production of
mechanical watches in this region as mostly
become obsolete.
50,000 Mark
This note was issued by Stadtgemeinde Furtwangen (Town Furtwangen). It is
dated 10. August 1923.
River Breg, Baden, Germany
The Breg emerges near the town of Furtwangen in
the Black Forest. It merges with another river
downstream to become the Danube.
Furtwangen, German clock museum
Schwarzwald-Baar (district)
Darleen goes on to say: “I had Ms. Werber’s information on our Ferenbach Farm translated into English. This gives you an idea of the
type of record keeping done in Germany.  There are some skips, and the translation was subject to my translator’s interpretation, so I
cannot vouch for its complete accuracy.  If anyone finds an error or different information, please let me know so I can change my records.”  

(Copied below is a record of ownership of Bihlmartinshof in the original German language.  It provides information on the 20th owners of
the farm, Wilhelm and Helene Fehrenbach, who were the parents of our Grandfather, Karl Albert Ferenbach.)
Note:         The main building on the Bilmartinshof estate does not appear in modern         
photographs because it burned down in a fire on November 11, 1925.  The only surviving farm
building is the one that has been converted into Gasthof Lowen.
(On the following three pages are the records of ownership of the Bihlmartinshof estate from Martin Fehrenbach, the 16th owner,
who was born in 1684, to Wilhelmine Fehrenbach (Karl Albert’s older sister), who was the 21st and last owner of the estate.  
Martin Fehrenbach, after whom the estate was named in modern records, was our great, great, great, great paternal grandfather.)
In reviewing the records, Darlene made the following observation: “You will note Wilhelm and Helene, my great
grandparents, were not married until after the birth of Wilhelmine and Karl Albert, my grandfather. Research has
shown the main reason was primarily economic in nature, rather than a moral lapse on the part of those
involved. Local governments had monetary requirements that had to be met before a marriage was allowed.  
Many young people simply lacked the necessary financial means to marry, support a family, and maintain a
household.  As their economic situation improved over time, so did the likelihood of their marrying. . . . . Most
mothers resided with their own parents (note Karl Albert was born where Helen’s parents lived in Neukirch), and
the children became a part of the extended family group.”
Wilhelm Ferenbach (father of Karl Albert) left Bihlmartinshof to his eldest, Wilhelmine
who married Gottfried Flammer.  They had two children Gottfried 1883-1965 and
August 1886-1967. At the time of the transfer 8-9-1881 the farm was deep in debt.  
Wilhelmine and Gottfried Flammer sold it on 4-13-1910 to the manufacturer Felix
Ketterner for (46,000 Marks) as they were deeply in debt.  The estate was closed.
FURTWANGEN 1808