In my research, I love coming across documents which detail the history of an area and how the Holzgrafe family influenced that history. Recently, I received a correspondence from the United Methodist Church in Santa Ana, California. This church used to be an Evangelical Lutheran church and it was Ferdinand Holzgrafe, second great-grandson of Caspar Holzgrafe, who helped get the church started in the late 1800's. The following are excerpts from a couple of histories which were compiled for the church at the celebration of its 90th and 100th anniversaries.
"The first Evangelicals who came to Southern California settled in Wilmington, near San Pedro, in about 1878. The 4th of May 1879 came Ferdinand and Henry Holzgraf . The two unmarried brothers were members of the Evangelical Church in Indiana. At that time Rev. F. W. Vogelein of San Francisco preached off and on in their homes and organized a class. Ferdinand Holzgraf came to Santa Ana on the 15th of November in 1879. At that time Santa Ana had a population of about 500. Mr. Holzgraf was the first Evangelical man in the whole vicinity and though the church wasn't officially organized until 1881, his arrival marks the birth of our church."
"The following Trustees were elected:
Peter Shield - President 3 years
Henry W. Rohrs - Treasurer 2 years
Ferdinand Holzgraf - Secretary 1 year"
Ferdinand married Peter's daughter and Ferdinand's daughter married a Rohrs.
"Trees were purchased and a lawn was planted. Mr. Ferdinand Holzgrafe was the first care-taker, who performed these services for $5.00 per year."
Also in my research I found that my second great-grandfather, Henry Louis Holzgraf, also moved to Wilmington, California with Ferdinand and was there as a witness at his wedding, but Henry went back to the Mid-west to study to become a pastor. I've always wondered what he did after his graduation in Naperville, Illinois in 1886 and before he got married in Gibson, Indiana in 1888. The other day I found his name in the Los Angeles Daily Herald on 16 March 1887:
"Daily real estate record...Monday, March 15, 1887...Henry Gobruegge to Henry L Holzgrafe - 10 acres in Ro. Santiago de Santa Ana: $3750."
Apparently he was planning on settling in Santa Ana with his brother, but I have found no more records to indicate what he was doing in Santa Ana. He remained in the Mid-west throughout his ministry and later picked up farming and followed his children to the Pacific Northwest where he retired. I need to investigate more into the land records of Santa Ana to find out what Henry did with those 10 Acres which, had he kept ownership of them, would have made him a very wealthy man today.
I think it is very neat to see how my ancestors influenced the development of this country. Every one is important and helps me to see that those still alive are just as important to the future's history.
