Friedrich G. Spoering

Born on November 6, 1887, Friedrich G. Spoering was the second son of Herman Heinrich and Katherine (Floke) Spoering.  Fred stayed home and helped his father farm until he was thirty-two years old, when he married Anna Imbrock Hoops, a widow with two young daughters.

Anna, born October 15, 1887, was the daughter of Heinrich Friedrich Conrad Imbrock and Sophia Louise Henrietta Hoffmeister.  She married Wilhelm F. Hoops in Henry County when she was 22 on the day after Christmas, 1909.

The cause of Wilhelm's death is not known, but on August 18, 1916, Anna became a widow.  When he died, Anna was pregnant with a third child, born December 27, 1916.  Named, Wilhelmine Louise after her two grandmothers, this child died at 5 months old, of bronchitis, on May 30, 1917.

Fred Spoering married the widowed Anna Hoops on December 11, 1919 after he returned from his service in World War I.  Fred filled out his draft form when he was 29 where he noted that he had poor eyesight.  He enlisted on July 23, 1918 into Truck Company, 5th Corp Artillery Park, Pvt. 1st class. He embarked with his unit on September 23, 1918 from Hoboken, NY on the ship Ascenius, destination not recorded.  He served in the American Expeditionary Forces until he was honorably discharged on April 26, 1919.

 Fred and Anna rented a home in Bartlow Township where Fred worked as a Laborer, according to the 1920 census.   Alma, 8, and Helen, 7, were with them at that time.
 Alma Marie Hoops, born on February 14, 1910, had epilepsy and was placed in the Luther Home of Mercy in Williston, Ohio in 1923, after Anna's marriage to Fred Spoering.  Alma died in 1945 at the age of 35 years, 10 months.  Helen/ Helene was born in 1912 and lived on until 2011.


By 1930, the couple had added two more children to the family - Richard F., 8, and Martha, 6, as well as Alma Hoops, 19 (perhaps home at that time) and Helen Hoops, 17.  Fred owned a home and farmed.

By 1940, only Martha, 16, was left at home with Fred and Anna, both 52.  In 1941, Martha married Raymond Sunderman and Helen had already married Lawrence Drewes. Richard Frederick Spoering, (couldn't be found in 1940 census) enlisted in the Army on August 22, 1942.  On his draft registration, he listed his residence as Albion, Noble County, Indiana where he worked as at the Albion Production Credit Association. Richard did not marry until April 15, 1981, to Iva Lola (Bremer) Baumberger when he was sixty.

Fred Spoering died on December 14, 1954.  His obituary appeared in The Republican-Courier, Findlay, Ohio on December 27, 1954.

"FRED SPOERING RITES HELD SUNDAY
Henry County Native Succumbed Friday.

Deshler - Dec. 26 - Services were held at 2 p.m. Sunday for Fred Spoering, 62, retired farmer who resided northwest of Deshler.  The Reverend Otto Ehlen officiated at services at St. John's Lutheran Church.  Burial was in the church cemetery.  The Felter Funeral Home was in charge of arrangements.

Mr. Spoering died at 1:30 a.m. at his residence after an illness of two years.  He had lived his entire life in Henry County.  He was born November 6, 1887, in Marion Township, Henry County, to Henry and Marie Spoering.  He married Anna Imbrock Dec. 11, 1919, and she survives.

Also surviving are a son, Richard, Altoona, Pa.; a daughter, *Mrs. Martha Sunderman, Deshler; a step-daughter, Mrs. Martha Drewes; brother, George, Napoleon; sisters - Mrs. Mary Baden, Malinta; Mrs. Sophia Marksch, Deshler; Mrs. Anna Helmke, Mrs. Lydia Loudon and Mrs. Frieda Lang, all of Napoleon; Mrs. Kate Tietje, Hamler, and Mrs. Ida Schlagel, Traverse City, Mich., six grandchildren and one great-grandchild."

 *error - Mrs. Helen Drewes, step-daughter

Anna Imbrock Hoops Spoering

 From Obituaries from The Deshler Flag newspaper, Deshler, Ohio, Vol. IV -

"ANNA SPOERING

Anna Spoering, 96, of rural Deshler, died at Oak Grove Manor Nursing Home, Deshler.
Born October 15 1887, she was the daughter of Conrad and Louise (Hoffmeister) Imbrock.  She married William Hoops on December 26, 1909, and he preceded her in death in 1916.  
She married Fred Spoering on December 11, 1919.  He died in 1954.

A homemaker, Mrs. Spoering was a member of St. John Lutheran Church, Deshler, and the Dorcas Circle of American Lutheran Church Women.

Surviving are a son Richard, of Deshler; two daughters, Mrs. Lawrence (Helen) Drewes and Mrs. Raymond (Martha) Sunderman, both of Deshler; a brother, Henry, of Liberty Center; six grandchildren, one step-grandchild 15 great-grandchildren, two step-great grandchildren and four great-great-grandchildren.

Services were held at the church.  The Reverend Andrew Ballas officiated and interment was in the church cemetery.  The family suggests memorials be made to Williston Home of Mercy or the St. John Lutheran Church Building Fund."

 

St. John Lutheran Church Cemetery, Deshler

Another Photo From Threshing Day

Aunt Alma Elling Hicksted wrote in her memoirs, " Then came the threshing days.  They were fun for us kids, and I think the women enjoyed themselves, too.  It gave them a chance to get together and bake and cook bountiful meals for their men and families.

There were about twenty families that had the threshing machine and all helped each other.  There were like two groups that lived close together - some ran the threshing machine and separator and lots of the others brought their teams and wagons and did the field work and brought the shocked wheat bundles loaded on wagons to the machine.
 


There were lots of children and the older ones had to watch the younger ones.  Sometimes they were at one place for dinner and another one for supper.  And what good, big meals they cooked.  And the desserts - especially the pies and cakes.

About 9:30 a.m. was Frustuch or what is now called break time.  Sandwiches and cold water were taken to the men as they had worked long and hard already - usually bologna, summer sausage, and cheese sandwiches.  Then sometimes we had to walk from one place to the next and always several little ones in buggies.  On occasion we were lucky and a farmer would be going with a team of horses and wagon and would help the mothers put the buggies and little ones on his wagon and we would ride to the next place where threshing was to be done.  Even at that, those were such fun days. 

The photo below came from Alma and it is marked as a threshing day photo taken at a farm not far from the Seeman farm.  My father is in the buggy and he was born in September 1923.

Her identifications: "From the left is Paul Elling, Alfred Elling, From the other end is Rudy in buggy.
Next to buggy in front row is Arnold Sunderman (I was confirmed with him) and next smaller one is his brother Raymond Sunderman and next to him is Alma Elling Hicksted, a towhead and the one behind me is Laura Sunderman Grobrogge.  
The others I'm not sure of.  It's been too long, long ago.  I know there were some Meyers, Ludemans and the elderly lady is Minnie Seeman."