Chronicles of George and Rosa

Sepia portrait of children in sailor outfits

Chapter 9: From Gulf Road to Hall’s Hill

Schmieder children, c. 1926 — left to right: Arnold, Hilda, and Fred; seated: George. The...
Historic brick apartment building with vintage cars

Chapter 8: Scalding Water and Saving Grace

Fred’s Story at St. Jerome’s St. Jerome Hospital, Batavia (circa 1920s)Operated by the Sisters of...
Silhouetted mother and children by glowing stove

Chapter 7: Schmieder Family’s First Christmas in America, 1924

Loneliness in a New Land: Longing for Christmas Past The bitter cold seeped through the...
Vintage ocean liner with twin smokestacks

Chapter 6: Tears and Hope — A Passage to America, 1924

SS Bremen: The Ship That Carried Rosa and Her Children to a New Life in...
Vintage mother with three young children portrait

Chapter 5: The Last German Years — Schönberg, 1923–1924

Passports in Hand, A Dream Set in Motion On August 16, 1924, Rosa and her...
Vintage steamship York docked at pier

Chapter 3: Journey of Sacrifice – George Leaves for America, 1923

SS Yorck – George’s Voyage to America, 1923 Back to the Beck Family Home It...
Vintage lakeside town with steepled church

Chapter 2: George and Rosa’s Struggle to Survive in Radolfzell

Radolfzell on Lake Constance – A Family’s Struggles and Dreams Wagenhausen/Bolstern: Where Their World Fell...
Vintage sepia village church with cemetery

Chapter 1: Hope and Heartache in Wagenhausen-Bolstern

A new Life Begins Wagenhausen-Bolste In November 1920, following their marriage ceremony at St. Martin’s Church...
Split vintage portrait of woman and uniformed man

Bound by Love and Defiance: The Marriage of George and Rosa

 Rosa Beck and Georg Schmieder Dedicated partners in life and legacy(1894–1985)                         (1897–1967) Dawn at the...
Vintage sparse Christmas tree beside wooden chair

A Heartwarming Depression-Era Christmas on the Schmieder Farm

On Christmas Eve, during the depths of the Great Depression, the Schmieder family in Alexander,...