August Hoffmann: From Russian Poland to Michigan in the 1870s

Collecting genealogical data on August Hoffmann
at the Oak Grove Cemetery in Manchester, Michigan (Stan Hoffman)

The Hoffmann family arrived in the U.S. from their home in Russian Poland (now Lithuania) where they had moved to avoid conscription of their sons into the national armies. The early Hoffman story is based on the tales passed down to August's descendants. Fred L. Hoffman wrote what he remembered in 1937. Dorothy Williams Burpo added her recollections to Fred L's writing in 1981. Some additional information comes from the marriage record of August, the naturalization certificate of the son of August Hoffmann, Fred G. Hoffman, and passenger lists from the 1870s.

The Wandering Hoffmanns: Germany to Russia

Warfare and military conscription drove the Hoffmanns to move more than once in the 19th century. Historically, Germans who were pacifistic and those in Evangelical religions felt welcomed in Russia after 1803 when Catherine the Great encouraged migration from Europe. Many who settled initially in Poland, including the areas considered Prussia, moved further east following the Polish insurrection in 1830.

About 1830, the Hoffmann family left their home in Prussia for Russian Poland so the young men in the family would not be drafted by the German government. The Hoffmanns settled in a village in the vicinity of "Mariampole en Polen" (as it was referred to in original Hoffman documents, now Marijampole in Lithuania near the Polish border). At that time, the Russian Czar was encouraging literate Germans to settle in the area with promises of available land and no military conscription. During this time, many literate Germans and Jewish settlers moved to the area. These immigrants were given many privileges, while the native peasant population faced harsh restrictions and could be executed over minor infractions of the law, according to Hoffman family lore. Historical reports indicate Germans were only about 5% of the population of Mariampole, with the largest group being educated Jewish settlers.

The elder Hoffmann was reported to have had a large farm, and many children, 24 boys and 1 girl by his two wives. Little is known of the elder Hoffmann and his family beyond that noted in the marriage record for son August, who was likely a child of the first marriage.

The Marriage of August Hoffmann to Anna Maul

Marriage certification issued
for August Hoffmann & Anna Maul
in Mariampol en Polen

While the story recorded by Fred Hoffman about his ancestors referred to his Hoffmann ancestor who settled near Mariampole as "August," the handwritten marriage document for August and Anna gave his father's name as Frederick.

This certificate which Anna Maul Hoffmann carried with her when she came to the US is a transcription of the original Polish from the Evangelical Church records in Mariampole with a Russian translation of the record in the second column. The original record, microfilmed by the Family History Library, has been translated as:

Date of record: Marijampole/Mariampol, 18 May 1856, 4:00 p.m.; Witnesses: Fryderyk Hoffman, age 50, innkeeper? in Tamuliszki, and Jan Grau, age 45, tavern owner/innkeeper in Krasne; Groom: August Hoffman, age 22, farmhand in _____, bachelor, son of Fryderyk and the deceased Katarzyna nee Shultz, the former spouses Hoffman, innkeepers? in Tamuliszki; Bride: Miss Anna Maul, age 20, daughter of the late Wilhelm and Maryanna nee Müller, the spouses Maul, day-laborers in Karklupenai; Banns: 27 April, 4 & 11 May this year

According to Anna Maul, her marriage was arranged between the couple's parents. Her grand-daughter Clara Hoffman Jay wrote, "I remember [my grandmother Anna] telling me how she cried and cried to think of marrying him. I don't think she had met him before they were married." 

They were married in spring 1856, with their first child, Anna B. Hoffmann, born in 1857. The family resided in Sereje, Sejny, Suwałki, Russian Empire where all the children were born according to church records from the village.

Moving Again: America in 1872

Times changed and so did the Czar. The new regime under Alexander II altered the policy so tax privileges for Russian Germans ended in 1871, and all young men were subject to conscription into the Russian army in 1874. August found himself with sons who would be taken to fight in Russian wars. Given the shifting political situation, August decided to leave his home and seek opportunity in the US, something done by many Russian Germans about this time. 

Following other relatives who had already emigrated, he headed for New York in 1872 where his aunt, Mrs. Ortlieb (his father's sister), was living. August took his ten-year-old son, also August Hoffman (jr)., along with him, leaving his wife to care for the other children until he was settled and could afford to send for them.

Although August began in New York, he soon moved on to Chicago seeking work, taking any jobs that would support him and his son. The Great Lakes area was a destination for many German immigrants who found the climate and landscape similar to what they had left behind.

Life was hard for August sr., as he was constantly dealing with where he could safely leave young August while he was working in the big city and because he was unsuccessful in finding regular employment.

When August heard that there was a need for farm help east of Chicago, he went to Napoleon, Jackson, Michigan where he worked chopping wood for 35 cents a cord and any other odd jobs he could find. Two years later he had saved enough money to send for his wife, Anna Maul Hoffman, and their four children, Joseph, Anna B., Louis, and Fred G. After selling their land in Mariampole to a Jewish farmer, Anna M. and the children traveled to America where they joined August and son in early 1875. 

August Hoffman Family Tree (click to see a larger view)

The family settled in the village of Manchester, Washtenaw County, Michigan (west of Ann Arbor), a small community with a large German population. August continued as a laborer and eventually found work on the railroad. Their youngest son Charles Hoffman was born in Michigan in December 1875, but sadly their 14-year-old son Joseph Hoffman died that fall. In county directories, August is shown as paying taxes on two acres of land he owned in the village of Manchester, and he is listed as a farmer.

August died in 1881 and is buried in the Manchester cemetery. Two sons are buried next to him—Joseph and August Jr. who died in 1883. Over time, the family changed from using the original Hoffmann (two n's) to Hoffman, with both versions of the surname reflected in the Manchester cemetery tombstones.

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Footnote: The location of August's farm in Russian Poland, although in the Mariampole administrative district, is still a problem area. Both Clara Jay and Fred L. Hoffman, grandchildren of August, identified the village as Seynes, but there is not such a place. Based on the church records for the children, this is Seinai (Russian Seiny, Polish Sejny), Suwałki Gubernia, southwest of Mariampole on the Lithuanian/Russian border.